I don’t know about you, but I’ve spent the last week or more trying to keep dry and warm in my house. It’s been so wet and windy that draughts are finding their way in through every nook and cranny and the damp atmosphere just pervades the place.

Apart from the obvious of turning up the heating or lighting a log fire, what else can you do to keep warm and fight off the inevitable colds and coughs at this time of year? The answer is in the food you eat.

Having hot meals and drinks is obviously going to warm you from the inside, but it goes further than that. Some foods can actually help you increase your immune system and ward off those nasty bugs before they take a hold.

Warning: must be in juice form before consumption.

First of all, to keep colds themselves at bay, make sure you’re getting plenty of vitamin C – an orange juice or half a grapefruit in the morning, for example. It’s not just citrus fruits that contain the vitamin either - potatoes, green peppers, and pineapples are also good sources. If you smoke it increases your risk of catching colds so increasing your vitamin C intake will help counteract this. Better still – quit smoking altogether!

They say feed a cold, starve a fever, and one of the best ways of feeding a cold is with chicken soup. This is the ultimate comfort food and is packed with goodness. Make one up laced with plenty of vegetables such as onions, parsnips and carrots. Add a clove of garlic as well. This not only helps keep colds at bay but acts as a decongestant. If you’re vegetarian, make a good vegetable soup with as many different types as you like.

Warning: must be in soup form before consumption.

Hot and spicy food is good, not just for warming you inside but for fighting off infections. Garlic, horseradish and chilli all help ease congestion if you’re under the weather, so make yourself a potent curry or chilli. Pasta with tomato sauce and plenty of garlic is an easy dish to prepare if you’re short of time or just don’t feel like doing much cooking.

Drink lots of fluids, particularly water and pure fruit juices. Chamomile tea, ginger tea and other herbal teas are beneficial. Even just hot water with a slice of lemon is good, though I confess that in the evening I find a glass of sloe gin or ginger wine is very warming and feels right at this time of year. Keep warm!

I’ve been sitting looking out my window at a waterlogged garden, thinking about how much I ought to be getting on with and how much I don’t fancy going out there and getting on with it.

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I read recently that, because of the credit crunch, more and more people are planning to spend their summer holiday in the UK this year, which is bad news as far as I’m concerned.

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