Many of us sit down for meals while indulging in some secondary activity. (Photo Credit: Unsplash)
Do you agree that we are a nation of multitaskers? It is often regarded as super cool when we do more than one activity at a time. When it comes to food, can you sit and eat without using your phone, reading a book or watching television? That’s hard, right? Many of us sit down to meals with either binge-watching our favourite shows/series/movies or indulging in some secondary activity. Even parents nowadays have a trick to feeding their children. When kids are fussy about food, they are made to sit in front of the phone or television that plays their favourite cartoon. The kids are so engrossed in the screen that without even realising they finish the entire meal. Is this the right way of consuming food? Eating with distractions is very common in our society and is barely discussed.
To help us understand what mindful eating actually means, Subhisha, a nutritionist at Resolute Active Care says, “Mindful eating is not a diet, but an art of experiencing the pleasure of consuming the food, whatever the food may be. It means paying attention to our food without any judgment.” She believes that it is an approach that focuses on an individual’s sensual awareness of the food and their experience of the food. It has little to do with calories, carbohydrates, fat, or protein. The purpose of mindful eating is not to lose weight but to help individuals savour the moment as well as the food and encourage their full presence for the eating experience.
Nutritionist Ashee Dwivedi claims that paying more attention to what you eat rather than less may help you avoid overeating. Hunger isn’t the only factor that drives our daily eating habits. Memory and attention are also important. She states that as one starts to eat, it takes around 20 minutes for the brain to send out “I’m full” or “I’m not hungry anymore” signals, which turns down the appetite.
“It’s simple to consume far more calories than you need in 20 minutes if you’re rushing or not paying attention. You don’t process information if you’re not aware of what’s going into your mouth. That is to say, it is not stored in your memory bank. And if you don’t remember what you ate, you’re more likely to eat again sooner than if you ate carefully,” she says.
So far, we have understood that people can’t eat without indulging in secondary activity. But why? To get a deeper insight into it, psychologist Bavitha Thomas cites some reasons. For some people, eating time is clubbed with leisure or relaxing time. Or because of the busy work schedule mealtime is the only time for yourself. Hence engaging in entertainment becomes a mandatory practice. There is also a tendency for people to engage in mindless scrolling. It becomes an unconscious act to scroll through social media while eating.
According to Dwivedi, one of the most basic needs of all living organisms, including humans, is food. Roland Barthes believes food is multidimensional since it shapes ourselves, our identities, our cultures, and, ultimately, our society. “When walking, walk. When eating, eat,” says a Zen proverb.
Unfortunately, current society appears to follow the saying, “Check your cellphone while walking,” or “Check your phone while eating.” The diet and wellness sectors have issued edicts to eat consciously and reduce mealtime distractions because our food intake appears to rise as our capacity to focus declines. Though well-intentioned, this advice just adds to the stress of living in a fast-paced society where multitasking (within reason) can assist us in keeping up.”
Subhisha explains that multitasking stops the brain’s ability to sense the taste of food. When the brain isn’t able to register the taste of the food, it will result in overeating until the taste registers. Almost all of us would have experienced the tummy growling while talking, thinking or seeing a delicious dish on the table. This is because of (CPDR) Cephalic Phase Digestive Response, where your brain and stomach prepare to digest the food that is about to come in. Almost 20 percent of the digestive acid secretion and 30-40 percent of digestion depend on this CPDR.
“Treat the food like your better half. It deserves all the attention you have,” says Subhisha. She advises using every sense to pay attention to every detail, smell, texture, ingredient and taste of the food. When one concentrates on the dish they are eating, they tend to eat slowly. Eating slowly helps in consuming fewer calories and promotes satiety as well as satisfaction, as the brain gets time to register when you are full.
When we eat slowly, we tend to chew the food properly which promotes better digestion and absorption of nutrients as digestion starts from the mouth. Eating slowly and concentrating on the food further helps us to prevent overeating and the incidences of binge eating. Eating quickly on the other hand can allow more air to enter your stomach, resulting in gas and bloating.
Dr Srikanth K P, a consultant of paediatric gastroenterology listed some effects of not concentrating while eating.
