What?!  Have you ever used this phrase?  It actually means “to talk with friends without really saying anything significant.”  However, literally chewing your fat – really all your foods – is very significant for good health.

In order to digest food properly, it is important to chew it thoroughly.  This chewing, grinding and mashing action allows digestive enzymes to do their work properly.  Just looking at or smelling food causes these enzymes to be released in our saliva, and the enzyme process continues throughout the digestive tract. 

Enzymes are found in foods - nature gives them what they need to be digested once you eat them.  And, they are made in your body.  They work on the surfaces of pieces of food, so the more surfaces – from chewing – the better the enzymes can work.  Enzymes not only work to help digest your food, they also help the digested food be absorbed, so what you’ve eaten can be used.

Chewing your food might help you consume fewer calories as well.  To get really specific, separate studies conducted by the University of Rhode Island and reported in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition reported individuals who chewed each bite 32-40 times consumed 12% fewer calories, around 67 fewer, then those who only chewed each bite 15 times. 

Think about this the next time you eat.  Try to consciously chew, chew, chew!  Put your fork down between each bite, if that helps.  Think about the food you are eating.  Your body will thank you!

To Your Vitality!