Your bathing habits can affect digestion; four things to keep in mind when taking a shower

“Our body works in complex ways and all our actions have potential consequences; bathing rituals are certainly one of those,” Dr Garima Goyal, a dietician, told indianexpress.com

Our elders often advise us to not take a bath after meals. Turns out, Ayurveda also strongly recommends against it. But, there’s more — it is not just taking a bath, experts say that certain other bathing habits, which are extremely common, have the potential to affect the digestive system and overall health. “Our body works in complex ways and all our actions have potential consequences; bathing rituals are certainly one of those,” Dr Garima Goyal, a dietician, told indianexpress.com.

Elucidating the same, Dr Dimple Jangda, an Ayurveda expert, recently took to Instagram to list four things one must always keep in mind when taking a shower. Take a look!

* Ensure to drink a glass of water before taking a shower: The expert suggested that a glass of warm or room temperature water before a shower can help lower blood pressure-related issues in the body. She explained, “drinking warm water warms your body from the inside” which results in the widening of blood vessels, allowing more blood to flow through them; thus lowering the blood pressure. “This results in a similar circulatory system dilation on the skin’s surface,” she added.

*Never take a shower after having a full meal:“It weakens the digestive fire, which is a warm energy in your stomach and gut, that aids digestion, absorption, and assimilation of nutrients,” the expert said. She explained that after eating, the body rushes blood to the digestive system to help in the digestion process. As such, taking a shower “distracts this blood flow from the stomach and rushes it instead to the surface of the skin,” she added.

Agreed Dr Garima and said that taking a shower after a heavy meal can, in some cases, lead to cramps, indigestion, or bloating. “Considering these effects, it may be ideal to take a bath at least an hour after a meal. In contrast, taking a bath before a meal makes your body rejuvenated and energised,” she added.

*Avoid taking a shower after sunset: Our body starts to cool down after sunset, which is a signal that it’s time for bed. The expert explained that taking a shower before bed can block the skin pores trapping the body heat within. This can cause a “rise in body temperature which can actually disrupt this signal and your night’s sleep in the process,” she added.

*Additionally, when you take a shower, ensure to use lukewarm water below the heart level to improve blood circulation and use room temperature water for your face, to protect your sensitive sense organs. Slightly hot water is used only for children, senior citizens, and those who are ill.

*Cold water baths or ice baths are taken occasionally like — when recovering from an injury. An ice bath immediately reduces swelling, aids in flushing lactic acid out of your body, and causes your blood vessels to tighten.

*You can also do a full body oil massage (abhyangam) before taking a shower to improve your collagen and overall health!

Source: The Indian Express

Link: https://indianexpress.com/article/lifestyle/health/bathing-overall-health-relation-health-8202921/