Skincare

Festive foods to go easy on

Posted on by Sera Labs News

Festive Foods To Go Easy On

It’s that wonderful time of year again! The time when families gather together, gifts are exchanged around the Christmas tree, cheer is in the air and food is celebrated and enjoyed. Lots of food!

While the holiday season is a festive and happy time of year, it can be extremely indulgent and often leaves many of us with a few extra pounds and a lot of regret.

It’s important to enjoy your Christmas dinner or any other holiday party you attend throughout the holidays, but to do so in a way that won’t leave you feeling unwell in the days following.

Look Out For These Five Foods

The Christmas dinner spread in many homes is the stuff of dreams. Full of delicious finger food and all your favorite Christmas recipes from childhood. To avoid feeling over-stuffed, moderate your intake of the following five foods.

Finger Food

On Christmas eve or Christmas day, many people have an ‘anything goes’ attitude. They give themselves permission to eat and drink as much as they like because it ‘Tis the season.’

Snacks like sweet treats and deep-fried finger foods are loaded with calories. Especially the cheesy ones. Think about a cheese ball made with goat cheese or cream cheese or even a cheese log stuffed with candied pecans. Many of these sweet and savory finger food options are deep fried or packed with oils, fat or sugar. By eating these Christmas favorites before the meal has even begun, you may be setting yourself up to over consume.

You should be able to enjoy a bite or two around the Christmas tree before the whole family gathers around the table for the main event, but be aware of what you are eating and avoid mindless snacking. If possible, prepare your own dish to bring along so that you have a healthy alternative. Anything that is deep fried can be made in an air fryer and that may save loads of extra calories.

Side Dishes

While the turkey, roast chicken or gammon is the main event, side dishes can be a real crowd pleaser. Think mashed potatoes, fried onions, crusty bread, pickled red pepper and even your mom’s most delicious recipe – cranberry sauce.

These holiday season festive sprinkles of deliciousness are no doubt heavenly, but they are usually very high in calories too. The sugars and oils in these foods may leave you feeling full, add to your weight and even leave your skin feeling and looking rather dull in the days that follow.

A side dish like brussel sprouts may seem like green sprinkles of innocence, but when you consider the crumbled bacon, goat cheese, butter and fried onions and garlic that accompany it, you start to see why the calorie count of this dish is sky high.

Another delicious recipe on the Christmas dinner table that masquerades as ‘healthy’ might be the butternut squash or mashed potatoes. They are often loaded with olive oil and butter, cream cheese, salt and brown sugar and lots more ‘hidden ingredients.’ Be mindful of how much you eat and go easy on the side dishes if you wish to moderate your calorie intake. Also, watch your salt intake because this may cause you to retain fluids and make your skin appear puffy the next day.

Red Meat

A staple at most people’s holiday table or Christmas dinner is some form of red meat. Everyone has their own delicious recipe and it always tastes delicious when it’s done in a slow cooker.

While red meat is a great source of protein, eating too much red meat and meat that is processed from the grocery store is not very healthy for us. A Christmas dinner indulgence is no big deal but moderate your intake and opt for white meat if possible. A great alternative is the turkey or roast chicken dishes. Roast chicken, especially the white meat and turkey is leaner and holds less calories.

Many of us wouldn’t associate red meats with dull skin but in fact, it may play a role. Eating the fats may cause mild swelling in our body. This swelling may hamper our bodies ability to produce collagen. This may leave us looking a little dull after a big meat laden meal.

Drinks

Along with all the delicious food, a holiday party often includes alcoholic drinks like eggnog, wine and champagne. While there is nothing wrong with a toast around the Christmas tree or at the holiday table, it is worth being mindful of how much you drink. Even if the drinks are not alcoholic, they are often full of sugar.

A simple trick that may help offset the damage caused by alcohol is to add some pomegranate seeds to your drink. These seeds may help with blood circulation.

Dessert

Every Christmas dinner will end on a sweet note. If you have indulged in the snacks and finger food and partook of the candy cane decorations, you may want to hold back on your dessert portions.

This is likely the most calorie dense part of the Christmas dinner spread and easily the most delicious. Perhaps having a small taste of your must-have-dessert or choosing your favorite dessert recipe and foregoing the other dessert options may be a better choice.

Too much sugar may cause you to gain weight and it may also cause your skin to appear dull and lifeless the following day. It’s a fun way to end a meal but you may regret it the next day. Sweet recipes should be shared among guests and enjoyed in moderation.

Have a Very Merry Christmas

We don’t recommend spoiling your festive fun by worrying too much about calories or salt intake but it may be wise to consider it a little.

The only thing to do is to enjoy everything in moderation and have a plan to minimize damage the following day. Hydrate with water as much as possible and pamper your skin a little extra.

Seratopical Radiant Glow Facial Oil

If you feel you may have overdone it over the holiday season, or you plan on indulging at Christmas dinner, why not plan a little ‘damage control’ for your skin.

Seratopical Radiant Glow Facial Oil is  a lightweight, fast-absorbing, with clinically backed ingredients like Marula Oil and Argan Oil, and infused with CBD, as well as loaded with antioxidants. Cream cheese, deep fried finger food and other holiday recipes may wreak havoc on your skin.

Seratopical Radiant Glow Oil may help to boost the skin’s hydration along with smoothing fine lines and wrinkles. If your skin needs an extra boost, this is a great option. Learn more here.

 

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Sera Labs News

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