In life, soup is one of the essential foods, and whether it's a stew or a clear soup, it has become a dietary habit. So, is pure soup the most nutritious? What mistakes should you avoid when drinking soup, and how can you drink it healthily?
Drinking soup can help nourish the body, but many times, we forget some important points when we drink it. Only by avoiding these common mistakes can we make our soup consumption more healthful and beneficial.
Mistakes to Avoid When Drinking Soup
1. Drink only the clear broth.
Many people believe that when making soups like pork rib soup or chicken soup, all the nutrients are in the broth, so they only drink the broth and not the meat. In fact, this is incorrect. No matter what kind of soup it is, even if it has been simmered for a long time and is very rich, the soup only contains about 6% to 15% of the protein. More than 85% of the protein remains in the meat itself. Therefore, drinking only the broth and not eating the meat means you miss out on a great deal of nutrition.
2. Drinking soup too quickly.
If you drink soup too quickly, you might have overeaten by the time you feel full, which can easily lead to weight gain. You should savor your soup slowly. This not only allows you to fully enjoy the flavor but also gives your body ample time to digest and absorb the food, and it helps you feel full sooner, making it less likely to cause weight gain. For those who are looking to lose weight, be sure to remember this bad habit and change it. Your weight loss results might be better.
3. Drinking soup at the end of the meal.
The Chinese custom is to eat the main course first and then have soup, but this is actually an unhealthy habit. In Western dining, the order is typically to have soup first, followed by the main course, which is the healthier way. If you eat the main course first, you might already be full. Drinking soup after being full can easily lead to excess nutrients and weight gain. Additionally, the soup can dilute stomach acid, affecting the digestion and absorption of food. Therefore, having soup before the meal is healthier and can even aid in weight loss.
4. Drinking several bowls of soup per meal.
There are taboos when it comes to drinking soup; you can't drink any kind of soup, nor can you drink too much of it. If the soup is high in calories, salt, or purines, you should not drink too much of it. This is especially true for people with gout, kidney disease, or high blood pressure, who should avoid these types of soups. For the average person, it's best to drink soup slowly and in small amounts during a meal, guided by the principle of comfort for the stomach.
5. Drinking soup that is piping hot.
The normal temperature of the human mouth is around 37°C, and the highest temperature the oral cavity, esophagus, and stomach lining can tolerate is only about 60°C. Temperatures exceeding this can easily damage the mucous membranes. It's also worth noting that drinking very hot soup can increase the risk of esophageal cancer. Therefore, you should let the soup cool down a bit before drinking it to ensure your body is not threatened by illness.
6. Soaking rice in soup.
When there's leftover nutritious soup, it's tempting to use it to soak rice. Is this really healthy? When we chew food, we not only break it down to be swallowed but, more importantly, we moisten it with saliva. Saliva, produced through the act of chewing, contains many digestive enzymes that aid in digestion and absorption, which is very beneficial to health. However, when rice is soaked in soup, it becomes soft and can be swallowed without much chewing. As a result, the food often enters the stomach without undergoing the digestive process of saliva, which adds a burden to the stomach's digestion. Over time, this can easily lead to stomach discomfort.
7. Preferring "single-flavor" soups.
The nutrients in any single food are not comprehensive. Even a rich, umami broth packed with amino acids will still be lacking in certain "essential amino acids" that the human body cannot synthesize, as well as various minerals and vitamins. Therefore, it is recommended to make soups by mixing several animal and plant-based ingredients. This not only allows their flavors to complement each other but also makes the nutritional profile more complete.