'Why wouldn't you be able to have a sip of water with that?' 'If you're eating a big salad, you are literally chewing water,' Mulhstein said, who also leads the Bruin Health Improvement Program at UCLA. Muhlstein also noted that all foods already contain water. Ilana Muhlstein, a weight loss expert who is part of the executive leadership team for the American Heart Association, told The Thirty that drinking water satisfies hunger hormones and leads to a 'sense of calmness and fullness.' While the post claims that drinking water while eating increases the chances of storing fat in your body, research shows it can actually help with weight loss and provide other benefits, contrary to the viral claims. 'A glass of water, when sipped slowly during a meal can actually aid digestion rather than cause any bloating!' the company's site states in a 'Myth Busters' section, adding that juices and carbonated beverages can delay the digestion process.įact check: Instant noodles don't contain wax coating or cause cancer Drinking water while eating can provide benefits Nestlé also took to its site to debunk the myth that drinking water with a meal can lead to bloating. Tamara Duker Freuman, a registered dietitian and author of 'The Bloated Belly Whisperer,' told the Washington Post that the theory that you shouldn't drink water before or while eating is 'totally false.' In healthy people, the stomach secretes enough fluid and acid to accommodate the meal and get the digestion process started.' The stomach maintains a very acidic environment and is quite adaptable. Maria Moore, an Atlanta-based dietician, told Southern Living, 'We're not aware of any findings that a reasonable amount of water would negatively impact digestion. 'Having sips of fluid while eating can also help people with overeating.' 'It helps slow the eating process and create a smoother digestion process,' Fetter said. She said it can actually prevent bloating and aid in digestion. Other experts have also emphasized there is no evidence that water consumption during a meal has negative impacts.ĭebbie Fetter, an assistant professor of teaching nutrition at the University of California, Davis, told USA TODAY that there is no research showing that drinking water while eating is harmful. The study ' Gastric emptying of a physiologic mixed solid-liquid meal,' published in 1982 in Clinical Nuclear Medicine, found that ingesting liquids simultaneously did not affect the rate at which solids cleared from the stomach. Water also softens stool, which helps prevent constipation.' 'Water is essential for good health,' Picco, who is also a consultant in gastroenterology at Mayo Clinic in Florida, wrote. 'Water and other liquids help break down food so that your body can absorb the nutrients.

Foods that absorb water in body