Summer heat... what foods should I eat?

Surprisingly, summer heat causes more deaths from heat stroke in the U.S. than twisters, blizzards or floods.

Less surprisingly, what you eat and drink can help you cope more easily with the heat of summer.

It is essential to keep your fluid intake up during the summer heat. Water especially, is your friend, and it is easy to keep a supply of water in the fridge.

Foods with a high water content are ideal foods for summer. Reduce your consumption of protein (protein is hard to digest and the effort required for the process creates heat)  and increase your consumption of fruit and vegetables.

Fresh fruits and vegetables are the perfect summer food so as much as possible, increase the quantity of these in your diet. As a bonus, fruits and vegetables also supply your body with the nutrients it needs to help protect your body from the effects of the sun. Antioxidants help prevent and repair cells in the body. Vitamins and minerals can help protect you from skin cancer and wrinkles.

So which fruits and vegetables are ideal for those long hot summer days, and why?

Cucumbers and melons are ideal water-rich options. 

 A low calorie sweet treat, a large chunk of cold, thirst-quenching watermelon has to be the most perfect summer food. It is high in Vitamin C and Vitamin A, potassium and magnesium, nutrients that are invaluable in summer. Vitamin C helps the body physiologically during the heat of summer by improving the body’s response to heat stress. You are less likely to feel exhausted by the heat because the Vitamin C lowers your body temperature and helps shorten the length of time it takes for your body to adjust or acclimatize to the heat. Vitamin C has antioxidant benefits which are thought to help the body protect itself from cell damage by increasing the production of collagen, the growth of new tissue and repair of damaged cells. Vitamin C helps reduce the incidence of summer allergies, possibly by preventing the body from producing histamine.

Fruits that are particularly high in Vitamin C and also have sufficient Vitamin E and A to meet your summer requirements include black currents, guava, kiwi, mango, mulberries and papaya. Vegetables include butternut squash and swiss chard.

But most fruits contain Vitamin A, as do eggs and dairy. Additional foods high in Vitamin C are: grapefruit, lychee, orange, passionfruit, pineapple and strawberries, bok choy, broccoli, brussels sprouts and kale.

Vitamin A helps your body repair skin that has been damaged by exposure to the sun’s rays. Vitamin A is in most fruits, as well as eggs and dairy. Vitamin E also has antioxidant effects and can help reduce the severity of summer allergies and asthma by calming the immune system and the allergic response.

Green leafy vegetables provide the nutrients required for thermoregulation, the process of the body regulating its internal temperature. Calcium is the most important mineral for regulating body temperature.

Cranberries, pears, apples, pomegranates, grapes, quince, persimmons, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, and root vegetables are excellent summer foods due to their astringent properties. Astringent foods increase water absorption in the body. Other astringent foods are legumes, tea and coffee, and some herbs and spices (thistle, chamomile, jasmine).