No matter how many times you must have been told by your friends and doctors, to avoid eating outside food, so as to not let any disease inflict upon yourself, you simply find it too difficult to resist the temptation of gulping down a few paani puris or sev puris from the roadside vendor.
But as you continue to relish your roadside bhel puris and sandwiches, be cautious and act prudent, as eating outside food comes with its own set of problems and ailments.
One must try to avoid tempting golas, kulfis and chaats by the street vendors. Also, it is essential to stay away from consuming fruit and vegetable salads from outside as you can very easily fall prey to infections.
Fruits that have passed their seasons, but can still be seen at the vendors must strictly be avoided. This is because these fruits have been lingering for long in the market and may do more harm than good.
Having oily junk food including vada pavs and bhajias from outside, can involve chances of acidity, high cholesterol levels and high risks of contamination.
Consumption of raw vegetables without washing, is not recommended as they may be infected with worms and dirt. Steaming vegetables and cooking them before consumption is a better option. However, food, if not steamed, can be consumed only if it be washed thoroughly. Green leafy vegetables which are considered healthy by their very nature, may cause harm if not washed thoroughly and cleansed before consumption.
Foods that are a must in your diet:
- Light and easily digestible foods including boiled potatoes and vegetables are a must on the palate.
- Bitter vegetables and cooling foods like barley, brown rice and oats are nourishing.
- Ginger and onions are must-haves as onions are used to treat colds, coughs, asthma. Similarly, ginger acts as a barrier against cold, allergies and helps with digestion.
- Warm beverages do well during the cold weather and tea made with ginger and pudina is refreshing.
Be careful when buying vegetables like bhindi and cauliflower, as these are often found containing small worms and which may go unnoticed.
Stick to freshly prepared food, else, heat the food after taking it out of the fridge. Avoid consuming chilled food.
- Be sure to have boiled or at best filtered water, and if you are the lazy sort, make sure you drop an alum in the Sintex of your home. Alum is known to separate dirt from water and purify it, while the dirt settles at the bottom, giving you clean and pure water to drink.
- Drink lots of water.
- Stick to tetra packs for fruit juices or at best prefer juices made at home.
Still if you are tempted to eat outside food,
- Be sure the vendor you eat from, is trustworthy and genuine
- Look for hygiene: he should not be close to a muddle or stagnant water, and there shouldn’t be flies buzzing over the food
- Check if the food is covered and the incense stick is lit to keep off flies and insects
- You must approach the vendor you have been to before, so that you are sure of the quality of his service.
- The place must be abuzz with customers and his stuff should be moving
- Very importantly, he must appear to be clean.
