Table of contents:
- How can food warm the body?
- What are the foods that can warm the body?
- 1. Ginger
- 2. Garlic
- 3. Chili and black pepper
- 4. Oatmeal
- 5. Brown rice
- 6. Green tea
- 7. Tubers and root vegetables
- 8. Lean meat
- 9. Apples
- 11. Coconut oil
Like it or not, soon we will be greeted by the rainy season - also the flood season. When the outside temperature continues to drop, you may be busy warming up by stacking layers of thick warm clothes to protect yourself from the strong winds that make you feel chills. Sometimes, a cup of warm fresh tea and a bowl of meatballs that are eaten hot are also quite effective in warming the body when it rains.
The best way to fight cold temperatures is to warm your body from the inside with food. But not just any meatball. Certain foods can naturally raise the temperature in your body, which is also healthy because they are enriched with the immune-boosting nutrients and antioxidants you so desperately need to survive cold weather.
How can food warm the body?
The process of warming the body through food is called the thermogenesis process. After food enters the body, the digestive system will begin its job: digest food for several hours. This digested food will be converted by the body into energy to move the body, which can warm the body from the outside. Some of the remaining energy is converted into heat which is used to maintain the temperature in the body.
Reporting from Live Strong, The National Council of Strength and Fitness reports that the amount of heat produced from food depends on the type of food consumed and the number of calories in the meal.
What are the foods that can warm the body?
Try these eleven foods to naturally increase your body temperature from the inside to keep you warm during the inflamed rainy season.
1. Ginger
Ginger gets its nutty taste and thermogenic qualities from the combination of two tangy compounds: gingerol and shogaol. Ginger is believed to relieve headaches and digestive problems, but ginger is also great for warming up the body on cold days. A 2012 study published in the journal Metabolism, reported by Eat This, found that ginger also reduces hunger, thought it may play a potential role in maintaining weight.
Ginger can be put in chicken soup or a cup of warm tea. Or maybe you are one of the loyal connoisseurs of ginger? But actually, chewing raw ginger is known to work more effectively to warm the body because digesting raw food can raise body temperature for a longer time than cooked food.
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2. Garlic
Like ginger, garlic is known to improve circulation, prevent blood clots, and give you the warmth you crave. Just remember, garlic is better consumed raw so you can enjoy the spike in body temperature longer. If you can't stand the smell, you can add chopped onions to a variety of dishes, such as pasta, soup, or as a pickle for a meal.
3. Chili and black pepper
Eating foods with spices such as red pepper or black pepper stimulates the circulatory system causing a warm sensation throughout the body, according to a study published in 2006 in the journal "Physiology & Behavior". This is all thanks to the active compound contained in it, namely capsaicin. Chili and black pepper were also found to have the potential to have an adverse effect on feelings of fullness and the breakdown of body fat.
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It's important to use caution when consuming chilies and black pepper, as some of these spices can actually burn the inside of your mouth and throat if you are not used to eating spicy foods. Those who have stomach ulcers are also not allowed to consume any type of chili, because chilies can slow down the healing of their condition.
4. Oatmeal
Oats are made from whole grains; enriched with fiber and plant-based protein which take longer to digest than simple carbohydrates such as cakes and sweet breads. Eating a bowl of warm oatmeal will not only give you a longer-lasting satiety, but also warm your body because this digestive process also produces more heat energy.
Additionally, oats contain a powerful starch called beta-glucans. Research in Nutrition Reviews reports that just 3 grams of beta-glucan intake a day can reduce bad cholesterol levels by 5-10 percent, regardless of your body's normal or high cholesterol levels at first.
5. Brown rice
Red rice (brown rice) is rice that is half milled (only the outer skin of the rice is removed) and has not gone through a repeated polishing process to become white rice. Like wheat, brown rice is a complex carbohydrate that is broken down more slowly into energy, which warms your body as you digest it.
6. Green tea
Green tea contains two active substances - caffeine, and polyphenols called catechins - which have been shown to increase body heat and work together to increase each other's effects. Catechins in green tea can increase the thermogenesis process by inhibiting certain enzymes in the body. While caffeine increases metabolism by stimulating the release of fatty acids from the body's fatty tissue, which in turn can increase body temperature.
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7. Tubers and root vegetables
Root vegetables and tubers such as cabbage and Brussels sprouts, kale, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, carrots, and potatoes are among the most effective groups of vegetables to warm the body. Both require more energy to be processed in the body than their other above-ground vegetable counterparts.
As the body works to digest it, energy is created through the process of thermogenesis, which increases body temperature. This group of vegetables is also enriched by vitamins A and C, calcium, potassium, fiber, and a little iron.
8. Lean meat
If your hands and feet always feel cold, you may have iron deficiency anemia. Some people with this condition have adequate nutrition, but the body has difficulty absorbing them; while others simply don't eat enough iron-rich foods. Eating a true high-protein diet can help warm your body better than a high-carbohydrate or high-fat diet.
Lean cuts of beef, pork, or poultry and eggs all fit the above criteria but also remain low in harmful saturated fats. Although there are many other plant protein sources such as cereals and legumes (peanuts or walnuts), the human body absorbs more iron from animal protein when compared to other sources.
9. Apples
Apples are high in soluble and insoluble fiber. Soluble fiber slows down the digestive process while what is insoluble helps other foods pass through your system more smoothly. The combination of the two results in a stomach that is not easily hungry and is also less prone to problems. Just make sure you chew the apple without peeling the skin first.
Apple skin is a richer source of fiber than the meat itself, says Melissa Rifkin, RD, a bariatric dietitian at New York City's Montefiore Medical Center. Plus, apples consist of almost 86% water, so snacking on apples during the rainy season will not only warm the body but also keep it hydrated.
10. Bananas
Bananas are rich in B vitamins and magnesium. Both help the thyroid and adrenal glands warm the body in cold weather. Add banana slices to your oatmeal bowl or spread banana slices with peanut butter for a rainy afternoon snack. Mix a peanut butter sandwich and banana slices to add magnesium and B vitamins to your plate.
11. Coconut oil
Coconut oil may sound familiar to you lately, because this oil is included in the superfood range that is quite trendy in the world of health, beauty, to the culinary world. The prestige of coconut oil is recognized by many experts for its antiviral properties and healing effects on skin and hair. Apart from that, coconut oil has also been shown to speed up the body's metabolic processes, thereby increasing your core body temperature.
This oil contains healthy saturated fats that the body breaks down slowly to convert into heat energy, not just stored in fat. As a result, this core body heat surge effectively warms your body from the inside.
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