Monsoon: Foods you should avoid eating for better health
Monsoon is synonymous with fun until brings along a spectrum of health issues including cold and cough, seasonal allergies, viral fever, dengue, malaria, and stomach infections. With that said, it is important to boost your immunity. To achieve this, it is essential to resist indulging in certain foods that may tempt you this season, as they can greatly affect your overall health and wellness.
Leafy veggies
Leafy greens are healthy but aren't so during the monsoon. The reason? Well, the humidity and temperature can make these leafy vegetables a hotbed for bacterial and fungal growth. If consumed, they can lead to stomach infections and other digestive issues. So avoid eating spinach, cauliflower, fenugreek leaves, cabbage, etc, and instead opt for other green veggies like bitter gourd and bottle gourd.
Seafood
It is best to avoid seafood like prawns and fish during the monsoon season as they may harbor pathogens and bacteria that thrive in dirty rainwater and humid weather conditions. A lot of them carry bacterial, fungal, and microbial infections, either naturally or due to human transmission. Additionally, they don't remain fresh for long during this season due to high humidity.
Yogurt
Yogurt is healthy and a good source of prebiotics. However, Ayurveda says that it should not be consumed during the season of rain. This is because it is believed that during monsoon, the digestive fire or agni tends to be weaker. Consuming yogurt, which is considered heavy and cooling in nature, can further dampen the agni and lead to digestive issues.
Raw vegetables
Raw vegetables may have tiny, hidden insects sheltering in them during the rainy season, which makes eating uncooked veggies a bad choice. Even washing them well in water doesn't guarantee that they will be pest-free. In addition to this, chewing and digesting cooked veggies is easy as it gets absorbed faster than raw ones, which does a favor to your sluggish digestion during monsoon.
Fried food
Fried food is an instant favorite for many during rain. However, they hardly do any good during the season apart from satiating one's cravings. Dishes like fritters, samosa, tikki, etc. can cause various gastrointestinal problems like constipation, gas, and acidity as during monsoon one's digestive process becomes slower. They are also quite rich in salt which can lead to water retention in the body.
