How can I increase my saliva production? 

When we chew the food, saliva secretes in the mouth. It helps in the movement of food, kill harmful microbes in the food and boosts immunity. 

Let's check if saliva production decreases when your body is low on water. 

It is an answer of common sense that anybody can guess. Many of you might have felt your mouth go dry when your body is dehydrated. It's common for the mouth to dry up when there's a reduction in the body's water content.

Considering dry mouth as a symptom of dehydration, we tend to drink water. Reduced water content in the body can also lead to a decrease in mucus in the stomach and intestines. Excessive dehydration can cause such symptoms. When you drink less water every day, the secretion of mucus in the stomach and intestines significantly decreases.

Now, what happens when there's a reduction in mucus in these linings?

Some might overlook this, but it can lead to various health problems. Firstly, having enough mucus in the linings of the stomach and intestines offers several health benefits. One significant benefit is aiding in the digestion of food. The stomach usually produces acids to digest food. To prevent these acids from damaging the linings of the stomach and intestine, the mucus secreted is crucial in the linings of them.

Let me share another benefit of having sufficient mucus in the linings of the stomach and intestines. Typically, when you consume highly spicy foods like pickles, your stomach and intestines need to withstand the spiciness. For this, a substantial amount of mucus production is necessary. In the linings of the stomach and intestines, there are many useful bacteria. 

To create an environment that promotes the development of these beneficial bacteria, adequate mucus production is crucial and is facilitated by the body's water content. Approximately 98 to 99% of the mucus in the stomach and intestines is composed of water. To ensure proper mucus production in these areas, it's essential to maintain sufficient water levels in the body. Usually, people associate dehydration with only dry mouth or yellow urine.

(Also Read -What happens when the acid level in the stomach is high?)

Some may even consider sunstroke when exposed to the sun as a sign of dehydration. However, these severe symptoms are not the only indicators of dehydration; your body might already be dehydrated before such signs appear. These symptoms arise due to excessive dehydration in the body.

Interestingly, many only start drinking enough water when faced with severe conditions. Surprisingly, about 50% to 75% of people do not consume adequate water in a day. Water is vital for making mucus in your stomach and intestines. Without sufficient water, the body can't produce enough mucus. Insufficient mucus means your body can't protect the stomach and intestines, from the harsh effects of acid production.

Now, let's discuss the problems that arise with low mucus production.

Low mucus levels can lead to issues like ulcers, acidity, and intestinal colitis. Another benefit of enough mucus production that it will prevent irritations inside stomach after eating, Also, enough mucus production is necessary to increases immunity in the intestines.

If your intestines produce enough mucus, your immunity gets a boost. Proper mucus production prevents various issues, ensuring good immunity and digestion and also the nutrients absorb well into the blood. Healthy intestines regularly producing mucus is a positive sign.

Now, let's talk about enhancing mucus production in your stomach and intestines.

Drink at least four liters of water daily. In winter, stick to four liters; in summer, aim for four to five liters. Drinking water correctly ensures optimal mucus production. Incorrect water intake may lead to excessive mucus production when not needed. 

It will produce more whenever not required which is not helpful. Understanding when mucus production is vital is crucial. Let's say you had breakfast, and stomach acid starts digesting. Mucus should protect the stomach from acid even before it starts secreting. While eating stomach acid starts production. Proper mucus production is crucial before eating.

To ensure optimal mucus production, start your day by drinking 1.25 liters of water and defecate. Engage in some physical activity or exercise for 1.5 to 2 hours. After this period, replenish your water intake with another 1.25 liters. Drinking 2.5 to 2 liters of water in the morning ensures sufficient hydration for proper mucus production. This water enters your bloodstream, cells, and mucus layers, contributing to the production of mucus.

Regardless of how spicy your meals are, you won't face problems like ulcers, acidity, or acid reflux if mucus production is sufficient. Mucus plays a crucial role in neutralizing acids produced when you consume food. Like I said while eating the food the acids will produce. To prevent the adverse effects of acid, it's essential to increase mucus production.

Avoid drinking water while eating; it's unnecessary. Drinking water 15 to 30 minutes before meals ensures water reserves in your body. By doing so, you won't feel thirsty while eating. Refrain from drinking water until 2 hours after having breakfast. From 2 hours after eating, make a habit of drinking a glass of water regularly. 

Failure to drink water until 2 hours after eating may disturb the acid's digestive process. Starting 2 hours after breakfast, continue drinking water regularly until 15 minutes before lunch. Drinking sufficient water before lunch prevents thirst during your midday meal. The water consumed before lunch aids in the necessary mucus production after lunch. Usually water enters the bloodstream within 5 to 10 minutes.

