Not much attention is paid to the temperature on which one consumes food, yet it plays a critical role in digestion, nutrient absorption, and overall health.
Piping hot soups and chilled desserts may fall on one side of the spectrum, but evidence and traditional wisdom do point to the benefits of eating foods at room temperatures.
This article explores why meals consumed at room temperature are better as well as how this can add up to good digestion and health.
1. Optimal digestive function
The human body works best at 98.6 degrees F or 37 degrees C. Ingesting food that has reached such a hot or cold temperature may interfere with normal digestion. A recent World Journal of Gastroenterology article suggests that extremely hot or cold food creates a temporary alteration of the lining of the stomach, making digestion slower and somewhat inconvenient. Foods at room temperature, however, still tend to replicate the body’s internal digestive environment better and hence digest more easily.
2. Better nutrient absorption
Room temperature-processed foods digest better and allow for better nutrient absorption and retention. The human body will not have to use excessive energy to warm up the food before processing. Research studies showed that the body expends energy to change extremely hot or cold food temperatures. A study published in the journal Nutrition & Metabolism noted that consumers of room temperature foods took in nutrients more regularly, and the intake of some vitamins and minerals was also better distributed than that of temperature-sensitive vitamins and minerals.
3. Avoid digestive discomfort
Hot foods can scald the mouth and esophagus, or irritate them, and very cold foods can cause the digestive tract’s muscles to contract, causing cramps or slowing movement in this system, which can sometimes lead to bloating, indigestion, or acid reflux. For centuries, it has been advised that food should be taken at a warm or room temperature. This system of medicine claimed that dishes eaten too hot or too cold should cause an imbalance inside the human body or even disturb their doshas, mainly two of them- Vata and Kapha, and also interrupt digestion and lower one’s immunity.
4. Energy preservation in the body
The body uses energy to maintain its inner temperature, and food can be involved in such processes. Consuming extremely hot or cold dinners makes the digestive system work harder in terms of trying to get the temperature back to normal, which is an expenditure of energy that might have otherwise been expended on metabolic functions. Such excessive energy expenditure can cause people to feel tired after meals. According to the Journal of Physiology and Biochemistry study, subjects that consumed food at room temperature reported less after-eating drowsiness than those consuming foods that were either very hot or very cold.
5. Promote Balanced Eating Habits
Food at room temperature has the tendency to cause people to eat healthier and maintain a pace. Foods at moderate temperatures tend to be softer to bite into and better in flavor without that heavy urge to wolf them down before they cool or warm. This can facilitate eating at a more relaxed pace. This, in return, enables you to digest properly and lets your brain catch the sensation of being full most often so as not to overeat.
6. Maintaining the quality and safety of food
Rooms temperature food tends to retain its texture as well as flavor than the food served either very hot or very cold. Sometimes, the flavors of food that are too hot may get dominated and over-cold food may numb the taste buds, leading to reduced satisfaction and likely over-eating. More than this, some scientists have confirmed the fact that foods at extreme temperatures tend to alter the composition of some components in food. The undesirable trans fats may be formed if oils are overheated.
Food should be eaten at room temperature but should not be kept at room temperature for too long for it to multiply a lot of bacteria. Store and take perishables to room temperature before consumption.
The consumption of warm foods is supported by both modern science and ancient wisdom, allowing for easy digestion, assimilation, and energy use, all those factors that put you toward your health and well-being. By attuning the temperature of your foods to that of your body, you create a harmonious space for your digestive system, letting you get most out of your meals with the least strain.
