How long should a meal last for best health?

When it comes to improving health, people tend to focus on the types of food they eat. But did you know that the speed at which they eat is just as important?

And eating rice too quickly can cause health risks, according to medical news site Medical Express.

Here, scientists offer some tips to help you slow down and develop more mindful eating habits.

It should take more than 20 minutes to finish a meal, ideally about 30 minutes, to give the brain enough time to catch up with the stomach.

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How to eat rice not too fast and enjoy the meal fully?

Dr. Leslie Heinberg, Professor of Medicine at Cleveland Clinic (USA), explains: If you usually finish your meal in less than 20 minutes, you are eating too fast.

It takes 20 minutes for your body to send a message to your brain that you are full. If you eat quickly, you will consume more food in 20 minutes than someone who eats slowly. By the time fast eaters get the full signal, it is too late, they have eaten too much and feel uncomfortably full, Dr. Heinberg said, according to Medical Express.

How long should a meal last?

First, make sure you take your time with each meal. Eating more slowly helps you enjoy your meal and feel full before you overeat.

Dr. Heinberg recommends taking more than 20 minutes to finish a meal, ideally about 30 minutes, to give your brain enough time to catch up with your stomach.

Experts also point out some simple tips to help slow down eating.

First, turn off the TV and put down your phone.

It takes about 20 minutes for your stomach to communicate to your brain that it's full. So by eating quickly, you may miss these signals and easily end up overeating.

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If people eat while watching TV, they tend to eat until commercials or the show ends, and pay less attention to their body's own signals that it's full, says Dr. Heinberg. When we do other things while eating, we eat less mindfully, which leads to overeating. When people focus on eating, she says, they enjoy their meal more and eat less.

The doctor also admitted that eating speed is a deeply ingrained habit, but it can still be changed.

Dr. suggests things like using your non-dominant hand to eat, trying utensils you don't normally use, or taking a sip of water near the end of a meal.

Sarah Berry, a nutritionist at ZOE, a British nutrition company, advises paying attention to the taste and feel of your food if possible. She explains: If we are not focused, we can easily eat faster and not realize how much we have eaten.

Chew food thoroughly

One of the simplest things to do is chew for longer, says Helen McCarthy, clinical psychologist at the British Psychological Society.

Chewing each bite a little longer will slow down the eating process, advises McCarthy.

The type of food can also make a difference, as highly processed foods or fast foods are often softer and therefore much easier to eat quickly.

It's harder to eat vegetables and protein at the same rate as eating foods that are well-cooked and require less chewing, says McCarthy.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/an-bua-com-trong-bao-lau-la-tot-cho-suc-khoe-nhat-18525032809085122.htm