For many years we have been subjected to advice from local and national health organisations on what we should eat and in writing this, I am presuming that all readers have followed that advice and are eating a well balanced diet with lots of fruit and vegetables. The constant omission, from all the dietary advice has been the failure to give any hints on the manner in which we should eat and improving our eating pattern will nearly always lead to a significant degree of weight loss. Our stomach is not an inert receptacle like a cement mixer or a kitchen mixer. Instead it is a living active organ with a control and communication system involving nerves and hormones. As soon as any food enters the stomach, the whole digestive system springs into action to prepare varied levels of activity. Glands in our cheeks secrete saliva and its purpose is not just to lubricate but it has an active role in starting the digestion of certain foods and preparing them for the different digestive juices that are starting to be released in the stomach itself. For the saliva to function properly it has to be mixed fully with the food. This is where chewing is vitally important and we have been given teeth not just for biting but for chewing.

 Chewing is, therefore, not just a process to break up food into particles small enough to be swallowed but is an active part of the process. If food is properly chewed then the saliva gets mixed right through and as it is alkaline it is there to help counter the acid that is released as food reached the stomach. In the 1930`s a Dr. Fletcher advocated that every mouthful be chewed 72 times. That is now regarded as being rather excessive but think on how much chewing you actually do. To increase the number of times each mouthful is chewed it is necessary to put the knife and fork back down on your plate and then fold your hands. If eating a sandwich then it should be put down after taking a bite.

“Plating up”, where the server piles main course and extras on to each plate, is a modern concept that leads to over eating. In this country, in the past, and still in most other countries of the world, food portions are placed in the middle of the table and each person takes a little on to their eating plate. If you look around in an ethnic restaurant you will see the native people serving themselves in that way but most UK customers pile their plate full and then delve in. There have been numerous suggestions for the development of “plating up” and one is that it signifies modern affluence whereas food in the middle of the table was associated with shortage and poverty. Eating slowly and conversing or if you are eating alone then reading or watching Television helps to slow down the rate of swallowing. As I said earlier, the stomach is an active organ and if it gets food gradually it soon signals that there is enough, the person feels satisfied and the bulk of food eaten will be markedly less than if the meal is eaten rapidly. The process can also be helped by drinking a glass of water just before the meal. Fluid should not be drunk while there is food in the mouth and adequate chewing will allow lots of saliva to mix with it and swallowing the bolus is then easy. If eating a sandwich then the fluid intake should really be just before or after the sandwich has been well chewed and swallowed.

While the main action is taking place in the stomach, the rest of the bowel is also active in that different sections release a variety of chemically different juices which are specifically designed to digest individual types of food content ie. carbohydrate, protein and fat.

Meanwhile the large bowel moves yesterday`s food residue along its route ready for evacuation. If evacuation does not take place then constipation ensues and this accumulated debris can have an adverse effect on the whole process and also suppress appetite as well as leading to a vague feeling of “unwell-ness”. Constipation from resisting the call to the toilet is the commonest cause of abdominal pain in children.  Children who do not go to the toilet after breakfast are unlikely to go to school toilets and  so the lower bowel gets congested.

To get the whole digestive system ready for another day, it is good to drink a glass of water or have a cup of tea as soon as possible after rising. Breakfast is, in two ways, the most important meal of the day. Firstly it stimulates the whole system and secondly several studies have shown that school children who have breakfast reach a good performance level by 1000 but those who do not, only achieve this about 1430 once the benefit of their lunch has spread through their system.

             The main meal should be taken as early as possible, in the day, and then there should be some physical activity. The Scandinavians are a lean race and a lot of this is due to the complete absence of “plating up” in their countries and the evening physical activity that follows their main meal.

If this short article interests you, then please consider cutting it out and keeping it by the table at which you usually eat. If you follow the guidelines, and also keep a record of your weight then you will find that, over a month, you have lost some weight.

Dr.John A. J. Macleod. Lochmaddy.

(29/4/08)