Daily Meditation: Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Chewing food - an essential part of nutrition

11/12/2013

You have been working for hours and now you are exhausted and hungry. At last, you are eating… It takes three or four hours to completely digest a meal, and yet, a quarter of an hour or so after you have finished your meal, you feel full of energy again, ready to return to work. This shows that only the coarsest part of the food is assimilated by the stomach and intestines; the most subtle part is absorbed through the mouth as a result of chewing. It is important to eat healthy food and have balanced meals. But it is even more important to chew the food well so as to draw the most subtle elements from it, for it is these that are truly nutritious and give us energy. So, what can be said about the way most people eat their meals? They chatter, squabble or, if they are alone, think of anything but the food. Good health implies respecting a few very simple principles, and one of them is being aware of what we are eating as we chew each mouthful thoroughly .