It’s easy to overeat at Christmas. To keep your family healthy this Christmas, and to avoid the after-dinner slump, follow these very simple tips:
- Don't skip breakfast or lunch or else you will feel hungrier later on and more tempted to overeat.
- Have a light but filling breakfast to choose from nuts, fresh fruits (apple, grapefruit, orange), low glycemic index breakfast cereals with soy milk, boiled eggs, ham, grisons meat (beef prosciutto).
- If you are having Christmas dinner at night, have a light lunch with raw and cooked vegetables, legumes and if necessary lean meat (skinless poultry for example).
During the christmas meal
- Prefer homemade appetizers (tasty little bites). Replace spirits by champagne and wines.
- Try healthy recipes for main course such as fish and seafood or poultry. Make sure you serve plenty of veggies with your Christmas meat feast (parsnips, sprouts, carrots, broccoli, chestnuts, pumpkins, raw or cooked beetroots, fresh or dried mushrooms, sweet potatoes - with a very low glycemic index). Aim to fill half the plate with these health-giving foods.
- Control portion size. Because we tend to eat what is in front of us, if you serve huge portions your family will be more likely to overeat. Serve moderate-sized portions rather than mountains of food. If you’re buying a new dinner set for Christmas, watch out – plate sizes have been getting bigger in recent years. If you have jumbo-sized plates, research shows that you’re more likely to overeat.
- Replace the French traditional cheese platter with a corn salad or aragula salad with cheese shavings and choose a light dessert such as an exotic fruit salad, a dark chocolate mousse, a pineapple carpaccio or a sorbet.
- Drink water regularly during meals and when possible, go for a family walk after Christmas dinner.
How to avoid gaining weight
Take a Walk. The secret to keeping your weight stable while still indulging over Christmas is to incorporate more activity in your daily life. We 're not necessarily talking about a vigorous workout in the gym every day but relatively small amounts of moderate activity mean that you can allow yourself the pleasures of eating and drinking without gaining an ounce. For example, to burn off the calories provided by one slice of yule log you could spend 50 minutes weight training in the gym or 42 minutes on an exercise bike. Alternatively, you could take a brisk 20 minute walk to work and a 20 minute swim at lunch- time. Stuck at home? Don't sit still. 34 minutes of general cleaning and 46 minutes of vacuuming would also burn the same number of calories.
Detoxify! After the holidays, a detox program will help you eliminate toxins by stimulating the liver and the hepatobiliary system (dandelion, meadowsweet, bladderwrack, artichoke, lemon balm). If you suffer from intestinal disorders, many plants can help you (artichoke, lemon balm). You can also try clay, activated charcoal, probiotics, essential oils of peppermint and rosemary. If necessary, you may also try or our new dietary supplement, GastroControl® a new SIPF® complex formulated with Organic Artichoke, Lemon Balm and Dandelion and Glutaform®, specifically aimed at enhancing digestive comfort.
Happy Holidays!