\n
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.<\/p>\n
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.<\/p>\n
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.<\/p>\n
Your support makes all the difference.<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nRead more<\/span><\/svg><\/span><\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nThis article was originally published in 2023 and has been republished by The Independent in the lead-up to Christmas.<\/em><\/p>\nAs Christmas approaches, so does the challenge of healthy eating and maintaining weight-related goals. The season\u2019s many social gatherings can easily tempt us to indulge in calorie-rich food and celebratory drinks. It\u2019s why we typically gain weight over Christmas and then struggle to take it off for the remainder of the year.<\/p>\n
Christmas also exacerbates cost-of-living pressures, prompting some to rethink their food choices. Throughout 2023, 71 per cent of Australians \u2013 or 14.2 million people \u2013 adapted their eating behaviour in response to rising costs.<\/p>\n
Fortunately, there are some simple, science-backed hacks for the festive season to help you celebrate with the food traditions you love without impacting your healthy eating habits, weight, or hip pocket.<\/p>\n
If your festive season is filled with end-of-year parties likely to tempt you to fill up on finger foods and meals high in fat, salt, and sugar and low in nutritional value, have a healthy pre-event snack before you head out.<\/p>\n
Research shows carefully selected snack foods can impact satiety (feelings of fullness after eating), potentially reducing the calories you eat later. High-protein, high-fibre snack foods have the strongest effect: because they take longer to digest, our hunger is satisfied for longer.<\/p>\n
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Snacking before heading to a Christmas event will help you to feel fuller for longer (Getty Images\/iStockphoto)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nSo enjoy a handful of nuts, a tub of yoghurt, or a serving of hummus with veggie sticks before you head out to help keep your healthy eating plan on track.<\/p>\n
Despite the marketing promises, low-carb alcoholic drinks aren\u2019t better for our health or waistlines.<\/p>\n
Many low-carb options have a similar amount of carbohydrates as regular options but lull us into thinking they\u2019re better, so we drink more. A survey found 15 per cent of low-carb beer drinkers drank more beer than they usually would because they believed it was healthier for them.<\/p>\n
A typical lager or ale will contain less than 1.5 grams of carbohydrate per 100 ml while the \u201clower-carb\u201d variety can range anywhere from 0.5 grams to 2.0 grams. The calories in drinks come from the alcohol itself, not the carbohydrate content.<\/p>\n
Next time you go to order, think about the quantity of alcohol you\u2019re drinking rather than the carbs. Make sure you sip lots of water in between drinks to stay hydrated, too.<\/p>\n\nAbout the author<\/h2>\nNick Fuller is Charles Perkins Centre Research Program Leader at the University of Sydney.<\/p>\n
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons licence. Read the original article.<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
There\u2019s a perception that healthy eating is more expensive. But studies show this is a misconception. A recent analysis in Victoria, for example, found following the Australian Dietary Guidelines cost the average family A$156 less a fortnight than the cost of the average diet, which incorporates packaged processed foods and alcohol.<\/p>\n
So when you\u2019re planning your Christmas Day meal, give the pre-prepared, processed food a miss and swap in healthier ingredients:<\/p>\n
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\nswap the heavy, salted ham for leaner and lighter meats such as fresh seafood. Some seafood, such as prawns, is also tipped to be cheaper this year thanks to favourable weather conditions boosting local supplies<\/li>\n for side dishes, opt for fresh salads incorporating seasonal ingredients such as mango, watermelon, peach, cucumber and tomatoes. This will save you money and ensure you\u2019re eating foods when they\u2019re freshest and most flavoursome<\/li>\n if you\u2019re roasting veggies, use healthier cooking oils like olive as opposed to vegetable oil, and use flavourful herbs instead of salt<\/li>\n if there\u2019s an out-of-season vegetable you want to include, look for frozen and canned substitutes. They\u2019re cheaper, and just as nutritious and tasty because the produce is usually frozen or canned at its best. Watch the sodium content of canned foods, though, and give them a quick rinse to remove any salty water<\/li>\n give store-bought sauces and dressings a miss, making your own from scratch using fresh ingredients.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\nBefore heading to the supermarket to shop for your Christmas Day meal, create a detailed meal plan and shopping list, and don\u2019t forget to check your pantry and fridge for things you already have.<\/p>\n
Eating beforehand and shopping with a plan in hand means you\u2019ll only buy what you need and avoid impulse purchasing.<\/p>\n
When you\u2019re shopping, price check everything. Comparing the cost per 100 grams is the most effective way to save money and get the best value. Check prices on products sold in different ways and places, too, such as nuts you scoop yourself versus prepacked options.<\/p>\n
We\u2019ve all been tempted to skip or have a small breakfast on Christmas morning to \u201csave\u201d the calories for later. But this plan will fail when you sit down at lunch hungry and find yourself eating far more calories than you\u2019d \u201csaved\u201d for.<\/p>\n
Research shows a low-calorie or small breakfast leads to increased feelings of hunger, specifically appetite for sweets, across the course of the day.<\/p>\n
What you eat for breakfast on Christmas morning is just as important too \u2013 choosing the right foods will help you manage your appetite and avoid the temptation to overindulge later in the day.<\/p>\n
Studies show a breakfast containing protein-rich foods, such as eggs, will leave us feeling fuller for longer.<\/p>\n
So before you head out to the Christmas lunch, have a large, nutritionally balanced breakfast, such as eggs on wholegrain toast with avocado.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging. At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story. The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it. Your support makes all the difference. Read more This article was originally published in 2023 and has been republished by The Independent in the lead-up to Christmas. As Christmas approaches, so does the challenge of healthy eating and maintaining weight-related goals. The season\u2019s many social gatherings can easily tempt us to indulge in calorie-rich food and celebratory drinks. It\u2019s why we typically gain weight over Christmas and then struggle to take it off for the remainder of the year. Christmas also exacerbates cost-of-living pressures, prompting some to rethink their food choices. Throughout 2023, 71 per cent of Australians \u2013 or 14.2 million people \u2013 adapted their eating behaviour in response to rising costs. Fortunately, there are some simple, science-backed hacks for the festive season to help you celebrate with the food traditions you love without impacting your healthy eating habits, weight, or hip pocket. If your festive season is filled with end-of-year parties likely to tempt you to fill up on finger foods and meals high in fat, salt, and sugar and lo…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9608,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9918"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9918"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9918\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/9608"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9918"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9918"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9918"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}