Healthy eating during Xmas
During this festive season, friends and families will serve you food when you visit them. There are also going to be countless numbers of parties and events at which food and drinks will be playing an important role.
Advertisement
We must not forget that the bad effects our bad food choices will have on us will not become positive and acceptable because the occasion is Christmas.
Due to the nature of food that is deemed to be delicious, sumptuous and palatable but in actual fact not-healthy, people are going to give the opportunity to their bodies to gain some weight. It then becomes a great battle to lose this weight after the yuletide.
Often, this battle is lost; the result is that there is an additional weight gain during the next year. This goes on and on.
I believe that making smart choices about what you eat and drink this Christmas will go a long way to help you maintain good health later in the year 2014.
If you are dieting
For those who are on restricted diets, it will be very difficult to see people enjoy all the goodies that come along with the season and they being left out.
Well, the motivation ought to be the good health that you stand to benefit from the restraint. The best choice is to stay glued to your diet plan.
You can also try to prepare what everyone else is taking but in a healthy combination that would not worsen your condition.
Stick to prescribed meal times and quantities of food that you have been advised on. A bad choice may throw your control of the disease/condition out of gear. This can lead to death or the development of permanent complications that you might have to live with forever.
Eating out
Most of what someone expects from a loved one is having a meal out somewhere that they have not been to for some time now. This is going to make restaurants, bars, eateries and drinking spots very full to capacity.
Make sure to choose foods low in fat, oil, sugar and salt. If you are on such ‘chilling’ trips, make sure to choose only food that is healthy for your consumption.
If it is too late in the night, do not go for very oily stuff. You can choose something which will give you a lot of fibre and little calories. When it comes to drinks, rather go for the ones that will not give you too much sugar and alcohol.
Safety of the food you eat
Handlers of food in restaurants, chop bars and other eating places need to prepare adequately for their patrons. All must keep food safe and healthy for the masses that will patronise them.
The practice whereby inferior and unhygienic foods are served to people because they are ready and willing to just buy anything should be stopped.
To the consumer, be informed that taking unwholesome foods can result in diseases such as diarrhoea, cholera and typhoid fever. You can also be exposed to other harmful and deadly food poisons.
Be careful when trying out something new this season so that you do not end up with a situation that will knock you out of the whole celebration.
Christmas is not synonymous to drinking
I know that people will be drinking lots and lots of alcohol. My advice to the youth is that alcohol has a lot of negative effects on the body. Being a central nervous system depressant, alcohol impairs reasoning, memory and judgment. High levels of alcohol in the blood can even result in coma or death.
Alcohol is a gastro-intestinal irritant which can cause ulcers among its consumers. Worst of all is that alcohol misuse does not only harm the individual but also poses a threat to society in terms of violence, crime, accidents and deaths from drink-driving.
It will do you no good to go on a drinking spree just because it is Christmas.
Do some more exercise
The holiday period should be the best opportunity for exercise especially those who always cite lack of time due to work schedules. It will be fun to go out for a walk with your family, friend or loved one this Christmas and New Year holidays.
It will not be a bad idea to organise some sports/games for members of your group at church, area colleagues and cronies or even your family.
Remember that exercise is medicine.
Do what Jesus Christ would have done
Can you think of what Jesus Christ would have done if he were physically present with us whilst we celebrate his birthday? He would have lived the true relevance of the occasion.
I do not think that he would have been the one going about drinking alcohol all over the place. I do not think that he would have been the one overeating food and ice cream on Christmas day because too much of everything is bad.
One thing I am very sure he would have done will be to go to church, come home and enjoy a good home-made food with his family and friends.
This way he would rather strengthen family unity.
Hope you will go out and do the right thing. Remember to eat well and stay healthy this Christmas and beyond.
I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!
The writer of this article is a Dietician at Trust Hospital. He is also the Author of “Your Diet & Your Health Magazine”.
