Recently I realized that for three consecutive days, I was chugging copious amounts of water to force bite-sized chunks of food down my throat and these episodes of near choking were followed by serious digestive distress. Perhaps it’s time, I thought, to focus on chewing. A simple, everyday action that I thought I mastered before the age of 2, but it seems I was taking chewing for granted. I reminded myself that the whole process of breaking down food and converting it into energy starts in the mouth. Chewing is important.
For the last seven days, I have taken my mastication seriously and have noticed a bunch of things worth sharing. One, it takes a long time to really chew your food. It took me just under 30 minutes to eat a dinner-size salad with roast chicken and beets. That's a lot of chewing, which is good since it slows down the eating process. Occasionally, I would become bored with chewing and stop eating as soon as I felt sated, a great way to not overindulge. This process helps with dieting. Secondly, my digestion really improved. Gone was the random cramping and bloated feeling.
I challenge you all to focus on your eating. Take a refresher course on chewing when you read more