Avoid drinking water during meals; wait for 2 hours afterward. From 2 hours after eating until before dinner, drink a glass of water three times at regular intervals. If you feel thirsty before bedtime, drink about 1/4th to half a glass of water. In summer, you can consume water at night, but be cautious during winters and rainy seasons. 

Drink water only when you feel thirsty; otherwise, there's no obligation. Following this water routine ensures, you won't encounter issues like a burning sensation, ulcers, ulcerative colitis, or acidity. Mucus production is crucial for improving intestinal immunity and maintaining a healthy intestinal environment, among various other benefits.

Now I'll explain about Some other Benefits of Chewing Food.

There are various types of diets and lifestyle changes to control the blood sugar levels of diabetics. Among the many things that can control blood sugar is one thing that people don't know. It is chewing the food very much and eating slowly can keep the blood sugar levels in control. Chewing the food will prevent the spiking up of blood sugar and keep the blood sugar levels in control. 

Insulin in the body will be produced correctly as the pancreas gland will work properly. This is a scientifically proven fact. There is a significant difference between chewing food slowly and eating very fast. For diabetics controlling blood sugars through medicines or other ways, it is best if they can start chewing the food properly. 

Before that, you should know clearly why chewing can help in blood sugar level control.

Coming to the fact why chewing can control the blood sugar is. The foods that you eat in the morning, like sprouts, nuts, or the meal that you eat in the afternoon or the nuts, pulka, and curries you eat at night. If you can chew these meals for about 30 minutes to 45 minutes in small chunks each time. 

Something wonderful happens if you chew food 15 times or more than that each time every bite. When you chew the food, most of it breaks down in the mouth itself. All the food substances break down into small pieces. Chewing for long time, the body gains information about what is present in the food. 

Chewing slowly reveals the inner nutrients; faster eating may miss out on vital goodness. When you chew the food well, the food particles break down into very small pieces. As a result, the body will know the amount of nutrients, such as how much protein is present, How much carbohydrates are present, and the level of other nutrients also.

Through the nose, the signal about the nutrient levels will be sent into the stomach, intestines, pancreas, and liver. The signals will contain information about whatever nutrients are present in the chewed food. They alert the body parts to prepare the digestive requirements for them.

So, chewing will give the indication and directions to digest the food properly. The food you eat should be digested in the stomach for about one to 1.5 hours after you eat. Then the food will reach into the small intestines. While the food enters the small intestines, it should be mixed with insulin.

Once the food gets into the small intestines and digests there, reaching the blood.

The pancreas gland should be ready by already producing insulin in order to control the blood sugar level. That's why when you eat slowly by chewing, as the blood sugar levels in the food are previously known, The pancreas gland will get proper direction and will produce enough insulin required for the food.

If there is protein present in the food you have taken, to digest it, the pancreas gets the direction of what amount of pancreatic juices are needed to digest the protein in the food. In the same way, if the food you eat contains fat, the liver has to get ready the bile juice and release it to digest fats.

Before the food reaches the liver, it should keep the bile juice ready to digest fats. To make all of this to happen smooth, it is best to chew slowly and eat. Chewing food will give proper direction to all the digestive organs to produce enough amount of digestive juices. It will also let them produce digestive juices at the right time to facilitate digestion. If the food is taken in large lumps, it will not break into small particles. 

That's why there will not be proper direction to the liver and pancreas. Once the food reaches the intestines and the blood, insulin is to be produced in a hurry if you don't chew properly. If the process is fast, the liver and pancreas will not produce proper digestive juices. That's why problems of indigestion, gastric formation, poor absorption of nutrients, and many other problems occur.

Let me tell you how the study has been conducted on how chewing can control blood sugar.

Some people have been analyzed, those who chew each morsel for 10 times. Another group has chewed the food for 20 times, another group for 30 times, and one more group for 40 times. It has been seen that there is proper insulin production, proper working of insulin and reduction of insulin resistance.

The scientists proven that the people who have chewed food for 30 to 40 times were seen to have these processes proper. That's why there is a close relationship between chewing the food and the pancreas producing insulin properly. This will increase the insulin production and enhance its activity in the body.

It is best if the food contains as few carbohydrates as possible and more fiber as possible. Everything you eat should be more in fiber, protein, low fat, and low carbohydrates. If you choose the food that contains all of these, it will digest very slowly and release glucose slowly.

As the glucose releases slowly, the glucose level will also be controlled in the body. Then the glucose will enter into the cells quickly, insulin will work very properly, and insulin resistance reduces. That's why you should chew and eat the food three times a day every time you eat.

But if you eat a lot of polished food, refined food, non-chewable foods like Usually idli, upma, white rice are eaten without chewing. Therefore the digestive system will not receive information about the constituents of food.

Conclusion:

You will miss out on the benefits, and the blood sugar level will increase rapidly. Therefore, I suggest diabetics take food that is rich in all of the nutrients and highly chewable and also to chew the food slowly.