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While piling on the layers is one way to keep the
winter chill away, certain foods can help warm us from the
inside. Warm soups and hot beverages are a natural, but
some foods actually stimulate heat production more than others.
As temperatures drop, appetites perk up. The cold, dark days of
winter often bring on cravings for hearty comfort foods, warm
beverages, and spicier dishes that held less appeal during the
warm summer months. Our biology drives us to consume more
calories in case food should become scarce, and to add a little
extra padding to help us stay warm. But unlike our ancient
ancestors, we live in heated homes and food is readily available
- so we don't need to pack away those extra calories.
"Whenever we eat and digest a meal, the body temperature rises -
in a process called diet-induced thermogenesis, or DIT for
short," said Dr. Luigi Gratton, vice president of medical
affairs at Herbalife. "But some foods stimulate heat
production more than others. High protein
foods, for example, increase DIT more than starchy or fatty
foods, so they are more 'warming,'" adds Gratton.
Pungent ingredients - like spicy ginger, chili, pepper and
garlic - can aid circulation and generate warmth.
We're more inclined to drink fluids when the weather is hot but
we need plenty of fluids in the winter to warm and humidify
cold, dry winter air.
So, let your warm winter coat warm you up from the outside, and
try these tips to generate some heat from the inside out:
- Protein-rich dishes fuel the furnace to keep us
warm. But choose low-fat proteins - fish, poultry
and lean meats, or protein powder in soups or oatmeal - to
avoid excess fat and calories.
- Turn to
warm teas and
soups to help
hydrate you and keep air passages moisturized.
- Add an extra dash of spices and seasonings
to your winter dishes.
- If you catch a cold or the flu, don't forget the
chicken soup. Studies show that it works better
than other hot liquids to speed up the flow of mucus. It's
thought that the traditional aromatic seasonings in the soup
- such as onion and pepper - travel in the vapors and help
to open up clogged nasal passages.
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