What Should be on Your Plate this Monsoon Season

 

Monsoon may be the season of fried food and hot cups of tea for most people, but there is a bigger picture. Many water-borne diseases are at their peak during this season including malaria, dengue, typhoid, diarrhoea, vitamin D deficiency and skin infections. How to avoid these to enjoy your monsoon? Switch to a healthy balanced-diet and treat your body as the temple it is!

 

How to Plate it right during the monsoon season

 

With Ayurveda as our guide, we turn to ‘Ritucharya’- The concept of eating balanced meals according to the changing seasons. It's known to acclimatise the immune system, body and mind as per the needs of the season. If going disease-free is your intention during the monsoon season, then follow the great teachings of ritucharya and add these Super foods to your diet immediately!

Let’s start with our Fluids 

 

• Drink More Water, Surprise Your Liver! Remember that waterborne diseases peak during monsoon, so boil water before drinking it if you don’t have a purifier at home.

 

• Your body also needs loads of other fluid sources during monsoon because of water loss due to humidity and sweating in the monsoon. Drink freshly prepared water-based soups, broths, herbal tea like kadha, ginger tea, etc to boost your immune system. You can also checkout our post on #quirkyMonsoonDrinks on @foodism!

 

Next, we move on to Fruits & Vegetables

 

• Loaded with essential vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, Fruit Intake is a must during monsoon.

You can start with the King of fruits- Mango or maybe you are more of a Lychee fanatic. 

There is a plethora of choices for you such as - Jamun, Apples, Plums and let’s not forget the scrumptious Cherries! 

 

• To increase your dietary fibre intake, Eat more gourds! You can have bitter gourd, bottle gourd, ridge gourd, sponge gourd, pointed gourd or any gourd of your choice!

 

• Add squashes like pumpkins, green and yellow zucchini to increase the intake of antioxidants. You can spice it up by making squash pies, soup or the umami thai curries.

Moving to Spices, Herbs & Nuts

 

• Top on the Important list are - turmeric, ginger, garlic, pepper, Indian basil, mint and lemongrass. These contain antiseptic, antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties that can keep the monsoon diseases in check.

 

• Nuts and seeds are packed with nutrition, especially proteins, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants - Having plenty of these immunity boosters monsoon foods will prove very helpful!

 

Now that we are done with What to eat during Rainy season, the next question is- 

 

Foods To Avoid During Monsoon

 

The balanced diet can become unbalanced if you don’t stop the following eating habits during the season.

 

• Eating out

Whether it is a fancy restaurant or street food stall, it is better to avoid eating outside during the rainy season to protect yourself from water-borne diseases. Instead home-cooked, fresh and healthy meals should be your go-to option for monsoon. You can check out exciting recipes that are posted on our website and instagram!

 

• Eat Safer Greens

The temperature and humidity of monsoon season are conducive to bacterial and fungal growth, especially on green leafy vegetables. You may still consume these, but make sure you wash them in lukewarm water and cook them thoroughly on a high heat before consumption.

 

• Switch to Light Food

Monsoon can take a toll on your gastrointestinal system, so avoid fried foods and rich dishes during this season. If you’re eating fried foods at home, don’t eat too much or too often and don’t reuse the oil you fry in.

 

• Avoid Seafood

The risk of water contamination is high during the monsoon season, which makes all types of fish and seafood susceptible to being carriers. It’s, therefore, best to avoid eating fish and seafood during monsoon.

 

Now that we have covered all the do’s and don’ts of monsoon foods, you are all set to enjoy the upcoming season!