Morning rituals in feeding

| The morning is a curious, peculiar moment, each one to his own, some in a hurry, the shower, the clothes, the children ...

Others have barely opened their eyes and are already drinking coffee to wake up, some start off almost without thinking, due to the inertia of the routine, and others take their time to wake up calmly and receive the new day in a calm way. Be that as it may, in most cases the morning is usually a time of routines and customs that are repeated day after day as if weekdays we were trapped in time.

Routines that often lead to something more deliberate: morning rituals.

• The morning is a time when many of us include certain eating rituals in which we blindly “believe”. Some are useful, but others are unfounded.
• Eating a kiwi on an empty stomach or some rehydrated prunes can help constipation, but drinking a glass of water is not so clear anymore.
• Attributing pro-defense properties to honey or raw garlic is controversial. They are healthy foods, but to which you have to grant the virtues that they really have.

Morning rituals of all kinds

There are morning rituals for all tastes, those who want to take care of their skin and conscientiously use creams for it, those who start the day with stretching to keep fit, those who dedicate some time to meditation to start the new day , the one who organizes the good morning agenda to try to face all the pending tasks without losing his sanity in the attempt, and the one who looks for in food the solution to possible problems such as lack of energy or circulatory problems or a thousand more things.

Morning rituals in eating

There are different foods that are famous for being magical or as magical. The reality is that there are no magical or essential foods in our diet, but we can talk about healthy foods that we can relate to certain effects or properties and that at any given time can be interesting for a certain purpose. Without going any further, we know that there are certain foods that favor the regulation of intestinal transit and this can be very interesting for those with a tendency to constipation.

What are they for?

Related to food, we find all kinds of morning rituals, with different purposes ... the truth is that it is common for a certain food to be attributed various properties, which does not give much confidence to begin with. Who has not heard of having a glass of water on an empty stomach? Or the juice of a lemon? Or a clove of garlic? Or the most recent proposals, the famous green smoothies? What is the reason for these rituals? What is healthy, true and necessary in all these practices? The reason for incorporating a certain ritual is often as simple as having the belief that a food will help us solve a certain problem.

Sometimes, always depending on the person, this reason is enough to add food to our diet. And why morning? Taking it in the morning is the most practical for many people, although it is true that we often hear that taking it on an empty stomach is what really works. But to make a statement or advice you need to be able to prove it, and most morning rituals in eating have not been investigated to be able to affirm or disprove their scientific evidence, but we can talk about what the foods provide or cause us. form. Let's see what types of morning feeding rituals we are talking about:

To avoid constipation

Constipation is one of the most common reasons for establishing morning eating rituals that can even be complemented with exercise rituals, since the advice that is usually given at the level of constipation in general is: maintain good hydration, exercise, and get enough fiber. For this, there are those who:

• Have a glass of lukewarm water
• Take a tablespoon of olive oil
• Eat a couple of prehydrated prunes
• Eat a kiwi first thing in the morning

Well, drinking a glass of water is something very innocuous that will not do us any harm but it will not help us too much for this purpose. In any case, it contributes to hydration, something that is already positive, in general, and in case of constipation. It can act in the digestive system as a lubricant and although there are not many studies in this regard, there are some studies that relate its intake to an improvement in constipation, as we have commented, it is considered necessary for the regulation of intestinal transit, and both the Kiwifruit like plums are good samples of high-fiber fruits.

To start the day with energy

For those who do not stop, who are going to have a busy day and who want to leave the house with charged batteries, there is no doubt that beyond any ritual it is worth highlighting the importance of a good rest and a good breakfast (remember that it is not based on fried eggs and bacon), so that we don't get “overwhelmed” by hunger in the middle of the morning. But the rituals that are heard in this regard are usually based on "supplements" such as:

• Wheat germ
• Beer yeast
• Pollen
• Royal jelly

We must bear in mind that this type of supplementation should never replace the one that a physician may have prescribed for a specific ailment or vitamin or mineral deficiency.

That said, comment that these products are generally rich in micronutrients, vitamins and minerals and that they may be interesting for this content but we are not in a position to assure many other health attributions that are granted to them.

Wheat germ It is the embryonic part of the wheat grain and is rich in some B group vitamins, and trace elements such as iron, zinc, copper, manganese and cobalt.

Brewer's yeast It is composed of microorganisms of the Saccharomyces family, the most common Saccharomyces cerevisae, but there are other types of the same family. They are rich in B vitamins and minerals such as phosphorus, calcium, silicon, zinc ...

The pollen It is also rich in B vitamins, as well as carotene. At the mineral level it gives us a diversity of elements, potassium, magnesium, calcium, silicon, phosphorus, manganese ...

Royal jelly It is the food of the queen bee, it also contains B vitamins and minerals such as calcium and zinc.

To avoid colds and raise your defenses

Another of the classic objectives, especially in the face of winter, is Reality, badly enough, is that there is no specific food that, taken in a certain dose or in a certain way, achieves said increase. Well, yes, breast milk does, but our little ones have the exclusivity in that. The good news is that there are habits related to immunity, such as worrying about the food safety of the food we eat, personal hygiene, avoiding a sedentary lifestyle, alcoholism, smoking and stress, getting enough sleep, maintaining a healthy weight and eat a healthy diet, not based on a specific food, but globally.The EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) states that some vitamins (A, B6, B12, C and D) and minerals (copper, folate, iron, selenium , zinc) participate in the functioning of the immune system. Which means that if there is a deficit of these vitamins or minerals and we correct it, it can be understood that we are contributing to the proper functioning of an excess of these trace elements could have the opposite effect. Some of the rituals to which this improvement in defenses are attributed are:

• • Have a glass of lemon juice
  • Eat raw garlic on an empty stomach
  • Take a fermented dairy or probiotic bacteria
  • Consume a teaspoon of honey upon waking

Lemon is very rich in vitamin C, but its deficit is not common among our population, drinking water with a little lemon juice from time to time is not harmful if it is not as a substitute for fruit intake, but an excess can damage tooth enamel.

Honey, fermented dairy products and bacteria are among the foods on which EFSA, after reviewing the available scientific literature, has not approved any health claims related to immunity. This does not mean that we should avoid them, but we should avoid the habitual / excessive consumption of honey due to its composition in sugars, and avoid taking these foods thinking that they exert a healing effect.

In relation to Garlic, there is scientific literature in which it is attributed an antifungal and antimicrobial effect, among others, but this does not mean that taking it increases the defenses. In general, it is a healthy food and what we must take into account in the negative is the possible halitosis (bad breath) and burning of the mouth and stomach that its consumption can generate, especially in crude oil. On the other hand, in people with clotting problems it is advised do not abuse its consumption as it could increase the risk of bleeding.

DETOX DRINKS: Another of the most popular morning rituals lately are the so-called “detox drinks”. The reality is that our body already has detoxification systems, since especially the liver and kidneys are organs that are responsible for this and at a scientific level the need to detoxify our body based on food is not considered. Another thing is that these vegetable drinks can be healthy, which they are, as long as we do not add inappropriate ingredients such as sugar or substitutes. But they should not be abused or taken medicinally, and of course they should not be our usual way of consuming vegetables. These should be part of the daily diet in the form of dishes, salads, garnishes ... raw or cooked, making the most of their properties and enjoying all their flavor.