Healthy tips to stay active, fresh & healthy this summer

It’s summer, a season of vacations, holidays and trips. But, this season also brings warmer temperatures, scorching heat and humidity along with it. So it becomes highly important for all of us to alter our lifestyle by bringing healthful changes in our day to day routine to make our body suitable for the extreme conditions. Hot weather conditions make you vulnerable to various health problems and diseases, so it becomes highly important to follow a healthy lifestyle to stay active and enjoy the summer.

Here are some important points for healthful summer:

Consume enough fluid and stay hydrated

Our body is composed of 60% of fluid and it becomes highly important to consume enough water & fluids to stay fit and healthy. In summer due to warmer temperature and scorching heat, we usually sweat a lot & lose body fluid that leads to the dehydration. As per the studies, an individual should consume 2- 2.5 liters of water or fluids daily as every cells, tissues, muscles and organ needs to be hydrated properly for their active functions.

Other benefits of drinking water:
• Maintains the body temperature
• Flush out waste from the body
• Maintains healthy joints
• Maintains good skin and prevent wrinkles
• Improves the blood flow and provides adequate nutrition & oxygen level to the muscles

What to consume to stay hydrated:
• Water
• Coconut water
• Fresh fruit juice
• Yogurt
• Buttermilk
• Shakes & smoothies

Consume small and healthy meals:

Try to have small meals in a day frequently that include essential micro as well as macronutrients. Eating a heavy meal means consuming a large number of carbohydrates and fats at one go that increases the heat level in the body. Try to avoid deep fried and preserved food items and concentrate more on consuming fresh vegetable and fruits that have good fluid content like cucumber, pumpkin, oranges, tomatoes, watermelons etc.

No caffeine and alcohol:

Consumption of caffeine, alcohol and aerated drinks make your body dehydrated quickly as they are diuretics. These products cause urination more frequently due to which, the water level in the body decreases and you feel dehydrated. If you cannot stop consuming alcohol and caffeine, try to decrease the amount and substitute these with water or fresh fruit juice.

Avoid outdoor works:

Try not to go outside in the afternoons when the sun is overhead. Schedule your outdoor activities either in the morning, i.e. before 11 am or evening i.e. 5 pm. If there is a situation, where you cannot avoid outdoor activities in the afternoon try to cover your head with a cloth or umbrella to avoid head scalp from the exposure of direct sunrays.

Prefer light colored outfits:

Try to avoid dark colored outfits in summer as they absorb heat radiation from the sun due to which, your body temperature rises to a higher level. Always prefer light-colored apparels made of cotton, linen or other breathable fabrics as these reflect the sunlight and also maintains the air flow due to which your body temperature stays at an optimal level.