Beat the Heat: The Best and Worst Foods for Summer

Watermelon is a delicious fruit found in the summer season. It contains about 92 percent water. Watermelon helps in keeping our body well hydrated. By keeping our body hydrated, our memory remains sharp and our mood remains stable. Apart from this, watermelon provides us with a lot of antioxidants including vitamin A, vitamin C and lycopene, which can reduce the risk of diabetes, heart disease, cancer, high blood pressure, macular disorder in the eyes and complications of arthritis. Consume fresh watermelon daily to keep your body cool and well hydrated during the summer months. Children also like the refreshing and sweet taste of watermelon.

(Read more - Diet for weakness)

Cucumber is a very good diet in the summer season. It contains a good amount of water and fiber which helps in keeping the body cool and fresh. The enzyme called pepsin found in cucumber helps in keeping the intestinal tract healthy. It is very useful in getting rid of the problem of poor digestion due to the summer season. For this, consume cucumber salad, soup or juice daily during the summer season.

(Read more - Gluten and Gluten-Free Foods) 

Consuming buttermilk during summer is a great way to combat dehydration and fatigue. Buttermilk contains electrolytes, probiotics and a lot of water. A glass of buttermilk can help hydrate your body instantly. It also helps in calming the problem of gas in the stomach due to spicy food or heat. Consuming buttermilk with your food reduces sweating, fatigue, muscle cramps, nausea and headaches to a great extent. Along with this, buttermilk is also very good for the skin. So avoid carbonated drinks in summer and start drinking one or two glasses of buttermilk daily.

(Read more - Fermented foods benefits)

Mango is easily available in the summer season. Mango contains vitamin A, vitamin C and vitamin E and plenty of energy. You can eat it in both ripe and raw form to avoid the problem of heat. You can eat ripe mango for breakfast - mix its pulp in milk or curd and make a delicious smoothie and consume it. Along with this, boil raw mango and take out its pulp. Now add a glass of cold water, a little salt and roasted cumin powder to it and consume it. It helps in relieving heat stroke and exhaustion.

(Read more -Spices: Types, Health Benefits)

Sweet lime is a juicy and delicious fruit which is full of water. It helps in replenishing the loss of water and electrolytes due to sweating in summer. It is also an excellent source of fiber, vitamin C, copper and iron. It aids in digestion by removing digestive problems in summer. It also helps in reducing dark spots and acne as well as sun tan. For this, extract the juice of sweet lime and add a little salt and sugar and consume it in summer.

(Read more - Best breakfast food)

Coconut water is one of the important healthy foods to replenish water loss due to sweating during summer days. This natural and fresh drink is full of simple sugar, electrolytes and minerals that help keep the body hydrated. A glass of coconut water helps to easily increase the electrolyte composition in the body so stay hydrated with coconut water in summer. Drink coconut water on an empty stomach in the morning to protect lungs, eyes, kidneys and blood circulation.

(Read more - Mindful Eating: How to Eat Food the Right Way)

Tomatoes are nutritious and delicious. It helps to keep the body hydrated. Tomatoes contain high amounts of lycopene which is a powerful antioxidant. Along with this, potassium, folate, fiber, manganese, magnesium, niacin, and vitamins B6, vitamin C, vitamin A, vitamin K and vitamin E are found. To keep yourself healthy always, eat tomatoes by adding them in salad, sandwich or soup. You can also consume its juice.

Make sure to include curd in your food. In summer, diarrhea and stomach related problems increase due to heat stroke. In such a situation, the bacteria present in curd help in making the stomach healthy. In such a situation, you can include it in your diet daily in the form of salty or sweet lassi or vegetable raita etc.

Sattu provides coolness to the stomach and the protein present in it helps in keeping our stomach full for a long time. You can also take it as a light breakfast. You can use it as a salty or sweet sherbet.

It is no surprise that junk food has become a part of our diet. But to keep yourself healthy, one should avoid the consumption of junk food as it can cause food poisoning in summer. Junk food contains a lot of oil, energy and sodium which is harmful for our skin, weight and digestion. It takes a lot of time to digest junk food. Therefore, one should avoid the consumption of junk food during summer.

(Read more - Antioxidants: Food sources, Benefits)

Sea food poisoning is most common in summers. Therefore, seafood should be avoided in summers. Red meat has a high fat content and eating it increases the body temperature. Therefore, red meat should not be consumed in summers.

(Read more - What is Sattvic Food?)

Our digestive system has to work harder to digest spicy food. Along with this, some spices also increase the temperature in our body. Light and fresh food should be consumed during summers. If you want to eat spicy food on any occasion, then eat it in limited quantities.

(Read more - How to Manage Food Poisoning)