‘THE NINE REFRAINMENTS IN LIFE’ WHEN DEALING WITH PEOPLE, MATTERS AND IN TAKING CARE OF OUR HEALTH
5. Refrain from overeating
Fifth, refrain from overeating. You should not overeat during meals. On top of this, there is a principle that goes like this, “Do not wait till you are famished to eat and if you do, you must not overeat; do not wait till you are extremely thirsty to drink and if you do, you must not overdrink”. What does this mean? Assuming someone is famished, he should not overeat. It is alright to eat full if you already had something. However, if the stomach is empty and the person is starving, eating too much will upset his stomach.
In times of dehydration, you should not overdrink. It’s common to see many people, who are dehydrated gulping down excessive quantities of water, not knowing that their action will harm their stomach. As a matter of fact, it is best that you eat until you are 70% or 80% full.
Source: Master Jun Hong Lu’s World Buddhist Fellowship Meeting, Paris, France, 5 September 2019