most of us cannot sit through our meals without having a glass of water while drinking a few sips in between is absolutely fine it is believed that having too much water during meals is not a very good idea studies show that it is advisable to have a glass or two of water 30 minutes before your meal or 30 minutes after but is it ok to drink water during meals well here is what you need to knowdrinking water during meals myths factswater is great for your skin bowel movement digestion and overall health you should have at least 2 liters of water a day and if youre in a hot city then 34 liters a day is a must however it is believed that drinking water during meals is not a good idea because of certain misconceptions here are some of the common reasons people believe why you should not drink water with meals1 it may affect digestionpeople believe that drinking water during your meal basically has an adverse effect on digestion starting from reducing the amount of saliva in your mouth reduced saliva sends weaker signals to your stomach which ends up impacting the release of gastric juices and enzymes so absorbing and breaking down of food is hindered from the moment you sip water while eating your mealbut contrary to this belief studies2 show that there is no influence on drinking water on actual food intake during and after a meal2 it may slow down absorption of nutrientsit is also believed that by diluting gastric juices vital to fighting infectious substances you are also preventing food from breaking down properly when digestive enzymes in your stomach are diluted with water your food will sit in your stomach for longer it may pass through the small intestine at a slower pace with fewer nutrients being absorbedhowever this is just an assumption and not proven in any research study so the role of water in lowering nutrient absorption is not fully understood3 it can cause aciditydrinking water is believed to cause acidity because your stomach will absorb as much water as it can while you are eating and drinking this can dilute gastric juices and slow down the process of digestion with undigested food sitting in your system the result is acid reflux and heartburnbut there are no studies yet to prove the effect so the role of drinking water between meals in increasing the risk of acidity cannot be taken into consideration4 it may cause weight gainanother popular belief of drinking water is its effect on gastric juices and its ability to increase the amount of insulin in your body leading to weight gain this is claimed to be because when your body is not able to digest food well it gets converted into fat and stored in the body also diluted gastric juices cause food to be absorbed slowly which in turn is converted into fat causing you to put on weightthere are numerous