Boost your immunity in winter: Enjoy winter with good health
Cold, cough, fever, sneezing are the most common health issues during winter. In winter, people love to get together for parties, picnics, etc. In these social events, people easily spread viral infections from one to another. So if you wish to stay fit in this season, you need to charge up your immune system.
Choice of the right foods can help us to boost our immunity. All nutrients are essential for our body but some nutrients like vitamin - C, D, E, A, folic acid, and minerals like iron, zinc, etc., omega-3 fatty acid, etc., play a vital role in boost-up our immunity level. So, in winter, along with other foods we need to consume food that are rich in these nutrients. Some such foods are discussed here:
Citrus foods:
Orange, lime, lemon, amla, etc. are freshly available in winter. All these are rich in vitamin C which is a strong immunity booster. Not only vitamin C, but these also contain other nutrients like B-vitamins, phosphorus, potassium, fiber, etc. Citrus fruits also have different types of plant-based compounds like flavonoids, carotenoids, which have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects. These help to protect our bodies from different types of diseases
Winter vegetables:
In winter, you can obtain various types of fresh vegetables like spinach, cabbage, broccoli, carrot, peas, tomato, etc., from your local market. All these vegetables are highly nutritious, loaded with essential nutrients like vitamin A, C, E, B-complex, iron, phosphorus, fiber, etc., and antioxidants. So, if you wish to stay healthy in winter, you must take fresh vegetables from your local market.
Uses:
You can consume vegetables in various ways such as curry, soup, stew, mixed vegetable fried rice or noodles, salad, etc.
Turmeric:
In India, turmeric is also known as one of the “traditional medicine”. Curcumin, a chemical element that is present in turmeric has healing properties. Due to the presence of anti-bacterial, anti-viral properties, it helps to protect our body from various viral or bacterial infections like cold, cough, joint pain, etc.
Uses:
Apart from using it as a spice, you can also use turmeric in other ways like turmeric tea, turmeric milk, etc.
Ghee or clarified butter:
Fat-soluble vitamins like A, D, E, K plays an important role in our body function. Not only that, but these vitamins also help to improve our immune system. Ghee helps to absorb fat-soluble vitamins in our bodies. Due to the presence of fat ghee also act as a natural moisturizer especially in winter.
Uses:
A normal healthy person can take one tsp of ghee on a regular basis. You can add ghee in various curry, different types of sweet dishes, in khichuri, in moong dal preparation, in Pulau, fried rice, or even with hot plain rice.
Jaggery:
Jaggery is known as a natural sweetener. It can be a good substitute for refined sugar. Jaggery is made from dates, palm sap, or sugarcane. It contains some vital nutrients like iron, calcium, zinc, potassium, B-vitamins, etc. including carbohydrates. Therefore, in winter if you want to boost up your energy level naturally, jaggery is a good option. Also, jaggery helps in digestion, act as a blood purifier, helps to prevent anemia, aid to get relief from joint pain, etc.
Uses:
A normal healthy adult can take 2-3 tsp (10-15 gram) of jaggery on a daily basis. You can use jaggery in desserts, in kheer, or can drink milk with jaggery.
Stay away from these foods in winter:
Fried foods or processed foods
Junk foods
Fatty foods
Sugar or sugar-related foods.
At the end:
Food is not the only option to maintain a good immune system. You also need to focus on your daily lifestyle like good sleeping habits, physical activities on a regular basis, quitting smoking, maintaining healthy body weight, and maintaining personal hygiene.
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