I have a need for hot food in winter to feel warm.

We hear this comment a lot from those trying to lose weight. Some joke that they thought their excess body fat would be keeping them warm, but they're still feeling cold and needing hot food in the winter months.

In the past, we've talked about reasons what's going on in the body when hot foods are consumed. Understanding this will help you realize that hot foods are actually not very good for our bodies. When we consume very hot foods, that heat is then inside our bodies, next to vital organs, while the body needs to maintain a temperature around 98.6 degrees. When we have temperatures higher than that right next to our vital organs, it must quickly work to remove that excess heat. It's the removal of this excess heat that causes us to feel warm. It's our bodies trying to stay in a healthy state. We are actually putting our bodies under stress when we do this (the same holds true for eating overly cold foods, like frozen desserts and icy drinks).

So, ask yourself if you really need to find warmth through the temperature of the foods you are eating. Can you find other ways to feel warm? Some suggestions are to add warming spices to your foods (garlic, spicy peppers, ginger, cinnamon), layer your clothing, exercise to generate some natural internal heat, or sit by a warm fire.

Eating warm soups (not overly hot) and drinking warm teas can also be a nice break from overly cold foods and beverages during the winter months.

In the past, Jim shared a post here on the blog about this very subject. If you're intersted in learning more about staying warm in the winter months, please click here to read his post. http://rawfoodblog.purejeevan.com/ p=1687

For those of you who have found ways to stay warm during the colder months, please take a moment now to share your suggestions with others.