"Tired, always feeling like I can't rest enough, especially in summer, always feeling like I can't wake up," "After working for a day, I feel too tired to do anything," Recently, with the restoration of life order and rhythm, many people's fatigue state has also returned along with work. Experts believe that to get rid of this sub-health state, learning how to drink water and consume 'coarse fiber' becomes increasingly important.
Chang Cuiqing, director of the Nutrition Biochemistry Research Laboratory at Peking University Third Hospital's Sports Medicine Institute, introduced that the sub-health state is a very common condition among modern people. Besides the tight life rhythm, less activity, and excessive pressure, nutritional imbalance is one of the most important reasons. People often use high-calorie, high-fat fast food to fill their stomachs to cope with the fast-paced lifestyle, which results in an unbalanced intake of nutrition. Among many examples of nutritional deficiencies, insufficient water drinking and inadequate intake of dietary fiber are extremely common phenomena. Therefore, nutritionists remind us to learn how to drink water and consume enough dietary fiber for health preservation.
■ Five Principles of Healthy Water Drinking
1. Appropriate Amount of Water: Adults need to intake 1500 to 2500 milliliters of water daily. People who sweat more, have more activities, or weigh heavier need more water. Thus, it's best to intake sufficient water according to your body's needs every day to meet the requirements of metabolism.
2. Small Quantities Multiple Times: Some people don't like drinking water but worry about not drinking enough and affecting their health, so they resort to binge drinking when they are thirsty. Actually, this is undesirable because if you drink more than 240 milliliters of water each time, the body cannot absorb it and will quickly excrete it through the kidneys. It's better to drink only 100 to 150 milliliters each time for better absorption by the body.
3. Suitable Temperature: Don't be greedy for cold water; warm water above 10 degrees Celsius is most beneficial for the body.
4. Drink Water Before Meals: Some studies suggest that eating while drinking water may affect digestion, which makes sense. Therefore, people who want to lose weight might drink 100 to 150 milliliters of water 20 to 30 minutes before meals. This way, it won't hurt the stomach too much, and it creates a certain sense of fullness in the stomach.
5. Replenish Water Before and After Fitness: You can drink 100 to 150 milliliters of water 30 minutes before fitness. If the fitness lasts over an hour, replenish 100 to 120 milliliters during the workout. Additionally, after exercise, replenish lost water according to 150% of the weight difference before and after exercise.
■ Dietary Fiber Should Be Consumed 30 Grams Daily
Previously, people had a relatively one-sided understanding of dietary fiber, thinking it would affect nutrient absorption and cause malnutrition. However, as modern people's food becomes tastier and finer, leading directly to nutritional excess, the seemingly coarse dietary fiber, crucial for human health, has gradually been recognized and valued. Because of the lack of dietary fiber, the "intestinal cleaner", intestinal peristalsis slows down, making it difficult to clear toxins in the body. Meanwhile, the secretion of bile acid decreases, making it hard to fully achieve the effects of lowering cholesterol and stabilizing blood sugar.
The Chinese Nutrition Society suggests that everyone should consume about 30 grams of dietary fiber daily, whereas many of us only consume 10 grams daily. Therefore, nutritionists recommend consuming more whole grains, such as corn, millet, sorghum, and purple rice, to replace finely ground rice. Eating more vegetables with long stems, like celery and spinach, can increase the intake of dietary fiber.
A special reminder is that some people love to use fruit juice instead of eating fruits. In fact, although fruit juice contains a large amount of vitamins, the fiber component is lost during the pressing process, making the nutrition incomplete.
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