Finding a healthy balance over the Christmas period

Food

As the days are getting colder and darker, appetite noticeably increases. Salads no longer have quite the same appeal as they did in summer months, and instead, the body craves heavier, more carbohydrate dense foods. But instead of tucking into a pie or toastie, consider soups as an excellent option for a filling, nutritious, and warming meal. You can pack so much goodness into a soup and they are incredibly cost effective, leaving some money left over for festive fun!

Make sure to include these ingredients in your soup to get a complete meal:

• Protein: meat, fish, soya, nuts, beans & pulses
• Vegetables: Peas, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, tomatoes, peppers
• Good quality stock
• Low GI carbohydrate: Sweet potato, quinoa, brown rice, buckwheat noodles
• A little something extra: try some toasted nuts and seeds, grated cheese or a pinch of chili.

Check out this recipe for a deliciously warming and filling soup.

Canapés

Canapés can be a minefield for those trying to stay on track health-wise over Christmas. Try having an early dinner before heading out in the evening, or a substantial protein-rich afternoon snack. Skipping meals with the intention of overindulging at a party is unlikely to be a good idea, especially when faced with a plate of canapés on an empty stomach. One drink down and willpower easily escapes us! Try these snacks to line the stomach and slow down the absorption of alcohol:

• Nut butter and oatcakes
• ½ avocado
• A couple of boiled eggs and sliced tomatoes
• Small bowl of soup with added protein
• Carrots and hummus

Smoked salmon canapés are an excellent option, or if you can find some crudité and dip, even better!

Eating on a hangover

The morning after a party can be the most tempting time to overindulge in unhealthy food. Scrambled eggs and avocado on rye bread is a great option.  Or try a high protein, low-carb smoothie which you can drink on your way to work!

Drink

Try and steer clear of cocktails. It’s not specifically the alcohol that makes cocktails so unhealthy, but the sweet mixers, sugar, and syrups that are added. If you are going to have a cocktail, try a vodka martini, or a vodka, soda water, and fresh lime. Champagne and Prosecco are lower in sugar content and calories than wine, but if you are choosing wine, go for red rather than white. Mulled wine and cider is loaded with sugar, it may be festive but sadly it is not doing you any good in the long run.

As well as being high in calories, alcohol has a diuretic effect and can contribute to the depletion of water-based vitamins and electrolytes. Vitamins A, B1, B2, B6, C, D, E, K, as well as calcium, zinc, iron, magnesium, selenium, tyrosine and folate need an extra boost if you are consuming alcohol. Hydration is absolutely key whilst drinking, so try and have a glass of water between each drink, and as much as you can before you go to sleep – your head will thank you for it in the morning!

A sneaky tip if you decide not to drink is to ask for a long cocktail glass with some ice, soda water, fresh lemon and a sprig of mint. No one will be able to tell the difference and you’ll feel so much better for it the next morning!

Sleep

Sleep is incredibly important for our wellbeing and poor quality or lack of sleep, can affect everything from our waistlines to our digestive and cardiovascular health, and blood sugar balance. Alcohol disrupts a good night’s sleep as it affects the REM (rapid eye movement) sleep which is needed to feel rested when you wake up. After drinking, your biological processes are put under strain and your liver is working overtime to detox your body of alcohol, which can lead to disrupted sleep.

It may be tempting for some people, to get up early and hit the gym to try and counteract an evening of over-indulgence, but this may not necessarily be the best thing for your overall wellbeing. During the winter months especially, your immune system is working hard to fend off colds and flu, and lack of sleep leaves your body lacking the energy to fight off illnesses. Sleep deprivation impairs your immune responses by disrupting the circadian rhythms that control hormones and the production of protective immune cells (1).

Try and get as much sleep as you can after a party and try and catch up on sleep the following night.

Food and supplements to help you through the festive period

Omega -3

Alcohol is a neurotoxin, meaning it can damage nerve tissue. Substances called congeners in alcohol can irritate the lining of blood vessels and tissue in the brain, but research suggests that an omega-3 compound found in fish and krill oil may lower the risk of brain damage caused by alcohol use (2).

Multivitamin

A comprehensive multivitamin is a great way of making sure your body is getting the full range of nutrients it needs, especially as due to the diuretic effect of alcohol, many nutrients are lost through increased urination.

Antioxidants

Proanthocyanidins

These are found in berries, have been found to protect liver cells for those who drink too much alcohol (3). Frozen berries in a smoothie are an excellent way to incorporate this antioxidant into your diet.

Vitamin C

Great for your immune system and healthy glowing skin, which can both take a bit of a knock during the party season.

CoQ10

This co-enzyme is needed by all of the body’s cells and plays an important role in energy metabolism. It is an essential part of the cellular machinery used to produce ATP which provides the energy for muscle contraction and other vital cellular functions. The other important function of CoQ10 is that it acts as a primary scavenger of free radicals (FRs) which are generated from alcohol consumption. Free radicals are highly reactive molecules that can cause havoc in the body (4).

Probiotics

These are your beneficial flora which are needed to re-inoculate your gut with healthy bacteria which prevent non-beneficial bacteria from creating endo-toxins (5). Probiotics can support the body’s natural detoxification process by metabolising or reducing the uptake of toxins in the gut, thereby facilitating the elimination of toxins and by-products from the intestinal tract.

Green vegetables

Green leafy vegetables contain glucosinolates which are natural plant chemicals that help with alcohol detoxification. Try them whizzed up in a smoothie or in a juice as this will release the polyphenols, which have antioxidant properties.

Fun and enjoyment!

The most important thing to remember, at least in our opinion here at VITL, is to have fun! Don’t fret if your health slips a bit during this jolly season, do what you can to stay healthy but don’t let guilt or regret over an extra sausage roll ruin time spent with friends and family.

PS... Did you hear about our new VITL Pro meal plans?

 

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1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20130392
2. http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/828885
3. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25680468
4. http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/arh27-4/277-284.htm
5. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22546554