Drink lot of water after meals?

Hiya Sgandhe, welcome to A2K. Let us know if you need help finding your way around the hallways here.

Here's a thread discussing that very same question. Hope you find some answers there.

Drinking water : Before/During/After the meal?

Before and during is no issue.
I would like to know 'Should we drink 2/3 glass of water after the meals?'. Will it dilute the acids required for digestion?

What if it does? And what difference does it make if the water is with the food or after?

Seems to me that soup would equal food with water... and adding water to a meal either during or after the food was eaten would result in the same moosh in the stomach.

I think that a person should remain well-hydrated by drinking plenty of water throughout the day. I don't think your stomach cares if some of it comes in with your meals or not -- your body is designed to deal with regular, healthy foods and adequate water.

The question again remains unreplied that will it dilute the acids or not?
Can someone reply in Yes or no and then why?. Instead of explaining the importance of water in human body which many of us very well know.
I repeat, Let the reply come in yes or no and then why?

Sgandhe, I don't believe adding water changes acidity, as water has a neutral pH. So even if adding water increases the volume of liquid, the actual acidty (pH) remains the same.

Let me add both a welcome here to a2k to you, and mention that people in the forum make an effort to be courteous.

Osso, does that mean that lemonade and lemon juice have the same pH? Do they have the same strength?

Wy, if you don't add sugar, it would be adding neutral fluid to the lemon juice. If you do add sugar, I don't know the answer, whether it changes the pH or not.

I think that's sgandhe's question -- if you add a neutral fluid to an acid, is the acid diluted? (I think it's obviously yes, but I'm no chemist.) And maybe the second part of the question is, If yes, do those diluted stomach acids do an adequate job of digestion?

(sgandhe, if I'm misunderstanding you, please forgive me... )

Hmm, I don't know. The acid is all still there, although lolling about in some water. Whatever its original traits, whether it was a strong or weak acid (having perhaps something to do with binding as an acid compound), weaken thereby with water, I am not sure..

Await interest to the thread from a biochemist....

I heard it's a good thing to drink water right after dinner. True or not not sure but what I read in an article was that it makes the food digest faster and such. I will definitely look it up more.


P.S. what is the web site refdesk.com?

Whoa ossobuco, have you ever wondered why when you mix water and acid they react and heat up really quickly? Something is definitely happening.

I think we shouldn't drink water and eat at the same time. When you think about it, human beings rarely ever killed animals next to a source of water. So they definitely ate and drank separately. And even if they did, if they went off to drink water someone else would eat all of their food. Therefore, from an evolutionary standpoint, it makes no sense to eat and drink at the same time.

But there is also no reason why water should effect the digestive system because if the amount of acid isn't balanced, your body's buffer system pumps in more acid.

Yes, water and acid do produce heat when combined; in addition we were taught to always add a concentrated acid to water, instead of the reverse, water to the acid. Acid is often found in water though, and it does cool down. Acetic acid is often used at 6%, as I remember.

You want your stomach to be empty when you add water to it?

Drinking (warmed) water after meals won't do a harm. I always drink a cup of tea (or coffee depending on the occasion) after meals. And in a formal chinese restaurant you will take soup after main dishes, even.

Drink water 1 hour after food, always chew well while eating, so that your food is coated with amylase enzyme before it starts its journey down to the stomach. This will allow the carbs to be pre-digested faster. One hour after food allows for pre-digestion as well as the onset of stomach acid. If we drink too much water after food the acid does get diluted , which signals the brain to produce more acid which we don't need., 1-1.30 hrs after food drink 2 glassful of water.,

Eat pineapple or papaya in small amounts after food as it aids in digestion with its proteolytic enymes which help to pre-digest your proteins faster and this takes the stress out of your pancreas and small intestine., goes a long way to reduce bloating etc.,