When the mercury rises, a hot bowl of soup isn't nearly as inviting as, say, some ice cream or a plate of freshly cut watermelon—and with good reason. Here's what to eat and avoid during the summer months.


Photo by kurisurokku.

One (obvious but effective) way to stay cool is to eat fruits and vegetables with high water content. These include leafy lettuces, corn on the cob, cucumbers, watermelon, and summer squash. All contain a significant amount of water that can thin the blood and help your body to release heat. Alternatively (and perhaps counter-intuitively), you might try adding more spice to your diet to help cool your body through sweating. Hot peppers, fresh ginger, horseradish, and black pepper should all do the trick. As for preparation, try to focus on fast cooking methods like steaming and quick sautés as opposed to more heat intensive ones. (Baking something for an hour in the oven most certainly will not cool you down.)

Concerning meals to avoid? Sadly, ice cream and ice-cold beer are on the list, at least where long-term body cooling is concerned. The Seattle Times quotes Gerard E. Mullin, the director of gastroenterology at Johns Hopkins Hospital, who says that "anything ingested that is lower than actual body temperature will initially produce a cooling effect systemically." But after 15-20 minutes, the opposite holds true. Photo by epicbeer.


In the same article, Barry G. Swanson, a professor and co-chair of Food Science and Human Nutrition at Washington State University also explains that "the body will physiologically respond to energy (i.e., heat) loss by increasing blood flow to the 'cool' region and bring the temperature back up to a physiological 'body temperature (98.6 degrees).'"

For its part, NY Mag outlined its 21 coolest summer food picks several years back, but the selections are still relevant today. The list includes gazpacho, a plate of pickles, and lassi.

Now that we've started you off on some cool summertime meals, let's hear what foods do and don't work for you during the dog days of summer, in the comments.