Can't I take a shower after a meal?

We generally cannot engage in various activities immediately after eating, mainly to allow food to be digested more quickly. , even taking a walk requires waiting for a while after a meal. If you start exercising immediately after a meal, it will cause indigestion and seriously affect the health of your stomach. But there are some people around us who take a bath after meals. So, can’t I take a shower after a meal?

After a meal, the body needs a relatively quiet environment to absorb the nutrients in the food. It is not suitable for large-scale exercise or taking a bath within a short period of time. Taking a bath after a meal will not only affect digestion and absorption, but doing so frequently will also cause physical problems.

What's wrong with taking a shower after eating?

indigestion

After a meal, a large amount of blood from the whole body will gather in the mesenteric blood vessels to absorb and transport nutrients, and at the same time transport nutrients to the intestines to ensure healthy functions. After a bath, the skin is stimulated, the capillaries dilate, and blood will gather too much in the subcutaneous capillaries, reducing the blood supply to the intestinal system and affecting digestion.

Anemia and hypoxia

The human body needs a constant supply of oxygen. When taking a bath after a meal, too much blood will flow into the intestines and skin, and the brain is prone to temporary anemia and hypoxia. In mild cases, dizziness may occur, and in severe cases, shock may occur.

Increased workload on the heart

When taking a bath, a large amount of blood will flow to the capillaries of leather shoes, and food will stimulate nerves during the digestion process, driving more blood to flow to the mesentery. The total amount of blood is limited, and insufficient intestinal supply will stimulate the heart to contract violently, increasing the heart load.

Don’t take a shower during these 3 times

Do not take a bath within 1 hour after a meal

When eating, the human digestive system starts working and a large amount of blood will gather in the stomach to help digestion. If you take a bath at this time, blood vessels throughout the body will dilate, blood flow to the skin and muscles will increase, and blood flow to the digestive tract will decrease, which will affect the digestion and absorption of food and induce symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, and upper abdominal pain. On the other hand, for the elderly with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, taking a bath immediately after a meal and staying in a closed, oxygen-deficient space for a long time can easily cause brain and heart ischemia, or even sudden death. Therefore, it is best to take a bath 1-2 hours after a meal. Try to avoid strenuous exercise and bathing within 1 hour after meals.

Don't take a shower when you're hungry

As the saying goes, don't cut your hair when you are full, and don't take a bath when you are hungry. It is even more dangerous to take a bath when you are hungry, as your blood sugar level will drop and you may easily faint. When people are hungry, it means it is time to replenish food to increase energy. However, if you do things that consume energy at this time, your body will feel hollowed out. If you take a shower when you are hungry and tired, you may easily faint due to low blood sugar in the body and sweating. When taking a bath, the blood vessels in the skin and limbs expand, which consumes more energy. It may also cause dizziness or heart failure due to a decrease in blood flow to the heart and brain, which cannot supply sufficient energy. It is best to take a bath 1-2 hours after a meal, and each bath should not exceed half an hour.

Not taking a shower after drinking

The blood vessels in the head and face will expand rapidly after people drink alcohol. If you wash your hair shortly after drinking, pouring water on your head will cause blood vessels to constrict, making you prone to symptoms such as dizziness, black eyes, or vomiting. Elderly people with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases should not wash their hair with too cold water, and should be more careful after drinking. Pay special attention to keeping your head warm. Do not go outside to be blown by cold wind after drinking. Dry your hair with a hair dryer immediately after washing it.