Health Foods to Buy for Christmas

29 November 2016

Whatever foods many people try putting in front of you this festive season, not many of them are likely to be very healthy.

Just think of all of those tins of Quality Street, heavily-iced cakes and Christmas tree decorations that can be unwrapped to reveal shaped chunks of chocolate inside...

However, it remains well within the realms of possibility to spend the build up to Christmas regularly tucking into delicious food that doesn't add inches to your waistline. Here are some great foods you definitely shouldn’t avoid this Christmas - including some seasonal favourites...

Expensive mince pies

If Santa is on the hefty side, it must be because all of those families that leave him mince pies on the night before Christmas go for the less expensive "value" ones with lots of saturated fat and calories. These nutritional excesses come from the pastry - but the pricier mince pies are, the thinner that pastry is and the higher amount of dried fruit, a good source of potassium, there is.

Christmas puddings... some of them, anyway

There are also high amounts of saturated fat and calories in many Christmas puddings, particularly ones available from standard shops. You don't necessarily have to forgo those tasty puds, but you should be choosier about which of them you buy. Shop around meticulously for puddings with more nuts and fruit, as these tend to have less saturated fat and more potassium, iron and fibre.

Don't carrot on... actually, no, you should!

Eager to cook something for Christmas? Then cook carrots. Even uncooked, these little orange veggies are packed with a lot of good stuff - including beta-carotene, which your body will convert into vitamin A, a vital nutrient for keeping your eyesight and skin good. However, cooking carrots also releases carotenoids, which are antioxidants believed to assist in preventing cancer.

We could suggest many more suitable foods...

… if we had the space here. We could, however, point you towards some of the foods that we offer on our boot camps - including scrambled eggs and smoked salmon, which has plenty of protein.

The Food Doctor explains a few rules you should follow for keeping your festive eating healthy - including favouring foods with protein, complex carbohydrates and fibre, while avoiding those rich in saturated fats and refined sugars. The same site also has much advice for how, rather than just what, you should eat as Christmas nears.