Eat what's in season to beat illness

Eating what's in season is an easy way to beat illness. Here's a cut-n-keep almanac

With November come oranges' is a retro statement for a generation that has known all fruits and vegetables to be available throughout the year. While some varieties — bananas, onions and potatoes — are common throughout the year, most are strictly seasonal, say organic farmers.

Mumbai-based eco-nutritionist and the woman behind Farmers' Market, Kavita Mukhi says, "Nature plans for perfection. If we follow its cycle and eat seasonal foods, being healthy is easy."

Not only do foods taste best when they are in season, they are far fresher since they haven't been transported over long distances (which is why they are often picked prematurely, robbing them of their nutritional benefits).

Research has proven that au naturel foods are nutritionally richest when they are picked in season. Preeti Patil, a Dockyard Road resident and organic farmer, says 'eating local' is the only way urban Indians can beat dubious farming methods and pesticide over-kill. There is a direct co-relation between eating what's in season and keeping illnesses at arm's length.

For instance, if you eat melons in winter, you are inviting a fever since they have cooling properties. They have a naturally high water content, and are packed with potassium, vitamins A and C. "Eating them in the hot months, when they are in season, refreshes you instantly. Likewise, when mangoes are eaten on an empty stomach in summer, they bring down the body temperature," says Mukhi.

Nutritionist Naini Setalvad offers a simple rule: Buy what's available in abundance in its freshest avatar at your local market. That's the best indicator of what's in season.

January vegetables

Brinjal, palak, tendli, tomatoes, cabbage, cauliflower, carrot, radish, beetroot, peas, broccoli, capsicum.

Fruits

Strawberries, grapes, guava, papaya, pomegranate, pineapple, passion fruit.

February vegetables

Cabbage, methi, carrot, radish, spring onion, capsicum, broccoli.

Fruits

Chickoo, musk melon, grapes, oranges, guava, papaya, pomegranate, pineapple, strawberries.

March vegetables

Spinach, fenugreek, capsicum, carrot, parwal (pointed gourd), tindora (ivy gourd), pumpkin.

Fruits

Watermelon, mango — raw, Totapuri, Badami — grapes, orange, pineapple, banana, muskmelon, strawberries.

April vegetables

Lady's finger, cucumber, doodhi, tendli, karela, chawli, beans, parwal, tindora, pumpkin.

Fruits

Same as March + jackfruit.

May vegetables

Spinach, cucumber, doodhi, karela, beans.

Fruits

Mango — Alphonso, Kesar, raw — papaya, black jamuns, litchis, jackfruit, watermelon, muskmelon.

June vegetables

Spinach, lady's finger, cucumber, chawli, gawar, corn, capsicum, sweet potato.

Fruits

Mango — Alphonso, Kesar.

July vegetables

Same as June + round gourd, doodhi, snake gourd, karela.

Fruits

Mango — Kesar, Totapuri — cherries, peach, plum.

August vegetables

Same as June.

Fruits

Same as June + custard apple.

September vegetables

Same as June.

Fruits

Guava, papaya, pomegranate, custard apple, passion fruit.

October vegetables

Brinjal, tomatoes, dill, spring onions.

Fruits

Same as September.

November vegetables

Same as October + French beans.

Fruits

Orange, dates, guava, papaya, pomegranate, custard apple.

December vegetables

Same as October + radish, beetroot, yam.

Fruits

Strawberries, orange, sweet lime, fig, guava, custard apple, pineapple.

                                            With gratitude Times of India