Here’s a tip that’s tremendous easy to implement and would not value hardly something. It would not require hardly any effort. It’s such a easy change. Drink a glass of water, 8 to 16 oz (250 to 500 ml) about half-hour earlier than your important meals in the course of the day. Let’s dig into the small print of the proof that this works and a little bit of why this works.
What sort of water do you want? It ought to simply be pure, clear water. But it surely would not must be particular water, like alkaline water, or hydrogen water, or distilled water with minerals added again. Certain, there are advantages to these particular waters, however this tremendous easy tip doesn’t require any of that stuff. It simply needs to be water.
And drink it earlier than your meal, not together with your meal. Timing does matter. (Extra on that under.) Now we have been taught that consuming with our meal dilutes our digestive enzymes and makes it tougher to digest our meals. So, the wholesome technique to drink water is between meals.
Research: Drink Water Earlier than Meals for Weight Loss, Much less Urge for food, Decrease Fasting Blood Sugar
A examine by Sedaghat and coworkers in 2021, which was printed within the Journal of Diabetes & Metabolic Issuesdiscovered that consuming water earlier than meals led to substantial reductions in physique weight, fasting blood sugar, and urge for food in individuals with sort 2 diabetes. The protocol instructed them to drink 250 ml earlier than breakfast, 500 ml earlier than lunch, and 250 ml earlier than dinner, all about half-hour earlier than the meal.
It seems that the water helped scale back urge for food, resulting in consuming much less. The analysis group additionally measured a compound known as copeptin. It’s a marker for arginine vasopressin (AVP), which is linked to insulin secretion and glucose metabolism. Elevated AVP is related to insulin resistance and T2DM danger, presumably by way of results on liver glucose manufacturing or stress responses. So, bringing down copeptin ranges is a superb discovering.
Right here is the determine of the outcomes from the examine. The management group is within the blue, and the group that drank water earlier than meals is the orange bars. Important drops in physique weight, waist circumference, BMI, copeptin, and fasting blood sugar had been spectacular. Simply from consuming water earlier than meals. Who would have thought this was a factor?
This examine is nice proof that this easy tip works. However this analysis examine in 2021 wasn’t the primary proof of the advantages of consuming water earlier than a meal.
Extra Proof that Consuming Water Earlier than Meals Works
A examine by Dennis and coworkers in 2011 discovered that center aged and older adults who drank 500 ml of water earlier than meals, mixed with a hypocaloric food regimen, resulted in larger weight reduction than simply utilizing the hypocaloric food regimen alone. Weight reduction over 12 weeks was about 2 kg larger within the water consuming group.
A easy breakfast check examine by Davy and coworkers in 2009 discovered that obese older adults (about 61 years previous) consumed much less breakfast after they drank 500 ml of water earlier than the meal.
So, sure, there may be some respectable proof, although not scads of it, that consuming water earlier than a meal is a superb thought for controlling urge for food and getting your physique in the best hydrated state to eat a meal.
Hydration is Good for Your Hormones
Hydration itself helps maintain the physique’s hormones in steadiness, which additionally boosts the advantages of consuming water earlier than a meal. Being hydrated lowers cortisol, a stress hormone that may elevate blood sugar and promote fats storage. It additionally reduces arginine vasopressin (AVP), as seen within the drop in copeptin within the examine by Sedaghat and coworkers. Consuming water earlier than meals could even set off GLP-1 (glucagon-like peptide-1, the goal of Ozempic), a intestine hormone that enhances satiety and insulin launch so that you simply eat much less and handle blood sugar higher. Hydration additionally balances the urge for food hormones leptin and ghrelin to cut back starvation alerts. So, a glass of water earlier than your meal does much more than simply fill you up. It will get your physique’s symphony of hormones in tune for higher metabolism.
Right here’s Why To not Drink Water With Your Meal
A paper that got here out in Diabetologia in 1989 on 7 wholesome males and 20 individuals with sort 2 diabetes confirmed that consuming 300 ml of water with a meal of meat and potatoes resulted in greater peak blood glucose and serum insulin in each the wholesome males and within the sort 2 diabetic topics. Peak glucose was 68% greater in wholesome topics and 40% greater in diabetic topics after they drank water with their meal.
So, drink your water earlier than your meal. The protocol that labored used half-hour earlier than a meal because the timing. Perhaps it could possibly be nearer to the meal, like quarter-hour earlier than, and nonetheless work. And a pair of hours earlier than you eat might be too distant on the opposite finish.
So, drink water between meals, and if you’re attempting to reverse diabetes, drink water about half-hour earlier than you eat.
