Jennifer Bowden has tips for avoiding the temptations of the holiday season.
Photo APN
My childhood Christmas lunches and dinners always included lots of indulgent dishes that weren’t on our standard family menu, so I invariably woke on Boxing Day feeling disappointed I hadn’t eaten more festive fare and would have to wait another year for the opportunity. I still look forward to Christmas, but nowadays I hope and pray to not overindulge on the day, or, indeed, over what has become a rather extended festive season. This change in perspective with age got me thinking – am I too rigid with my diet? Should I just forget about healthy eating and have whatever I like over summer?
Most adults put on weight with age; exactly how and when this happens is hard to establish. We do know, however, that weight is typically gained and retained during adolescence, pregnancy and mid-life (in women), and following marriage (in men). There’s also a belief the Christmas season contributes to long-term weight gain. Given weight gain during adulthood is a risk factor for diabetes, cardiovascular disease and numerous other chronic conditions, and that it is hard to reverse, it’s not a problem to be ignored.
Investigating weight gain over the Christmas holiday season was the primary goal of one US study, published in 2000 in the New England Journal of Medicine. The 165 adult participants were weighed at intervals over a year, with a particular emphasis on the period leading up to the start of the US winter holiday, defined as being from Thanksgiving Day through to New Year’s Day.
Just 10% of the participants put on more than 2.3kg during the winter holiday period and the average weight gain was just 0.37kg, but the news wasn’t all good. The participants had also gained weight in autumn leading up to the holiday period, resulting in a total gain of 0.48kg being maintained throughout the holidays. And for some of the adults, this contributed substantially to the overall 0.62kg of weight they gained during the whole year. Although 0.62kg doesn’t sound like a lot, if a similar amount is put on each year, then this holiday increase may contribute substantially to the weight gain that often occurs in adults over time. Subsequent studies have produced similar findings.
Taking a measured approach to the pre-Christmas season seems sensible, then; in the process allowing us to indulge in as much pavlova as our heart desires on the 25th of December. And we’re fortunate to be celebrating in summer, when salads and light meals are favoured options, and the odds are good, weather-wise, that we can get outside to walk off our celebratory lunch, play with the kids’ new toys and even visit a beach. Although food is an integral part of Christmas celebrations, it isn’t the reason for the season. So relax and enjoy the fact that Christmas comes but once a year …
Healthy Eating Tips for Pre-Christmas Parties
- A ravenous appetite at a party is an accident waiting to happen. Eat something before the party – perhaps yoghurt or fruit.
- Stand away from the buffet table and focus on conversation rather than food.
- Decide how many snacks you will eat before platters are offered around, then stick to your limit.
- Take one snack at a time and don’t use a plate, as you’ll inevitably load it up and eat more.
- Steer clear of high-fat snack foods. Instead, opt for healthier options like salsa, hummus, rice crackers, vegetable sticks and prawns.
- Alternate alcoholic drinks with water to reduce your energy intake.
- Use normal healthy eating rules for main meals – opt for half a plate of vegetables/salads, then choose a vinaigrette rather than creamy salad dressing; remove skin from the turkey/chicken; and go easy on the roast potatoes.
- Get off to a healthy start on Christmas Day with a fruit-full -breakfast.
Email: nutrition@listener.co.nz, or write to “Nutrition”, c/o Listener, PO Box 90783, Victoria St West, Auckland 1142.