As the temperature fell down, a cold surge warning was issued in most parts of the country. When the weather suddenly gets chilly, it is necessary to pay more attention to body temperature management. A sharp drop in body temperature can reduce metabolic efficiency and enzyme function in the body, making it vulnerable to bacterial invasion. It can cause various diseases. Here are some foods that are good for body temperature management.

Ginger
If you want to keep up your body temperature, blood circulation is key to doing it. Blood circulation must be smooth to maintain health. Ginger is a powerful superfood that helps the blood flow. Ginger’s cardioprotective effects are attributed to its cardiotonic, anti-hypertensive, anti-hyperlipidemia, and anti-platelet impacts (1). These all help blood vessels handle circulation well and make us feel warm.
Gingerols and shogaols, important nutraceutical substances of ginger, not only give us ginger’s spicy taste but also relax blood vessels. And both gingerols and shogaols have biological activities, ranging from anticancer, anti-oxidant, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory and anti-allergic to various central nervous system activities (2).
In addition to managing body temperature in winter, ginger also helps relieve nasal and throat inflammation in cold patients. Ginger can be consumed with fermenting honey, which promotes metabolism in the body. You can simply add it in foods or tea. Why don’t you try a cup of warm and nice ginger tea?

Cinnamon
Cinnamon can increase blood flow and promote blood circulation. Researchers find that cinnamon has beneficial effects on blood vessels and heart health in various ways. Those include endothelium protection, lowering blood lipids, antioxidative properties, and regulation of immune response (3). Cinnamon water extract and different cinnamon compounds have a lowering effect on platelets and lipids; it seems that those are accompanied by a reduction of risk for cardiovascular disease (4). There for, cinnamon can help prevent heart disease and reduce symptoms.
Cinnamaldehyde, cinnamon’s main ingredient, has sterilization and anticancer effects. It is especially recommended for people with digestive disorders, constipation, and cold hands. Cinnamon can be used as an ingredient or brewed with ginger as tea. If you don’t like the unique bitter taste, you can add a little honey to the drink.

Garlic
Garlic is often associated with having warming properties. Garlic isn’t just a food to have a warming effect, but largely attributed to its various compounds. Organo sulfonyl compounds in garlic, such as allicin and others, can increase metabolic heat production in your body. This can give you a feeling of warmth. And garlic supplementation has been shown to have vasodilatory effects, meaning it can actually relax blood vessels and promote better circulation. The garlic increases resting tissue blood flow, and this may be mediated by IL-6 (5), and improved blood flow warms your body more.
Garlic is also known for its immune-boosting properties. When your immune function is in proper condition, it can better respond to external cold temperatures and potentially keep the body from infections. Garlic can also aid digestion, and a well-functioning gut system can help to absorb more nutrients to keep you healthy.

Sweat pumpkin
Beta-carotene, which is contained in sweet pumpkin, is an antioxidant that helps to supply oxygen to the body and facilitate blood circulation. It is also good for relieving fatigue because it removes free oxygen.

References
1) Sajad Fakhri 1, Jayanta K Patra 2, Swagat K Das 3, Gitishree Das 2, Mohammad B Majnooni 4, Mohammad H Farzaei 5. Ginger and Heart Health: From Mechanisms to Therapeutics. Curr Mol Pharmacol. 2021;14(6):943-959.
2) Ruchi Badoni Semwal 1, Deepak Kumar Semwal 1, Sandra Combrinck 2, Alvaro M Viljoen 3. Gingerols and shogaols: Important nutraceutical principles from ginger. Phytochemistry. 2015 Sep:117:554-568.
3) Chang Shang‡ ORCID logoab, Hongchen Lin§ ab, Xuqin Fang§ ab, Yuling Wang ab, Zhilin Jiang a, Yi Qu ab, Mi Xiang a, Zihuan Shen ab, Laiyun Xin ac, Yingdong Lu a, Jialiang Gao a and Xiangning Cui. Beneficial effects of cinnamon and its extracts in the management of cardiovascular diseases and diabetes. Food Funct., 2021, 12, 12194-12220.
4) Mahdieh Mehrpouri, Rafie Hamidpour, Mohsen Hamidpour. Cinnamon inhibits platelet function and improves cardiovascular system. J. Med. Plants 2020; 19(73):1.
5) Nick Anim-Nyame a, Suren R. Sooranna a, Mark R Johnson a, John Gamble b, Philip J. Steer a. Garlic supplementation increases peripheral blood flow: a role for interleukin-6? The Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry. Volume 15, Issue 1, January 2004, Pages 30-36.