How to change your diet in winter, so as not to get sick? Do I need to eat more calories and fat, are fresh vegetables useful?
In winter, our food inevitably changes – this is due to the climate. At this time of the year we eat less fruit, vegetables and greens. What is sold, in quality is inferior to summer gifts of nature, but it is expensive. Many people switch to carbohydrates, potatoes and pasta, plus pickles, marinades, jam. There is even a myth: traditionally they have been eating for centuries, and this is our food, our organism has adapted to it, there is no reason to buy fresh vegetables and fruits in winter.
This is erroneous for many reasons. First, one of the most important rules of modern nutrition is a compulsory 500 grams of vegetables and fruits a day. This dose should be consumed regardless of the season, that is, in winter, too. Secondly, this myth does not quite correspond to historical reality. Our ancestors did not really have fresh vegetables and fruits, but they did not eat modern pickles with marinades and jams – they just could not cook.
The Truth About Jam
Modern jam began to be actively made only in the second half of the XIX century, when sugar was cheap, and therefore affordable. Before that, from various kinds of fruits and berries, they made pastilles without sugar. It has many benefits and especially a lot of pectin. It normalizes digestion, lowers cholesterol in the blood, protects against cancer, atherosclerosis and many other diseases. Many fruits and berries were dried, such blanks are also very useful. Jam made, but on honey. Firstly, it is more useful than on sugar, and secondly, it was not very much eaten, honey was always not the cheapest product.
Under the yoke – then useful
Vegetables, as well as many fruits and berries used to be canned in the open way, under yoke. From cucumbers, tomatoes, cabbage and many other vegetables and mushrooms, they made pickles and sugars, fruits and berries – mochea. Despite the different names, according to the technology of production, they were fundamentally the same products, they all went through the process of lactic fermentation. And they are all much more useful than modern sterilized canned food and marinades (there is much less harmful salt in them and there are useful probiotics – lactobacillus bacteria). Such traditional billets are not better than fresh fruits and vegetables, but, in fact, they can compete with them in the winter. Add to this the variety of blanks – it’s not only cucumbers and tomatoes, which are mostly canned today. Then the method of fermentation harvested all available vegetables, fruits and berries. They made food varied and provided a lot of useful antioxidants, vitamins and other nutrients, which we so lack today.
The rule of 500 grams
The World Health Organization actively promotes consumption of at least 500 grams of vegetables and fruits daily. For this purpose, WHO has a slogan: “5 times a day!”. These are 5 daily servings of fruits and vegetables, each weighing about 100 grams. Many people think that this is very much. This is not true. Count: one mandarin weighs 80-100 grams, the average orange – 150-200. It is good to eat salad for lunch and dinner, as well as a vegetable garnish, cabbage soup, possibly some other fruit, plus a small addition of vegetables to different dishes, as well as spices and herbs for seasoning. So you easily dial and even exceed the daily portion even in winter. But you need to choose the right gifts of nature. Not only fresh fruits, vegetables and greens are useful, but also the following products:
- all frozen vegetables, greens, fruits and berries;
- lecho, tomatoes in its own juice, tomato paste and mashed potatoes;
- tomato and vegetable juices without added sugar;
- canned green peas, beans (including pods), corn, etc. billet.
You can eat, but limited – because of the maintenance of a decent amount of salt (especially for cores) – the following blanks:
- traditional pickles made under the yoke (sauerkraut, cucumbers, mushrooms, garlic, etc.);
- traditional tinctures (tomatoes, apples, berries);
- vegetable caviar (zucchini, eggplant, etc.).
To the number of useful vegetables, fruits and berries do not include canned pickles, marinades and jam, and include them in compulsory daily 500 g is not necessary.
These are products for occasional use – under the mood, on a holiday, etc.
The cardiologist, the doctor of medical sciences, the professor, the head of the department of clinical functional diagnostics and the scientific secretary of the Moscow State Medical-Stomatological University named after. A. Yevdokimova Yuri Vasyuk:
– We underestimate that cold winters are very dangerous for people with hypertension and other cardiovascular diseases.
Such weather contributes to the emergence and aggravation of respiratory diseases, cardiovascular diseases, provokes heart attacks, strokes and hypertensive crises. People with hypertension need to closely monitor their blood pressure and it is extremely important to eat right – first of all, to limit the intake of salted and animal fats.
In recent years, when baptismal bathing in ice water became popular, young men with severe pneumonia often came to our clinics.
The case history is stereotyped – plunged into the hole, drank to warm 100 grams, and soon fell ill. So do, of course, do not need.
Alcohol expands the surface vessels, causing a deceptive sensation of heat, but in fact because of this, the heat loss of the body is greatly increased. As a result – hypothermia with severe inflammation of the lungs or other acute illness of the respiratory system.
Is there more fatty or not?
