Who doesn’t like the rains. After all everything gets green and beautiful all around us. But this season can be dicey for our health and it is better to be safe than sorry when it comes to food during the monsoons. There are lots of challenges. Rains whip up a big appetite, so one feels hungry just as soon as it begins to rain. But it is very important to eat right during this season. Digestion capability is compromised due to high humidity, so it is important to stick to easy-to-digest foods.

Constipation is a big problem, so is water retention, and as a double whammy, while the infections are on an all time high, our immunity is on an all time low during this season.

That is why monsoon meals are always a bit tricky, and involve changing what we put on your plates.

Try Raw Banana

Raw bananas are very high in Resistant Starch (RS). The short-chain fatty acids produced by the fermentation of resistant starch in the intestines not just keeps one full for longer but also increases the ability of the body to absorb nutrients – especially calcium.

Recipe: Raw Banana Thoran

• Boil 1 raw banana.

• Cut into cubes and mix with water, turmeric powder and salt

• Remove from water when they become soft and keep aside

• Heat oil

• Put mustard seeds, crushed 2-3 garlic, shallots, red chillies and curry leaves

• Sauté till light brown in colour

• Then add cooked banana cubes and mix well

Try Bitter Gourd

This bitter gourd has a lot going for it. It is a known immunity booster thus protecting us against seasonal flu, and its blood-purifying properties will help keep infections at bay. Plus it's a good digestive agent as it stimulates the secretion of gastric juices and keeps the digestion humming along, and constipation (a common problem during the rains) away.

Recipe: Karela Raita

If you cant stomach karelas otherwise, try a karela raita.

• Rub salt over thinly slices 100 gm bitter gourd. Rinse after some time.

• Fry them in a little bit of mustard oil

• Beat 250 gm yoghurt

• Add salt to taste, 2 chopped green chillies, add the gourd.

• Next add 1 chopped onion, either raw if you like the crunch or slightly seared and softened in a little oil and mustard seeds

• Take off the flame and pour over the raita

Try Raw Mangoes

Green mangoes are beneficial in the prevention and treatment of gastro-intestinal disorders like diarrhoea, dysentery, piles, chronic dyspepsia, indigestion and constipation, all of which are rampant during monsoons.

Plus they are loaded with pectin which helps blunt blood sugar swings (so help keep cravings away), and keeps insulin in check and as they are rich in vitamin C and B, which helps boost the immune system

Mango Curd Rice

• In a pan, heat 1 tsp ghee

• Add a pinch of mustard seeds, 1/2 tsp chana dal, urad dal, a pinch of hing and few curry leaves

• Then add 2 chopped green chillies

• Pour this on a cup of cooked rice

• Add 2 finely chopped raw mango

• Finally mix half a bowl of curd, add salt to taste and mix

Try Sprouts

Sprouts provide enzymes that the body needs to function properly, stay at the efficient best and keep lethargy away. They also deliver whooping amounts of immune boosting, more bioavailable (better absorbed in the body) nutrients.

Recipe: Sprouts Salad

• Take one cup sprouts (I like them raw, you can steam them if you wish)

• 5-6 cherry tomatoes

• And a hardboiled egg; combine and dust with salt and pepper

Try Banana

Banana is a perfect fruit for cutting down on bloating as it is loaded with potassium. It also has high iron content, so has the ability to stimulate haemoglobin production in the bloodstream, and help keep monsoon induced fatigue away.

Recipe: Quick Banana Dessert

• Peel a banana and dip it in yogurt mixed with a little honey

• Roll in crushed cereal and freeze. Then bite in!

(Kavita Devgan is a nutritionist, weight management consultant, and health writer based in Delhi. She is the author of The Don't Diet Plan: A No-nonsense Guide to Weight Loss, Fix it with Food, Ultimate Grandmother Hacks, and Don’t Diet! 50 Habits of Thin People.)