It is officially mangoes and ice cream season. Summers are all about sweating, cursing the weather and having anything and everything that keeps you cool. However, unlike popular belief, ice creams do not cool your body and can be detrimental. Instead of cooling down your body, ice cream increases the temperature. Here is what happens when you have ice cream in the heat.
Ice cream is made of milk, and research has shown that ice cream contains more than 10 per cent milk fat along with sugar. When fat is broken down it releases heat. The process is called diet-induced thermogenesis.
This causes your body to heat up. Experts believe that while ice cream provides immediate relief from heat, your body starts heating up in no time.
“Sensory characteristics like a cooling effect on our tongue, the flavour, and overall sweetness contribute to the positive experience of enjoying this treat. However, once the components of the ice cream start to break down, the cooling effect is diminished. The milk fat and sugar produce heat in the body and when the temperature outside is high, this extra heat will not keep us cool but instead have the opposite effect,” Dr. Bohdan Luhovyy, Applied Human Nutrition professor and food researcher at Mount Saint Vincent University explained in a newsletter, according to a report by Times Now.
Not just ice cream, studies say iced coffee and beer, which have for long been advertised as cooling beverages, deplete fluid from the body.
Instead of ice cream, switch to having nutritious and cooling fruits like watermelon and cucumber. They have high water content and it helps keep you hydrated and cool.
You can also munch on oranges, lemons, and limes. Make fresh lemonade at home to beat the heat instantly. You should also have curd, mint and coconut water.
Also watch: Buttermilk Recipe: This summer keep your body hydrated with this Shilpa Shetty easy-to-make drink