December 19, 2012
With Christmas and summer holidays approaching, the Darling Downs Hospital and Health Service has provided some helpful tips for enjoying the festive season, and staying healthy.
The message to all is “Christmas need not go hand-in hand with a Santa-like stomach!”
DDHHS Director of Nutrition and Dietetics Welma Joubert said Christmas was traditionally a time for letting loose and forgetting about diets and healthy eating.
“Festivities often start in November or early December this means there is the temptation for weeks of over-indulgence and not just the few days around Christmas,” Ms Joubert said.
“Those extra kilograms are much harder to get off than they are to put on, so moderation is the key over the Christmas period. Eating large portions, drinking more alcohol than usual, and unhealthy snacking can lead to weight gain.”
Here are some tips to help you keep on track during this festive season:
- Don’t go to functions hungry, eat something healthy before you go
- Try to make wise and mindful choices to maintain weight over the holiday season, for example: try vegetable sticks, pretzels and salsa/low-fat dip as alternative to high fat crisps and crackers
- Avoid deep fried foods
- Don’t stand near the food table, you will be more likely to graze without realising it, use a plate and walk away
- Limit alcohol – alternate alcoholic drinks with a glass of plain/mineral water
“In addition, with children home from school there is the potential for more treats to be available and children to regularly be looking for food through boredom,” Ms Joubert said.
“Whether it’s caused by boredom or temptation, many people over-indulge.”
She has provided some more tips to help families have a healthy Christmas and school holiday without the need for super-healthy New Year’s resolutions.
- Try to limit indulgence days to Christmas Day and one or two other days in December rather than every day of the month, you’ll have better control over your waistline
- Give healthy gifts which encourage activity and healthy eating such as a healthy cookbook, scented herbal teas, gourmet curry pastes or chutneys or sports equipment (pedometers, beach volleyballs set, backyard sports)
- Make use of the warmer, longer days to keep families active, burn of some of those extra calories consumed:
- Play with your children (in the backyard or at a local park)
- Organise a game of backyard cricket with friends and family or a game of touch in the park
- Enjoy walks, bike rides and swimming and gardening
- Combat school holiday boredom eating with water and healthy food
- Have a variety of activities that the children can do independently when at home such as gardening, cooking and craft and try to include some activities outside the house most days – even just a trip for a play in the park would be fun
- Only have healthy food choices available in your fridge and cupboards
- Children should primarily drink water, with one or two glasses of milk and a maximum of half a cup of fruit juice each day. Cordials, fruit juice and soft drink offer no nutritional value and can lead to unhealthy weight gain.
- Teach and encourage healthy eating in your children by:
- Modelling healthy eating and activity behaviours
- Involving them in meal preparation and cooking; older children may enjoy the opportunity to prepare the family’s evening meal
- When entertaining, try to always have a mixture of healthy and treats foods available
- Serve fresh fruit or a fruit salad at dessert
- Focus on green salads rather than salads with a creamy sauce
- Make sure there is plenty of iced water available and add a few slices of lemon, lime, strawberries or cherries for flavour and colour
Ms Joubert also suggests families get back to their normal eating patterns quickly after the New Year!
