Here’s why being more “present” when you eat can make you healthier.

You may be familiar with the concept of “mindfulness” and “mindful eating”, and here’s what it means – and why being more mindful around meals will make a huge difference to how great you look and feel.

Mindfulness is simply the practice of paying attention (in a non-judgemental way) to an activity. It’s a very effective method to manage stress: one study found regular mindfulness meditation actually changes the structure of the brain, creating more neural connections, which might protect us from depression and dementia.

Ultimately, being more mindful gives you a different perspective on your thoughts and feelings and helps you approach situations in a calmer, more thoughtful way. And being mindful when eating can have a positive impact on your physical and mental health, without requiring too much effort!

The Mindfulness Connection

When you eat mindfully you pay attention to the appearance, texture and taste of your food, and your body’s hunger signals. It takes time for your brain to register signals from your stomach’s stretch receptors, so mindful eating can prevent overeating by slowing you down and making you more aware of how you’re feeling (regularly overeating can blunt your body’s fullness signals and contribute to weight gain).

Mindfulness can also enhance the pleasure you derive from food, so you’re less likely to overeat because you’ve taken time to really enjoy your meal.

Being more mindful also makes it easier to eat a wider variety of foods, and being non-judgemental makes you open to trying new foods. This is important because you might be missing out on something you’ll really like, and the more varied your diet the lower your risk of any nutrient deficiencies.

Eat Mindfully With Ease

You don’t need any special equipment or apps to begin mindful eating – in fact, the fewer distractions you have the better! Here’s how to get started:

Turn off the TV and put away your phone

We’re so used to watching or reading while eating that this might feel difficult at first, so instead focus on the colours and smells on your plate.

Sit at a table

This will help you focus on the food in front of you and re-emphasises that mealtimes are an important activity, not a chore to be squeezed in where possible.

Start small

Being mindful at mealtimes takes time and practice and you will get distracted. Begin by aiming to take just one mindful mouthful per meal. Here’s how:

Take a moment to look at the food on the plate, noticing the smells, colours and textures. Pick up a forkful or spoonful and take a moment to notice the qualities of the food. Take the bite and chew slowly, noticing the different flavours and textures and how they change as you chew. Put down your cutlery. This helps you focus on swallowing this mouthful before starting the next. After you swallow, be aware of the food moving to your stomach and how it affects your level of hunger.

Then you can continue eating in this way, or return to your old eating habits. But do try to add in an extra mindful mouthful each day until you eat a full mindful meal.

Just one mindful meal or snack a day will improve your relationship with food and help you listen to and understand your body better.

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