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Oh, That Eggnog!
The Dish on Healthy Holiday Eating from a Nutritionist
By Kelly A. Hammer
At the next buffet, try dipping cut vegetables in salsa or hummus, instead of the creamy, fat-laden dressing and dips. At the grocery, pass on the croissants and muffins; these are not "grains just like bread." Muffins run about 400 calories each and croissants about 250 to 550. That is comparable to eating three to four slices of bread topped with six pats of butter. At home, provide whole-grain cereal squares or baked whole-wheat tortillas instead of potato chips.
Limit sweet snacks in the home. Stock your home with only one or two at a time. Avoid multiple desserts or trying a little bit of each available at one time. Identify the sweets and treats you enjoy the most in life and stick to them. Remember, regularly eating chocolate or other treat foods to satisfy hunger or boredom between meals teaches us to crave or depend on them more often. It is a pleasure to eat sweets, but in order to maintain a healthy balance at the holidays, we need to choose those that give us the most pleasure and then eat them in moderation and not on a regular basis.
In addition, teach yourself and your kids to drink a full glass of water with a special treat, instead of milk. Water helps give you a feeling of fullness without added calories and fat. Water also helps to balance body functions, in the absorption of vitamins and minerals and to repair and restore all tissues and organs. Water also aides in flushing out extra nutrients or foods the body does not need or use.
What you drink at the holidays affects your nutrition balance, too. Alcohoic beverages are long on calories but short in nutrients. Likewise, most juices are high in sugar and calories but provide little nutrition. The next time you are the host of a party or are invited to "bring and share a drink," serve flavored waters, hot cider or a homemade fruit punch made with seltzer, juice nectar and pieces of chopped fresh fruit. With these choices you opt for flavor and add to the daily recommended servings of fruit and vegetables.
