Did you know that your bathing habits can impact your digestion 28^th November 2022

Our elders followed a healthy lifestyle and had a long lifespan, however, life expectancy has been going down in recent years. A big reason for this is the inability to follow a healthy lifestyle due to our busy schedules and poor dietary habits. We are more prone to falling ill and catching several seasonal and life-threatening diseases. The majority of health conditions rely on your eating habits and digestion. Did you know that even your bathing habits can impact your digestion? This has been certified by both Ayurveda and modern science.

Let us see how our bathing habits impact our digestion.

Say no to shower immediately after a meal.

Whenever we eat a meal, our body rushes blood to the digestive system. This helps it in the digestion process. As a result, heat is generated inside the body to break down the food.

Ayurveda’s point of view:

According to Ayurveda, this heat is the fire element inside us. Whenever we eat something, it gets activated and helps in the digestion process. Taking a shower has a cooling effect on the body. It automatically lowers the body temperature. The fire element or the heat in the body cools down, and the blood flow also slows down. This directly impacts the digestive process, in turn, and slows it down considerably. Hence, taking a shower after a meal harms our digestive system.

Medical science’s point of view:

The same fact is corroborated by medical science but differently. It says that taking a shower right after a meal slows down the blood flow because of the cooling effect. Our body starts working harder to maintain a standard temperature to help in the digestion process. The blood that should help in the digestion process is diverted to other parts of the body. This results in the slowing of the digestive process.

It may also cause acidity and uneasiness, and you may feel a sense of nausea. Our bodies may start feeling dull and sluggish. You might have a comforting sleep after a shower, but it will be bad for your digestive system. A bath after a meal can increase your heart rate and may add to your discomfort when your stomach is full. Therefore, medical science also discourages a bath right after a meal.

Type of meal.

As mentioned above, bathing right after a meal is bad for our digestive system. However, how bad it varies with the type of food that we have. A meal high in protein or fat may result in bloating and slowing down our digestive process. Having lighter food such as fruits, salad or soup will have a lesser negative effect on our digestive system. Eat what suits your stomach the best while also taking care of your body’s nourishment.

Waiting time.

It is not that we cannot take a bath all day after having a heavy meal. We need to wait for some time after we have had a heavy meal so that the food gets time to digest. This waiting time may vary from person to person, but generally, a gap of 30 minutes is advisable for taking a bath after a meal.

It is best to take a bath early in the morning to feel fresh, relaxed and rejuvenated. If we cannot take a bath before breakfast, we should avoid taking it right after we have a meal due to the above-mentioned reasons.

Indigestion results in multiple problems, such as upset stomach, stomach pain, nausea, etc. Chronic indigestion can be a big problem and lead to other serious illnesses. Hence, we should invest in the best health insurance policy in India to protect ourselves and our families. A health insurance policy can be a saviour as treatment costs have skyrocketed in recent years in India. It will provide us security in times of illness and keep our savings intact.

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Disclaimer: The information provided above is for illustrative purposes only. To get more details, please refer to policy wordings and prospectus before purchasing a policy.