Eating delicious warm food while enjoying the rain is what we all look forward to in the monsoon season. It sounds great but remember monsoon brings its own sets of challenges. Humidity in the monsoon makes us susceptible to infections and other seasonal diseases. In order to stay healthy during monsoon we must follow certain steps such as maintaining cleanliness, washing hands frequently, boiling the water before drinking and avoiding eating certain foods.
What we eat will impact our health in monsoon. In this blog we will understand what foods to avoid during monsoon to stay healthy.
7 Foods to Avoid During Monsoon
Street Food
Although eating street food like chat, sandwich and vada pav is very popular, it is important to limit the exposure to avoid getting sick. Often these foods are prepared in unhygienic conditions with very little cleanliness. This increases the risk of infections such as diarrhea. The water used in this is also not clean, making us susceptible to water-borne diseases (1).
Fried Food
Eating a samosa, fries or pakoras with hot chai is what makes monsoon special but eating a lot of fried food also impacts our health in the rainy season. Fried foods lead to gastric issues and indigestion. They also slow down digestion which can cause sluggish digestion (2).
Sea Food
The monsoon is the breeding period for fish; hence it is best to avoid seafood. Fish are highly perishable foods and get spoiled easily in monsoon. There are chances of contamination and bad quality of fish during the monsoon. Scarcity of fish during the monsoon can lead to overstorage of fish which can lead to consumption of bad fish leading to food poisoning (3).
Mushroom
Wild mushrooms should be avoided during monsoons as they are grown in damp soil and can have bacterial growth which increases the risk of infection once consumed. Try to add mushroom alternatives during the monsoon season to avoid any food poisoning and infection.
Raw Foods
Eating raw foods gives pathogens in the body with instant energy. This takes a toll on our health and well-being with bacterial and viral infections, while cooking meals helps kill harmful bacteria.
Fizzy Drinks
Humidity in the monsoon can lead to sweating and dehydration. So, it is important to drink lots of fluids in the monsoon. But avoid drinking fizzy drinks during the monsoon as they can weaken your digestive system and reduce the minerals in your body. You can rely on natural drinks like Nambo pani or take an electrolyte supplement.
Pre-cut Fruits
Avoid consuming pre-cut fruits that are exposed to the environment because there is a high chance of contamination from flies and pests. Pre-cut fruits sold at vendors are not hygienically stored, leading to contamination.
Green Leafy Vegetables
We are not saying to stop eating green leafy vegetables completely but make sure that they are thoroughly washed and cooked properly. Conditions in the monsoon season are ideal for the growth of bacteria and fungus on green leafy vegetables. This can lead to stomach infections and other diseases. Limit your consumption of Spinach, fenugreek leaves, cabbage, cauliflower and increase the consumption of pungent vegetables like bitter gourd, ghiya, tori, and tinda.
Conclusion
Staying healthy during monsoon can be challenging as infections are high during this season. One way to ensure infections during monsoon is to avoid unhygienic and unhealthy foods. These foods can impact our immune system making us more susceptible to bacteria and viruses.
FAQs
1. Which vegetables are not to eat in the rainy season?
Avoid raw vegetables, leafy green vegetables and other vegetables grown inside the soil as there are chances of bacteria present in these vegetables.
2. What should we eat on a rainy day?
Foods that you can eat on a rainy day are fruits like oranges, corn, green teas, hot soup and nuts.
3. Should we drink milk in the monsoon?
Yes, you can drink milk in the monsoon but always boil the milk to kill all the bacteria before consuming it.
4. Do and don’ts during rainy season?
Dos
- Always keep dry
- Maintain cleanliness
- Wash Your hands frequently
- Eat healthy foods
- Drink warm water
- Take immune boosting supplements
Don’t
- Don’t eat street food
- Don’t share things
- Don’t hang out with sick people
- Don’t keep things wet
5. What foods should be avoided in monsoon?
Foods like street foods, extra spicy food, fizzy drinks, green vegetables should be avoided in monsoon.
