Beat the summer heat with these quick healthy tips!

Here are a few steps you can take up to ensure that you have a safe and healthy summer.

Zee Media Bureau/Salome Phelamei

New Delhi: It's summer again – time for fun in the sun, long days at the beach, barbeques and so on. While the season offers a lot of fun, it also brings with it a plethora of health challenges. Therefore, it's important to make some changes in your diet and other healthy living tips.

Here are a few easy steps you can take up to ensure that you have a safe and healthy summer:

• Make sure that you stay hydrated by drinking lots of water. This will help the body to control the temperature and keep itself cool. Keep sipping water at regular intervals throughout the day.
• Avoid cold or chilled liquids – many prefer drinking cold beverages in order to cool off, but that's wrong as it may lead to constriction of blood vessels, which reduce body heat loss and have harmful effects on your body.
• Eat a healthy diet with lots of fresh fruits and vegetables that give you with essential nutrients. Opt for those fruits and vegetables which have a large amount of water - like melons, water melons, berries, oranges, onions and cucumber - to keep your body temperature under control.
• Avoid or limit these foods – spicy, salty, roasted items, milk-based products, junk foods, red meat, tea and coffee. Also, avoid eating too many mangoes on a particular day as they are known to warm the body.
• Begin or continue your exercise program as it it important for your heart health and overall well-being. Pick some refreshing activities such as hiking, cycling, swimming or some outdoor games. Doing these will not only keep you and your family fit, but will also provide a great time to create bonding.
• Always apply a sunscreen with SPF 30+ to prevent sunburn. Sunscreen not only protects you from skin cancer, but it can slow down the ageing process. Avoid going outside during the middle of the day when the UV rays are most harmful.