Eating what your body really needs and enjoy Christmas!
Is it possible to have a healthy Christmas dinner? And if so, wouldn’t the taste be a lot less delicious?
Christmas is a time to relax body and mind. Also to enjoy family and friends dinner parties. However, there are ways that you can make the food a lot healthier without compromising too much on taste, but what is more important, food can help boost your immune system.
We also appreciate there are many different types of diet out there. But in this short piece, we are going to focus on a traditional Western Christmas dinner. And look at ways that we can make it a little less indulgent.
Overindulging at Christmas
Above all, we want you to enjoy Christmas. Similarly, we want to help you minimise the post-Christmas food hangover.
The brutal truth is, that people tend to gain more weight at Christmas than at any other time. In fact, according to the British Medical Journal, many of us consistently put on 0.4 to 0.9 kg.
Some of the main reason are;
- increasing alcohol intake.
- larger portion sizes.
- consuming more high-density foods.
- more difficulty acting with restraint among family and friends.
- and the increased availability of high fat and high sugar foods.
3 tricks that can help to reduce food portions
Before you even think of adjusting the ingredients, there are a few tricks you can use.
- Use smaller plates. At Christmas we want to eat everything on our plate, so if you use smaller plates, you will automatically reduce portion sizes.
- we often mistake thirst for hunger. Increase your water intake. Keeping hydrated will help decrease your cravings.
- Try to make pauses between bites. The feeling of satiation is often delayed. Take the opportunity to have a good old chat before going up for more. A 10-15 minute delay will allow your body to catch up with what you just ate.
A few tips to make a healthy Christmas dinner
- Here is some good new, the turkey itself is relatively low fat. The large proportion of calories is in the skin, so avoid the skin and enjoy turkey.
- A cooking tip: before you even cook the turkey, prick the skin. This will allow some of the fat to drain off.
- Use coconut oil instead of goose fat to cook the potatoes. They taste delicious and will be low in calories.
- Instead of sausage based stuffing use chestnut or fruit-based stuffing.
- For the pigs-in-blanket, use low-fat sausages and lean or even tempeh bacon.
As for the pudding. It’s challenging to keep the calories down. However, there are little tricks you can do, like using creme fraiche instead of double cream. It still tastes great.
And finally, the key to stopping eating is having the food out of sight. Try and be disciplined and clear up, once the main meal is over. Picking throughout the day can be a real downfall.
A final word
We do hope we have encouraged you to have a healthy Christmas dinner. Eating healthy helps your body and mind, also it boost your immune system. Remember, we can offer sound nutritional advice all year round. So if you need some extra help in the New Year, please do contact us.
In the meantime, have a wonderful Christmas. And a healthy one too.
We hope this information is useful. If you need advice or have any questions about our treatments, please contact us. You can find us in Mill Hill Broadway and Islington. We are always happy to help!
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