Small children can choke if they are not concentrating on eating. Distracted eating can lead to acute life-threatening events and chronic problems like obesity as they tend to eat more than required and consume more calories.
Eating with distraction is injurious to the digestive system, but there is no direct evidence to prove this. Even in the traditional method, we say to focus only on food to connect mind, body, and soul to get adequate calories. Most people indulge in distracted eating like eating in front of the television and gaining more calories, airway choking due to fishbone impaction, or any hard substance.
The long-term metabolic consequence of distracted eating is consuming more calories over some time. The intake of more calories makes the person obese and affects the metabolic components like impairment in blood sugar level and development of fatty acids. As more people and children are inside the house during covid pandemic without many activities, dysfunctional eating is becoming a concern as children are bound to eat in front of social media and television, giving rise to metabolic disorders like fatty liver.
SN Rao, Managing Director and Chairman at Supreem Superfoods says eating with distraction leads to weight gain and sometimes weight loss because not paying attention to a meal tends to make people eat more at that meal. “If you are worried about your weight, paying more attention to what you eat could help keep you from overeating or dieting. Mindful eating can reduce your daily calorie intake.”
Using an example he further explains: “Imagine that you grab a bag of chips and bring it with you to the couch. You may have meant to have only a few handfuls, but if your brain is busy trying to unravel the plot of a murder mystery it’s not going to signal to your body that it’s time to stop reaching for more. So you keep digging in, stopping only when you get the physical cue of your fingers hitting the very bottom of the bag. The mystery of what’s on TV may be solved, but you may never know exactly how much you ate during that sitting. By paying attention to what you are putting into your mouth, you are more likely to make healthier food choices, and you will enjoy meals and snacks more fully.”
According to Bavitha Thomas some of the common eating distractions are:
Eating in front of TV sets is a habit that many of us have adopted over the years. While this may indeed provide a viable source of entertainment, we tend to focus more on the latest programs as opposed to what is found on our plates.
All of us enjoy devouring a good book from time to time. Unfortunately, this may cause us to sacrifice a healthy meal for the sake of reading.
Using the phone while eating meals is the most familiar situation, as the majority of us have become linked to the digital domain. It is very common to end up landing on social media while eating.
Rao comments that mindful eating is an application of a broader approach to living called mindfulness. It involves being fully aware of what is happening within and around you at the moment. You can practice mindfulness during any daily activity that also includes eating. Applied to eating, mindfulness includes noticing the colours, smells, flavours, and textures of your food. It also means getting rid of distractions like television, reading, or working on your computer.
“The food you eat can help you have better digestion, feel fuller with less food, and make better dietary choices in the future.” believes Dwivedi. She assures that it can also assist in breaking bad eating and eating habits that allow you to become aware of the pleasant and nurturing possibilities that food selection and preparation can provide.
Rao suggests that eating without distraction can be achieved by following some simple steps such as having a timer of at least 20 minutes where you just focus on your food without any other task, try to use chopsticks, or take small bites and chew well. When you’re able to focus on your food you’ll savour the meal more, feel satisfied more quickly, and hold on to any feelings of fullness for longer. This will also give you time to taste what you’re eating and allow your body to process just how much you’re eating.
Dwivedi explains that it is relatively easy to eat mindfully.
Dr Srikan: At least one meal a day should be an isolated meal without distraction. Recently things like watching television and overly indulging in social media while having food are in practice. Ideally having one meal a day like breakfast without any distractions is of high importance. This undivided attention to having a meal can make them a good eater who enjoys the meal and helps in metabolic control.
Ashee Dwivedi: It takes time to form habits, it isn’t something that happens overnight. In today’s world, it’s typical to eat while distracted. These factors can have an impact not only on the enjoyment of the meal, but there are also some health implications to consider. Be patient with yourself in this process reinforcing your new and healthy habits are always fun. When you find yourself doing something that affects your health, stop immediately and ask yourself, “Why do I do this?” What year did I begin doing this? What adjustments should I make? Don’t berate yourself or believe that one mistake “blows” an entire day’s worth of good practices. You’ve got this! It’s only a matter of taking one day at a time.