When your appetite is poor, many people like to eat rice soaked in soy sauce, vegetable broth, or tea. They feel that the rice soaked in broth is softer and easier to swallow. But have you ever heard the saying, "Rice soaked in broth, poorly chewed?"
Actually, this saying mainly tells us that rice soaked in broth is not as easy to digest as people imagine. On the contrary, long-term consumption can lead to a decline in digestive function, causing various diseases.
Research shows that when people eat, they first perform preliminary digestion in the mouth. Hard teeth act like a clever "grinder," cutting and grinding large pieces of food into fine particles. At the same time, salivary glands continuously secrete saliva, and the tongue constantly stirs to fully mix the food with saliva. The amylase in saliva can break down starch into sweet and palatable maltose, facilitating further digestion and absorption by the gastrointestinal tract. Meanwhile, food stimulates the taste nerves of the tongue, which reflexively transmit signals to the brain, causing the brain to send messages to "notify" the stomach, intestines, pancreas, and other areas to prepare for food. After receiving the "command," the stomach, intestines, and pancreatic juice are successively secreted, gastrointestinal motility is enhanced, thereby accelerating the digestion and absorption of food nutrients by the gastrointestinal tract.
However, soaked rice is different. The rice and broth are mixed together, and the food slides into the stomach before it has been chewed thoroughly in the mouth. Without sufficient chewing, less saliva is secreted, and it is not evenly mixed with the food. The amylase is also diluted by the broth. Furthermore, the taste nerves are not adequately stimulated, leading to a reduction in the reflexive secretion of digestive fluids in the gastrointestinal tract. Therefore, food digestion is affected, and nutrients cannot be fully absorbed. Moreover, swallowing whole grains of rice that have not been chewed will undoubtedly increase the burden on the gastrointestinal tract. Over time, diseases such as gastrointestinal dysfunction and indigestion will take advantage of this weakness, seriously affecting health.
For children in their growth and development period, the harm from eating soaked rice is even greater. Because long-term consumption not only hinders the digestive and absorption functions of the gastrointestinal tract but also leads to a decline in chewing function, causing the chewing muscles to atrophy. In severe cases, it can also affect facial shape in adulthood. At the same time, eating soaked rice can easily lead children to develop the bad habit of swallowing food without chewing.
The elderly should also not eat soaked rice. Medical research has found that chewing, through the movement of the jaw joint, can accelerate cerebral blood circulation. This smooth blood flow can enhance the activation of the cerebral cortex, which is beneficial for preventing brain atrophy and Alzheimer's disease. Therefore, the elderly who are missing teeth should have them replaced as soon as possible to restore chewing function and cannot resort to eating soaked rice for a long time due to missing teeth. It is also necessary to mention two distinctions here:
First, drinking soup before a meal is not the same as eating soaked rice and should be distinguished. Drinking a small amount of soup before a meal can not only moisten the mouth and esophagus but also stimulate the mouth and stomach to produce saliva and gastric juice, aiding digestion. Second, eating congee (rice porridge) is different from eating soaked rice. Because congee has a fine texture, and after being boiled, the starch has been broken down into dextrin, which is easily absorbed by the gastrointestinal tract and does not affect digestive function.
In conclusion, eating soaked rice is a very bad eating habit. Whether it's rice soaked in broth, tea, or soy sauce, it should not be eaten. Moreover, no matter what food you eat, you should cultivate the good habit of chewing slowly and thoroughly.