In principle, we all know the theory of five meals a day, the guarantee of a balanced and healthy diet. In practice, however, few of us manage to stick to a fixed schedule and eat when we grab, often taking care not to leave our stomachs empty for too long.
You know for sure the expression “I have to put something in my stomach, not to be empty”. Well, the paradox is that he can’t be empty if you don’t put anything in him “, explained the nutritionist Mihaela Bilic on her personal Facebook account.
The explanation, the specialist added, is very simple. “The stomach is a muscular organ that, under normal conditions, between meals, has glued walls. So the stomach does not exist as an enclosure / cavity until we start eating. Once filled with food (no matter if there are many or few), he starts the job, mixes them with digestive juices and gradually eliminates them in the small intestine. When it is emptied, the stomach has fulfilled its role, its walls stick together and enter a state of rest until the next meal. “
Dr. Bilic points out that, in fact, we need to keep our stomachs empty, not full. The moment we nibble on something, we put into operation an entire “machine”, waking up a “sleeping animal”, which will keep asking to be fed.
“The goal of a healthy diet is to manage not to eat anything between meals, to have a complete break of 3-4 hours in digestion / secretion of gastric juices. And one more element must be taken into account: the stomach is a muscle, so it trains like any muscle. The more we eat at a meal, the more food we will need to get tired. Or vice versa, discipline yourself to eat less and your stomach will fill faster “, said Dr. Bilic.
–
