The weather is getting really hot in this sunny city and it is time for us to indulge in some hydrating goodies! Keep your body cool with the right food and get yourself energised for the rest of the day. Want to know of some unheard super foods that will change your summer routine entirely? Be sure to check out Part 1 of this edition before heading over here!

2. BEE POLLEN

Bees do so many wonderful things for us such as helping to pollinate other plants so that we don’t have to. They themselves also provide some of the most powerful superfoods on the planet, and pollen is one of them. However, make sure you don’t have any bee allergies before consuming this superfood!

Natures Multivitamin!

In just one teaspoon of bee pollen, you can get a multitude of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, protein, enzymes and amino acids. Bee pollen is especially abundant in the energizing B vitamins, even the hard to get B12. Minerals include magnesium, zinc and iron, enzymes essential for proper digestion, amino acids for proper protein formation and more protein by weight than beef. What a powerhouse!

Carotene isn’t just for carrots!

Bee pollen is abundant in antioxidants, and I’m sure you know by now how important antioxidants are for summer. Beta-carotene is one type of antioxidant and is the precursor to retinol (Vitamin A) which is an important fat-soluble nutrient for skin health. It helps get rid of acne and protects skin from the damaging affects of UV rays. Bee pollen is an excellent source of beta-carotene in just one teaspoonful compared to the high carbohydrate content of carrots. Carrot juice is tasty, but it contains a high amount of carbohydrates.

How to Eat: Due to bee pollen’s fat and water soluble multivitamin content, begin with half a teaspoon for one month, then increase to 1 teaspoon thereafter. Take it after a fatty meal, preferably after breakfast. Try adding pollen to a spoonful of coconut oil, cod liver oil or as a yogurt topping. Don’t blend or add this superfood to foods with high heat due to denaturing of the product.

1. CAMU BERRY

Get ready to titillate your taste buds with this wonderfully sour superfood! This South American superfood should always be in your food arsenal, and here’s why.

Hold the ice and pass the camu!

In TCM, sour foods are considered cooling and hydrating, meaning it cools the body temperature while also hydrating every cell of the body. Many people just drink iced beverages to cool them down, but that could cause an upset stomach, indigestion and a sluggish metabolism. Camu berry is a hydrating summer superfood must-have for anyone with sweat glands!

Vitamin C to the rescue!

Sweating and summer is pretty much synonymous, but when we sweat, our vitamin C reserves get depleted faster since it’s a water-soluble compound. Camu berry has the highest amount of antioxidant-rich Vitamin C of any known food on the planet! It’s been shown to strengthen collagen which can promote youthful skin and healthy joints, plus vitamin C assists in the absorption of heme (blood) iron. An important, but difficult to absorb, nutrient needed for strong healthy blood.

How to Eat: Try camu berry powder in a cup of water sweetened with molasses to create a blood strengthening tonic. Add a tablespoon of camu berry powder to a simple watermelon smoothie (with the seeds!) for a refreshing midday cooler. Add some collagen powder to that smoothie recipe and you’ve got a powerful post-workout drink! The sourness of camu berry also works beautifully with sweet iron-rich mangoes. Remember that vitamin C is water-soluble, so pair camu berry with water-dense or iron-rich foods.

What are some of your unheard summer food gems? Share with me your throughts in the comments below!