A FLAVOURSOME BOWL OF GOODNESS
Take a cue from experts who give tips on making your salad healthier, and try out these recipes
Samarth Goyal
For eons, health experts and nutritionists have strongly advocated salads. From lowering cholesterol levels, and allaying many diseases, to something as basic as losing weight, salads are the go-to meal for many, not just in India but across the globe.
“Eating salads is perhaps the best way to get rid of toxic elements from your body. They make you healthy, and also keep you fit,” says nutritionist Tripti Tandon.
Nutritionists have, however, also cautioned people time and again about the ill-effects of a “wrongly made” salad, and the farreaching consequences a tasty but not-so-healthy salad may have on a person’s well-being. Here are some suggestions to help you enjoy all the benefits salads have to offer:
EXCESSIVE PROTEIN CONTENT
Nutritionist Kavita Devgan observes that many people go “overboard” with the protein content in their salads.As excessive protein can affect one’s health adversely, she says, “People don’t realise that such high quantity of proteins isn’t good, as it means that the body will convert them into fats, which will eventually be harmful for your body.”
LAVISH SALAD DRESSINGS
To avoid the boring raw taste of salads, a variety of salad dressings such as mayonnaise, barbecue and mustard sauce, and others, are used. However, these salad dressings can be detrimental to the cause of eating salad. “People don’t understand that using these dressings can ruin the overall nutritional value of your meal. They are highly processed and contain a lot of calories. So, just to get that taste, one doesn’t realise the amount of carbs they are taking in. Ultimately, this is not good if you are trying to stay in shape, and be fit,” says Devgan.
A WELL-BALANCED SALAD
It’s not rocket science but nutritionists feel that a perfect salad is something that provides all kinds of nutrition. “An ideal salad is the one that gives you a complete diet. So, it is important to have the right food items, in the right amount. For example, adding a fruit to your salad is important since it gives you a source of vitamins and minerals. Similarly, a bit of carbs and fats are also important. So one should always think about these things before organising a salad,” says Tandon.