This is one of the main issues of winter nutrition. We are sure that fat helps keep warm in cold weather. But, on the other hand, we know perfectly well that fat, butter and fatty meat are harmful to the vessels and waistline. How to be?
Here is what the doctor-psychoendocrinologist and the president of the Russian Diabetic Association Mikhail Bogomolov advises in this regard:
– Indeed, fats are good for warming up, it’s true. But, I think, for many it will be a surprise that not only animal fats act this way, but also vegetable ones that are healthy. The fact is that fats break down into substances that cause a very slight muscular tremor, it is so weak that we do not even notice it. But at the same time, a large amount of heat is released, which helps us to keep warm in the cold. It is better to use a mixture of different vegetable oils, today they are sold a lot. This mixture does not need to be cooked, it is perfect for salads and for filling ready-made dishes. Very good oily fish, especially from cold northern seas. Do not forget about the various seafood and seaweed. All these seafood contain iodine, which also helps to keep warm in the cold. It is needed for thyroid hormones. They increase the metabolism, and as a result, the body releases more heat.
Main winter product
The cod liver claims this role. And there are many reasons for this. First, it is rich in useful omega-3 fatty acids. They protect the vessels from atherosclerosis, and in winter, when the food is more fatty and high-calorie, this is very important. Secondly, the cod liver is a champion in the content of vitamin D. It is important for health in general, and in winter especially. At this time, its synthesis in the skin practically ceases, since the winter sun is very weak. Therefore it is necessary to receive it with products. And the cod liver is ideal for this. Get a habit of keeping 1-2 cans with these cans at home. Do not be stingy, buy the best – from whole pieces of liver made in the sea (this is indicated on the label). And 1-2 times a week, eat about 1 teaspoonful. It is not necessary anymore, since it contains a lot of vitamin D. Do not forget about other products with vitamin D. These include: egg yolk, dairy products and beef liver.
Approximate winter menu per day
Breakfast
Scrambled eggs with fried onions (or garlic).
Orange.
Coffee.
Dinner
Salad from radish with sour cream.
Borscht.
Baked herring, potatoes in uniform with vegetable seasoning.
Afternoon snack
Cheese.
Coffee with cream.
Dinner
Solyanka.
Tea with lemon.
Late Dinner
An Apple.
Kefir with the addition of dry greens.
How to cook?
Try to make any additive to any dish from vegetables, spices and other condiments. This can be done already while eating, or it is possible during cooking.
More often use tomato paste and mashed potatoes. If they are not, you can cook on tomato juice.
When preparing salads from cabbage, be sure to suppress it and let it stand for 15-20 minutes, so that it launches the juice. Just do with onions and garlic. At this time, the synthesis of bioactive substances sharply increases in them. If these components are subjected to a temperature treatment, do the opposite: cut them immediately before cooking.
Carrots and beets cook whole, so they store more useful substances.
Potatoes, cook in a peel, rinsing well with a brush, before boiling or baking.
5 products to support immunity during the season of colds
Garlic
It is considered the best product for the treatment and prevention of influenza and colds. And microbes and viruses are afraid not only of garlic eaten. Finely chopped and diluted in an apartment garlic neutralizes them with one of its aromas.
Ginger
Ginger tea has not only a warming, but also a disinfectant and antiseptic effect. In addition, ginger tea accelerates metabolism and helps to quickly get rid of the number of kilograms collected during the winter holidays.
Sauerkraut
The champion in the content of vitamin C, from the lack of which almost everyone suffers in winter. Ascorbicum in sauerkraut is larger than in lemons, oranges and black currant (30 mg per 100 g). Cardiologists respect sauerkraut for high potassium content. It normalizes the heart rate and blood pressure. And oncologists consider it to be the main product for the prevention of breast cancer. Another value of cabbage is the high content of dietary fiber that improves intestinal peristalsis (prevention of constipation caused by a sedentary winter lifestyle).
Persimmon
The only fruit that does not deteriorate in the cold, but only becomes more delicious. The main value of persimmon is the high content of iodine, from the lack of which all the inhabitants of the central strip of Russia suffer. Bright orange color – a sign of high content of beta-carotene (the elixir of youth and the source of longevity). Thanks to the unique combination of vitamins C and R, the persimmon strengthens the walls of the vessels and helps to avoid the winter red “mesh” on the cheeks and nose. And pectin improves digestion.
Cranberry
This marsh beauty is not accidentally called the northern lemon and the juvenile berry. Cranberries are a storehouse of organic acids and minerals (natural antioxidants). Due to the high content of tannin, cranberry juice quickly churns out the temperature. Cranberry juice is considered a preventive against infectious diseases, and when treated with antibiotics enhances their effect. Cranberry is a unique remedy for the diseases of the genitourinary system. Useful berry and hypertensive patients – with her help you can quickly lower blood pressure.