Stay Fit with Healthy Winter Diet

Winter is the season when everyone loves to sit inside a cozy quilt. It's a time when everyone drowns into the world of tempting food and want to enjoy every bite of it. Creamy pastas, chocolaty cakes, crispy cookies and yummy desserts keep on pulling out our cravings. Everyone feels lazy and lethargic and just likes to squeeze in one corner of the house to adore the charms of winter season. It will also be correct to mention that out of all seasons winter provides natural nourishment to the body and helps keeping it healthy and increase physical strength. All of us tend to eat heavier food in winter as body needs fuel to generate lots of energy to stay warm. Our body also stores energy during winter, which is used throughout the year. So, it becomes really very important to take proper, nutritious diet to increase immunity and you also need to take care that you don't put on some extra pounds during the season.

Moreover, winter is the season of Blues that means it's dark all around with shorter days and longer nights. These blues of winter can make you feel low in energy, depressed and gives a feeling of getting down in the dump. Due to lack of light Serotonin level is decreased in body. Serotonin is a mood lifting chemical that regulates hunger and the feeling of well being and happiness. Due to decreased Serotonin many people are found suffering from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). Depression, irritability, panic attacks, obsessiveness and low self esteem are few signs of SAD. So, it's good to do some socializing, cook some good and healthy meal, stay around people who appreciate you, do some workouts and use bright light in your home to avoid to get stuck up in vicious circle of SAD. Apart from SAD, some other common winter diseases are - common cold, sore throat, coughs, and flu.

From the above discussion, it's very clear that winter is the season when we really need to take care of our diet and fitness regime as illnesses increase during winter season. Moreover, "A Healthy Mind Resides In A Healthy Body ", so it's necessary to obtain energy from correct type of food. During winters, increase the intake of Vitamins & Minerals to stay healthy. Vitamins A, C and E help to strengthen our immune system.

• Vitamin A is found in eggs, fish, milk, orange, carrots, and green fruits and vegetables. Spinach, chard, and broccoli are great sources of Vitamin A. Vitamin A is good for eyes and to improve skin texture.
• Vitamin C helps to remove harmful substances from bodies and improves the immune system. Foods like parsley, watercress, green peppers, arugula, cauliflower, oranges, lemon and tangerines are rich sources of Vitamin C. Eat salads with plenty of lemon juice and eat fresh fruits and citrus fruits such as kiwis, oranges, apples and grapefruit. Herbal teas like rosehip, linden, raspberry, blackberry and fruit teas are also great sources of Vitamin C and keep you warm in winters.
• Vitamin E is an excellent antioxidant and is found in fatty seeds. Nuts, almonds, walnuts, chestnuts, fish oil, and green leafy vegetables are rich sources of Vitamin E.

Minerals like selenium, zinc and magnesium , along with omega 3 and omega 9 that are fatty acids must be included in daily diet. Foods like red meat, shellfish, liver, nuts, pistachios and chestnuts, milk, cheese, eggs and dried legumes are rich in Zinc. Zinc helps in the development of physical, neurological and psychological strength of body.

Most important of all is to increase the intake of fresh fruits and vegetables in daily meal in spite of frozen food as they might loose all vitamins and minerals in them. Also drink 7-8 glasses of water to keep body functioning well, as water helps in absorption of various minerals and vitamins and prevents body from dehydration. Apart from the above mentioned foods, make sure to add yoghurt, kefir, garlic, honey, pomegranates, dry apricots and kiwifriut in your winter diet plan. All these are great combies of necessary minerals required by the body to fight against infections and antibodies. "To follow healthy food habits", let this be your New Year Resolution for you and entire family.

You may shop wide variety of vitamins and mineral products at stores like GNC and Drugstore.com. Don't forget to use GNC promotional code or Drugstore.com promotional codes to save additional bucks while placing an online order from these stores.

Eat Well, Stay Well..!