Beat the Heat with a Nice Cool Treat

The scorching heat has started taking its toll on the city. With temperatures touching 48°, everyone’s looking to stay cool and hydrated. In order to achieve optimum health, good hydration & to minimize the chances of getting heat strokes & various other illnesses, we need to have proper diet (foods and drinks) to stay cool & healthy this season.

Proper exercise and a good diet can help you beat the heat like a pro. Cooling your body temperature in a right manner is also very important. During heavy sweating hydrating with water is not just enough especially, for people looking for weight loss during heavy workouts.

If you do one thing this summer to improve your diet, have lots & lots of fresh fruits & vegetables every day in the form of juices, smoothies, shakes, salads & in various other preparations. They’ll help you load up on antioxidants, which help prevent damage to tissues and reduce the risk of age-related illness & also help to recover the nutrient losses faster during summers.

We most often hear about how eating antioxidants improves our overall health and nutrition, but antioxidants are an essential ingredient for skin health too and there is no limit to consuming them (one can have many servings of antioxidants in a day as one wishes to).

Citrus fruits are especially antioxidant-rich. They are also very high in fiber, which helps keep cholesterol low, is good for gut health, helps maintain a healthy weight and in reducing weight with no weight loss side effects and may even help prevent some cancers according to some researchers.

There are certain foods that you can include in your diet to stay cool naturally:

One of the most well-known summer foods out there, cucumbers are super hydrating and low in calories as well. You can eat them raw, juice them or add them to salads for nutritious summer meals!

Other than cucumbers, carrots, beetroots, tomatoes, celery also helps in the similar manner & can be consumed in combination with all the above-mentioned preparations.

Wood apple(bael) is considered highly effective against heat strokes & other health issues related to the summer season. Fruits like watermelon, muskmelon and wood apple should be consumed regularly during summer. Many people lose appetite during summer due to excessive heat. Watermelon or muskmelon is a good solution to the problem, Cool melons are honestly the best snacks during summers. They are low in calories and are made up of 95 percent water, which makes them one of the most hydrating foods ever. Fruits are also rich in vitamin A & C, sodium, potassium and antioxidants.

Pineapple, sweet lime, wood apples, bananas, berries, including gooseberries, grapes are also good. Even dried berries are of much help during the summer, be it strawberry, blackberry, raspberry or cranberry. Adding them to your fruit, salad, smoothie bowl or creating a health drink can create wonders to the recipe.

Tender Coconut water does wonders, a miraculous drink to beat the heat. It not just quenches the thirst but also provides your body with all the necessary minerals and are low in calories.

Combination of 2-3 fruits & vegetable gives a twist to the recipe, so don’t just wait, discover your own version of smoothies, juices, shakes & salads.

Eating seasonal fruits & vegetables is better than consuming frozen or preserved ones. So, one should select according to the seasonal and local availabilities.

To be continued; read on for recipes of smoothies, shakes and salads.