Key to stay healthy during monsoons: Interview with a Nutritionist

Monsoons are the times when we have to be extra careful about what we put in our mouth. We had an interview with nutritionist Avanti Damle, who gave us few tips regarding diet and some nutrition tips which we should be following during the monsoons.

How long have you been working as a nutritionist?

I have been working as a nutritionist for almost 13 years, as I started working as a nutritionist in the year 2003. Now I’ am working as a sports nutritionist and wellness consultant.

What should be the ideal proportion of meals?

I would say that dividing your diet in proper proportions is extremely important. It is because our activity levels differ throughout the day, hence to get enough energy for our day to day activities nutritionists have come up with an ideal proportion of food intake. Well if you ask me I would say it should be 10–20–30–20, which means in our breakfast should consists of our 10% of the food intake, 20% during our lunch, 30% to 20% in between the meals and 20% again during the dinner.

What are the principle nutrients our diet should consist of?

Ideally we should be eating all the nutrients as our body requires them all, but the principle nutrients which our meal should have are the micro-nutrients like carbohydrates, proteins, fats as well as vitamins and minerals because they help in building our body. Apart from these vital nutrients another important thing which our body needs is water, which helps to flush out the toxins out of our body as well as keep it hydrated.

Should we make any diet changes during the monsoons?

Well, during the monsoons our digestive systems are bit weak, and therefore we must take extra care of it. We should try and avoid the foods which put pressure on our digestive system and eat more light foods like liquid foods, like soup or shorba and also have different types of gourd vegetables, rice and millets like ragi.

What type of food we should have during the monsoons?

Like I commented before during monsoons we should be taking extra care about our body. We should stick to having seasonal fruits only, as they are the healthiest options. Even buttermilk with dry ginger is a great option as ginger helps to ward off most of the viruses from our body, and buttermilk helps our body to be hydrated.

What is your favorite healthy snack?

I like to have a sprout chat with lots of cabbage, carrot, onions, tomatoes and pomegranate and with a dressing of mint and tamarind chutney.

“Now we have given you all the reasons to stay healthy, so now we hope you pledge to stay healthy and fit because that will make a BYG difference in your life.”

To know more about BYG, visit our website: http://byg.co.in/