Do you remember your parents constantly asking you to chew well while eating? They insisted that the food must be crushed properly before it is swallowed. Recently, the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) issued an advisory in this regard after a 50-year-old man choked to death while eating momos. In the medical examination, it was revealed that a momo got stuck in the deceased’s windpipe which led to his demise.
While chewing may seem like a very basic activity, many don’t really pay heed to it. Chewing has an important function to play and is the first step of digestion. When you chew your food, it isn’t just to taste the ingredients but to ensure that the bigger chunks of food are broken down into small pieces or thin paste.
Experts suggest that one should chew their food around 32 times before swallowing it. However, this number can also increase up to 40 depending upon the nature or the texture of the food. While harder foods like nuts and meat may require more chews, soft foods can be chewed to a paste more quickly.
Below we have enumerated some of the key points highlighting the importance of chewing your food.
- Digestion of the food you eat starts way before in your body than you think.
- Chewing, being the first step of digestion, breaks down and mixes the food with saliva and makes it easier to swallow it.
- Bigger pieces of food can get stuck in the throat of an individual and block the flow of air. By making sure that the food is reduced to smaller pieces or paste, chewing properly reduces the risk of choking on food.
- Chewing thoroughly also prevents the person from overeating and in turn keeps rampant health issues like obesity at bay.
- When the food is swallowed, it ends up confusing the rest of the digestive system.
- Mindful chewing also activates the enzymes present in the mouth and helps in better absorption of the nutrients from the food.
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