When you don’t feel too fit, your appetite usually decreases, especially if stomach pain and exhaustion are at the origin of the discomfort .
In those cases, in addition to the possible use of medicines, classic home remedies are often used , also called grandmother’s.
One of the most popular tips when you don’t feel well is to eat white , or to keep a diet based on light foods for at least a few days , which are very often white or light.
But is it a popular belief or is eating without food to get back in shape really useful?
What does blank diet mean?
Certainly when you are not feeling well, staying away from excessively spicy, overly seasoned or stomach-heavy foods such as sausages , fried foods or lasagna is a good idea, however there does not seem to be real scientific evidence of the fact that to feel better you need to eat exactly blank.
Commonly eating white means preferring light foods, which are recognized as lighter, even if in reality it is not said that they always are.
Overrated blank foods
Not everything that is part of the so-called “white” diet is excellent for the digestive system .
For example, dairy products are white , which in addition to allergic or intolerant people can be difficult to digest for anyone , due to the large presence of saturated fats inside them.
One of the foods that is most commonly associated with the concept of a white diet and chosen as a meal by most people who are not feeling well is grilled chicken breast .
In this case, the food itself is fine, but in order for it to be considered digestible , it must not only be of high quality, but also carefully cooked. In fact, cooking on the grill causes small darker streaks to appear on the surface of the chicken breast, which are nothing but the sign of a burn, which could be difficult for a person who is not too fit to digest. Furthermore , burnt meat has the presence of potentially carcinogenic compounds such as aminesheterocyclic and although their concentration on a chicken breast or steak is minimal, they should always be avoided or limited as much as possible.
Boiled potatoes , pasta and rice are also part of the common white diet . These foods are actually highly digestible , therefore suitable for people who do not feel very well, especially if the stomach and other organs that contribute to the digestive process are affected by the discomfort . As always, however, it is good to pay attention to how to prepare and then season the dishes.
In order not to make the situation worse, for example, pasta and rice must be well cooked and it would be better to avoid butter , but prefer a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil .
Even paying attention to all these details, however, it is not certain that the choice of the white diet is successful. Although it is universally recognized that boiled white rice is the number one solution for stomach pain, gastric acidity and diarrhea , if you limit yourself to eating only that, the meal is unbalanced in terms of nutrients . In fact, carbohydrates predominate and proteins are penalized , the absence or even lack of which can facilitate the raising of the glycemic index .
What to eat when you are not feeling well
Even if home remedies are able to improve many situations, it therefore seems necessary to take a further step on the validity of following a blank diet for a few days when you are not feeling well.
More than a white diet, it is correct to talk about a light diet and move towards digestible foods , regardless of their color or their bad reputation.
For example, eggs are mistakenly considered heavy , but if cooked soft-boiled or poached they are not. Better to avoid the omelette but exclusively because it involves a cooking method that makes each food less digestible.
Part of the light diet indicated when you are not feeling well are steamed vegetables such as fennel , spinach , carrots , squash and courgettes .
Fermented vegetables such as sauerkraut are also excellent , especially if consumed at the beginning of a meal because they introduce enzymes , lactic acid and ferments into the body and help strengthen the immune system .
For snacks , fruit is perfect, especially if you choose apples and pineapple .
Among the white foods, the most suitable is rice , provided that it is not the only food of the meal and possibly integral . It can also be alternated with other carbohydrates such as buckwheat or oats .
To buffer the stomach acid, baked potatoes are ideal, but for them the rule of not exaggerating and combining them with a protein source always applies.
As for drinks, yes to herbal teas , teas and decoctions but if you have stomach problems it is better to stay away from coffee and alcohol , which are irritating agents .
