How Should Nutrition Be During Winter?

The weather gradually cooled down and we all started to feel the changes in our diet. We may have been faced with questions such as, “Winter has come, has my metabolism slowed down, or has my appetite increased?” Let’s answer these questions briefly and take a look at how we should not eat during the winter months.

We can say that the winter months are a period when diseases are rampant and our immune system is weakened. During this period, as the weather gets colder, we can see some changes in our metabolism and eating behaviors. It is possible to correct these changes by making small touches in our nutrition and daily routine.

Is the Water We Drink in Summer a Dream?

First of all, the water we need and can easily consume in summer is limited during this period. However, one of the most important factors for the metabolism to work well and the body temperature to be kept balanced is water. For this, care should be taken to drink at least 2-2.5 liters of water daily. If we do not like drinking plain water, we can make it easier to drink water and help increase our water consumption by adding parsley, mint or lemon slices to the water.

Are Winter Months a Harbinger of High Calories?

We need the energy we get from sugary foods to stay warm during the winter months. In such cases, we should be careful to choose whole grain products rather than consuming foods high in simple carbohydrates. We can choose fruit instead of high-calorie desserts, and make big changes with small touches by including herbal teas in our diet instead of high-calorie drinks.

In order to prevent an increase in our appetite during this period, we should pay attention to our meal times and be careful not to skip our snacks.

It’s Time to Wage War Against Diseases!

In order to protect ourselves from diseases and strengthen our immune system, we should consume foods rich in vitamins A and C, which act as antioxidants. In addition to vegetables such as carrots, broccoli, zucchini, cabbage, cauliflower and parsley, we should add fruits such as oranges, tangerines and apples, which are abundant in winter months, to our diet list.

Probiotics, which play a major role in strengthening immunity by regulating our intestinal flora, should not be forgotten. Vegetables (leek, Jerusalem artichoke, okra, artichoke, celery, onion, garlic, asparagus), legumes (chickpeas, lentils, beans), whole grains (whole wheat, oats, barley, whole wheat rice), oilseeds (walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts). ), fruits (olives, bananas, strawberries, apples) and kefir, yoghurt, ayran, boza, tarhana, turnip juice and pickles are foods with probiotic properties and are among the things that should be added to our diet during the winter months.

We can strengthen our defense against diseases by choosing 1 kiwi, 2 tangerines or 1 orange along with a handful of hazelnuts or almonds during your snacks.

The Power of Vitamin D

During this period when we are deprived of the sun, we can add fish, eggs and milk to our diet to provide vitamin D, which is very effective in immune system and weight management. We should not forget to sunbathe when the weather is sunny.

It is recommended that you consult a physician to replace vitamin D, the deficiency of which we frequently see in our blood findings.

It’s Time to Take Action!

Finally, apart from the effects of the winter months on nutrition, another point we need to look at is our daily habits. The desire to sleep more and decreased physical activity due to cold weather have negative effects on our metabolism. Therefore, you should make sure that you sleep for an average of 6 hours a day and add the most suitable exercise to your routine during the day.

We welcome you to our hospital to create your personalized nutrition program in order to protect ourselves from diseases, strengthen our immune system and have a healthy body.

I wish you healthy days.

Dyt. Zeynep YAVUZ