Six Types of Yogic Purification Practices Massage Benefits on Body Parts |
Restraint in EatingIt is not enough to select our food items judiciously. We should also know how much to eat and how to eat. Our food does not change into energy immediately after reaching our stomach. It has to undergo several complicated processes before it is turned into useable form and is assimilated in our system. Food is first chewed and broken into smaller pieces by our teeth; the salivary glands in the mouth at the same time mix saliva with the food. In the stomach, it is churned and its contents are thoroughly mixed. Here also many glands mix digestive juices with the food, so that the food undergoes several chemical changes by the help of enzymes and acids formed in this process. Similarly, food is subjected to further chemical changes by the action of the pancreas and liver, which secrete several enzymes and juices to react on it. Ultimately, it is absorbed by the small intestine. So, we must understand that digestion is a complicated process in which all our digestive organs take part and our glands secrete digestive juices. Therefore we should not eat such foods which require overwork for our digestive organs. Nor should we eat more than the required quantity. When the organs are required to do work endlessly without any rest, they ultimately become weak, with the result that some of them are unable to work properly. This causes sickness. It would be better not to tax our organs to the extent of getting them damaged. So, we must exercise restraint in eating. We must also provide rest to our digestive organs occasionally, so that they remain effective and in perfect working conditions all our life. This can be done by observing occasional fasts. Apart from the diet tables so diligently prepared by dieticians, we have this simple but golden rule of diet control: “One should fill half the stomach with food and leave one- fourth for water and one-fourth for the movement of air”. We can ourselves feel and know how much to eat. It is simply a bad habit to eat one’s fill; one must still feel hungry after eating one’s meal. |