Multitasking has become integral to our lives and some of us believe that it is a necessary survival skill. Needless to say, multitasking follows us everywhere, even to our dining tables.

In today’s world, multitasking has become an integral part of our lives and is considered by many to be a necessary skill to survive. Multitasking follows us everywhere including our dining tables.

Gone are the days where you would find a home with a relaxed and meditative dining area. Today, this room has taken on a whole new meaning. Meals are expected to be consumed easily, often while watching television, and without spending too much time in the process.

Most of us have experienced the negative consequences of haste at some stage in our lives. Acidity, gas, indigestion, and a lack of satiation are common signs of a quickly eaten meal. This comes as no surprise, given that eating quickly or when multitasking reduces the digestive process’ efficiency by nearly 30-40%.

Despite knowing, we do very little to solve these problems. Surprisingly, this is not a difficult problem to resolve and all it takes is a little mindfulness practice.

Did you know that you cannot change anything in your body if your mind is not on board? The mind-body connection has been known for centuries and is now scientifically well-established. It is about time we gave this connection its due.

Did you know that if your mind isn’t on board, you won’t be able to do change anything about your body?  The mind-body relationship has been recognised for centuries and has now been scientifically proven. It’s past time we paid attention to this connection.

Only by beginning to eat mindfully will we learn to eat properly. It is undeniably important what you place on your plate, but eating well entails much more. The simple act of eating mindfully has many advantages.

Mindful eating is about being conscious of the physical and emotional sensations associated with this process. . This involves using all five senses: see everything that is on your plate, listen to the signals of hunger and fullness,  smell and taste the food’s flavours, and appreciating its many textures.

I’m often asked if there’s a way to tell if you’re eating mindfully. It is quite possible to assess it.   What’s even better is that more you can take this test anytime, at any time, without requiring any technical or professional assistance. All you have to do is ask yourself the following set of questions

• Do you just eat when you’re starving or hungry?
• Are you able to finish your meal in under 10 minutes?
• Do you bring your phone to the dinner table with you?
• Do you ever eat while watching TV?
• Do you read while eating?
• Do you mix eating with some other activity?
• Do you eat at your workstation?
• Do you get an uncomfortably full feeling after eating?
• Do you use a beverage (or water) to wash down your meals?
• Do you eat on-the-go or while driving?

If you answered yes to all of these questions, you’ll need a new plan to restart your healthy eating journey. I call this a ‘journey’ because it covers a wide range of aspects of food, such as how to make the right food decisions while shopping, preparing, and eating, how to break free from emotional eating, and how to change your relationship with food. Mindful eating is not only about what you eat, but it is also about when, where, why and how you eat.