Warm-up With a Nice Bowl of Soup!

On freezing cold days, it's nice to eat a hot bowl of soup as it provides plenty of nutrients for the body, has an appealing texture and is packed with wonderful flavours. Since soups are often full of slow-cooked vegetables and meats they deliver a wide amount of health benefits, which are listed below:

1. Hydration: When the temperature outside is cold a nice bowl of soup will not only keep you warm but leave you feeling nourished and hydrated as well. A bowl of soup will increase your core body temperature and will not leave you feeling dehydrated like other hot beverages.

2. Aids Weight Loss: Soups have a lower energy density and provide a better quality of nutrients to your body. The high fiber and water content contained in the soup will keep you hydrated and you are less likely to over-eat as the soup keeps you full for a long period of time.

3. Keeps You Full: When you digest soup it keeps you full longer than a solid meal due to the water and nutrients from the soup being retained in the stomach wall, while the solid nutrients are digested instead. Overall, eating soup will keep your blood sugar low stable and your tummy happy as you will be satisfied for a longer time.

4. Healthy Digestion: Most soup recipes include a variety of vegetables, beans, lentils and meats that make it high in fiber, smoother to digest and reduce your blood sugar level.

5. High Nutrients: Cooking a lot of soup makes it easier to eat the 7-8 servings of vegetables your body needs every day. Adding leftovers to your soup will reduce the amount of food being wasted, can help thicken the soup and even lead to new recipes.

6. Loaded With Vitamins & Minerals: The vegetables that are being slow-cooked will retain the vitamins and minerals. No matter the type of soup you are creating you will always get a full array of nutrients from the broth.

7. Reduces Injuries: By eating a bowl of soup it can improve an individual's gut, bowel movements and inflammation. This will reduce the likely hood of you getting infections around you.

8. Aids in Healing: The nutrients filled within a soup provides a boost for your immunity system with the essential vitamin and minerals it requires. When your body is injured, soup aids with the healing process and rehydrates your body. If you are suffering from a cold, the hot vapours from the soup will help to completely clear out your nose to be less congested.

Overall, the health benefits of soup have been explored in detail above. When you are making soup for it to be very healthy stay away from added salt and instead include more ingredients such as vegetables into your recipe. Soups come with easy-to-follow instructions, are inexpensive, easy to store, reheat and can help you to keep warm for a long time.