By Nahid Khilji

Winter, people say, is the time for comfort, good food and staying warmth.

However, winters bring along cool temperatures, snowfall, hails, which at times might seem scary and terrible, but with proper diet you can sail through it comfortably.

Because of immense cold, it becomes difficult for people to follow their exercise routine, which helps to keep ones inner body temperature normal.

With the onset of winters people face a lot of health issues like flu, common cold, and chest conjunction.

And as a result, as the temperature continues to drop, people fail to follow a healthy diet, which is essential for healthy living. Often people spend winters sitting at their home, with a bowl of canned and salty snacks, hot pizzas, and other such junk foods.

Thus it becomes difficult in maintain a sort of balance in winters. It is important to keep a tab of what you eat, so that you don’t end up gaining weight, and your immunity stays is intact.

Here are a few common nutritional problems which people face during winters:

Hunger Pangs: During winters, the body temperature goes down. Body tries to normalize this by increasing the BMR by using stored fat as a source of energy or by consuming more food. Hence one might feel like eating every now and then.

Risk of Vitamin D deficiency: During winter/spring, daylight is delayed and comparatively sun rises later. This leaves us with less exposure to sunlight. Chances of Vitamin D deficiency become high in winter. Hence one might want to take Vitamin D supplements. This should be done under strict supervision.

Impact on immunity: Winter is the season of cold and flu. So keeping a healthy immune system during winter is important. One can have citrus fruits like amla, oranges, pineapple, and guava to keep off the bacterial invasions. Probiotics which are good bacteria helps in maintaining a healthy immunity system. Hence probiotic curd can be used to keep your immunity strong.

Weight gain: This is attributed to decreased physical activity and increased intake of high calories foods. Hence exercising regularly will help in keeping blood flow constant and keep you warmer from within.

People mostly go in the hibernation period during winters without managing their energy expenditure and energy consumption which might bring about radical changes in their attitude towards health and can be hazardous.

Note: Nahid Khilji is a qualified dietitian, health coach and a diabetic educator. Her writings are aimed to motive and guides people to have an holistic approach towards life.

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