We all look forward to monsoon as it provides respite from severe summer heat. The first shower and smell of mud give us an ecstatic feeling. But while we welcome the rain, we must not ignore the unwanted health hazards that it brings along.

Here the need of the hour is smart eating. So this time we have come up with the 5 healthiest foods that prevent illness and protect you from monsoon infections, allergies and indigestion problems; letting you enjoy the rainy season.

1. Herbal Tea

monsoon

Photo by Paavani Jain

A rainy day is simply perfect day for a steamy hot beverage. And if you are neither a coffee fan nor a tea person but crave for a soothing fluid during monsoon, then herbal tea is the best option. It not only comforts your craving for a hot beverage but comes with a string of health benefits of its own.

Some of the herbal teas that you must consume in order to stay disease free are peppermin tea, green tea, tulsi tea, ginger tea etc.

2. Soup

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Photo by Kelda Balijon

After a hot shower, a hot soup is all you need to relax to shoo away any symptom of cold or flu from your day out on a rainy day. For treating yourself this monsoon with a hearty and warm soup, all you have to do is whip interesting combinations like tomato, onion, potato and carrot etc. Then the warm, healthy veggie soup is ready to satisfy your tastebuds.

3. Gourds

monsoon

Photo by Irina Chalaguina

Vegetables like snake gourd, ash gourd and bitter gourd are extremely nutritious and are much better options than salad leaves during monsoon. They are great for digestive enzymes, fight infections and help our immune system.

4. Fenugreek

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Photo courtesy of Sanjay Acharya and Wikimedia Commons

During monsoon our immunity lowers automatically and thus our system finds it hard to digest food. Adding  a spoonful of fenugreek in our daily diet is what we can do to improve our digestion system.

We can either add it to curries, or drink it every morning by putting few seeds in hot water.

5. Garlic

monsoon

Photo by Tarunima kumar

Add a little bit of garlic to your soups and curries to build up your immunity this monsoon. This superfood not only adds a delicious flavour to it but also prevents and cures severe ailments.