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Feeling Bloated? Check The Temp Of Your Food

Estimated reading time: 2 minute(s)

Abdominal bloating is quite common (it’s estimated that one-third of the population suffers from it) and the cold, winter months can aggravate it. Are you someone who often feels discomfort after eating? Do you get gas, acid reflux, heartburn, or even a rumbly stomach?  

Well, oddly enough, one reason you may be because what you just ate wasn’t at the recommended temperature for the winter months

What happens in Winter?

Our body’s ability to digest food is reduced at low temperatures. The body already has to make more of an effort which is why there are different recommended food temperatures during the winter.  

Cold foods are harder on the digestive system because before the body can start to process them, their temperature must be raised to adapt them to our body temperature (36.5ºC). This extra effort slows down the digestion process and food may remain in the stomach longer, lengthening the emptying process and causing abdominal distress.

Foods that cause bloating in the winter. 

Cold, raw, or undercooked foods are the ones to avoid if we want to stop uncomfortable bloating. Examples:

  • Salads
  • Vegetable and Fruit Smoothies
  • Meat or Fish Carpaccios
  • Pickles
  • Fermented Foods
  • Cold Drinks 

What should I eat to avoid bloating in the winter?

There are people who don’t adjust what they eat depending on the weather and this is a huge mistake. We can’t eat the same thing in 0-degree weather that we eat in 38C degree weather. You wouldn’t bring hot soup to the beach so why eat cold food in the winter? 

During the cold, winter months, we should pay special attention to how we cook: always prioritize stews and slow cooking.

Of course, I’m referring to typical spoon dishes that are super comforting and help to warm you up. Not only will it relax you but it will relax the nervous system as well.

Hot stews and soups are a great option if we want to avoid abdominal bloating. That’s because they are not only warm but are also already broken down which takes some of the workload off of your digestive system.  

Here are some of my favorite foods to avoid bloating:

Chicken Curry Zoodles Soup

Ramen

Roasted Tomato Soup

Porridge

Golden Milk

Baked Cauliflower 

Bone Broth

Meatballs

Zucchini Cream in a Bread Bowl

Don’t Go Overboard…

There is always too much of a good thing. Be sure to not overheat your soup, coffee etc.Extremely hot temperatures can be very harmful: they can inflame mucous membranes in the mouth, cause burns on your tongue or to your palate and even alter taste buds … and even the WHO (World Health Organization) warns of the relationship between consuming excessively hot food and esophageal cancer.

Did you know that studies in China, Iran, Turkey, and South America, where tea and matcha are traditionally drunk at very hot temperatures (around 70 degrees) have shown that the risk of esophageal cancer increases depending on the temperature of the beverage?

Be Careful of Your Posture After Eating!

It may seem trivial, but posture can greatly influence how we digest our food. According to experts at Harvard Medical School, sitting with a hunched back after eating puts pressure on the abdomen and makes it difficult to digest food.

So be careful and pay attention to how you are sitting at the computer after lunch. Experts advise to tuck the navel in a little, straighten the spine, connect your shoulder blades, and cushion the lumbar area.

 

Niklas Gustafson
Post author
Niklas Gustafson

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