Transcription:
Healthy Holiday Eating

Melanie Cole (Host): The upcoming holiday season is full of family, friends, fun, and food, with an emphasis on the food. Can you make healthy choices during the holidays? My guest today is Catherine Basbaum. She's a clinical dietitian with UVA Health Systems. Welcome to the show, Catherine. So, let's start with the holidays. People hear about the weight gain that goes on, we're going to all of these parties. What are some of the triggers that people you know, kind of submit to make those poor food choices that they make?

Catherine Basbaum (Guest): Well, a couple of things. First of all, the food itself, right? So, during the holidays, we see foods that are richer and more delicious and it's our favorites, and they're family recipes. As far as I'm concerned, that's one of the big triggers is that the actual holiday food tends to be really, really special and that makes it harder to resist. Another thing is that in the holidays we identify with a lot of socializing and celebrating and I would venture to say that the holidays for many people, that means a lot of extra socializing and celebrating and being with family. Food and family are connected in a great way. Some might even say that the fact that the in the holidays, there's a little bit more alcohol flowing. Cocktails and champagne and things like that and when we're drinking, sometimes it's easier to go off our diets a little bit and forget about making good choices.

Melanie: Well, certainly, it does reduce your inhibitions. So, what are some foods that people commonly see that masquerade as being healthy? Because people will say, "Okay, I'm putting out the hummus," or "I'm putting out something," but then it ends up to be something that's really full of fat or really has no redeeming value?

Catherine: Well, yes, it's interesting, Melanie, that you brought up the hummus because hummus, which is actually going to be a good choice for you, the base being good heart-healthy olive oil and chickpeas or garbanzo beans. In the same kind of category as an appetizer, spinach dip. You know, people think, “There's spinach in it and it's a dip, and I just put a carrot in it or a chip or a piece of bread,” but compared to a hummus, or like some other light dip, spinach dip or artichoke dip is going to be one of the really, really rich, indulgent, lots of calories, lots of fat, lots of salt in that. Another category is just vegetables in general. You know, we think about fruits and vegetables as being generally healthy. So, if you see sweet potatoes, "Oh, I hear sweet potatoes are good for me," or you know green bean casseroles or just any of these kind of vegetable dishes, but around the holidays especially, there's going to be a lot of cream and butter and sugar added to these things that are going to kind of wipe out the health benefits. And then, the other one I was going to mention was when you're picking your proteins, right? You might have the option of some ham or a red meat option or a poultry and some of us may think "Well, I'll just go for the poultry, that's going to be the really light and nutritious one," but if you're getting a turkey leg, dark meat with all the skin, you might be actually making a worse choice than one of the others.

Melanie: So, I think we can consider that if stuff has a lot of butter, sour cream, or mayonnaise, it's probably off the healthy choice list. How do you avoid those things? As you mentioned, alcohol, you know, that makes it a little more fun, you're socializing, you're talking, what are some tips you give as a clinical dietician to people every day about not giving into those cravings and saying, "Oh, that spinach dip looks so great," and just eating too much of it? Are we allowed to have just a little? Can we stop at just a little?

Catherine: Some people can stop at just a little bit and some people can't and that's one of the things that as individuals, we need to be able to recognize, "Can I have just one chip and dip?" or, “If I have one, then, I'm not going to be able to stop.” One of the things that I talk to my patients a lot about, and this is an oldie, but a goodie, is do not show up hungry at a dinner or at a cocktail party or at the office celebration, or whatever, because, if you don't eat much at all several hours before, thinking you're going to be eating a bunch later or you want to save your calories, if you think about a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being ravenous, you go to that party or that event at a 10, your willpower is out the door. But, if you have a snack a couple hours or an hour before; a slice of whole wheat bread with peanut butter, or a couple of slices of cheese and an apple, whatever, then you'll be at closer to a 6 or a 7 on that hunger scale and you'll actually be able to make some good choices. So, that's one. Another thing is what I do a lot of work with patients is what we call the plate method. So, if you are having dinner at a holiday party or you're making yourself a little appetizer plate, then fill up half your plate. Load it up with fresh fruits and vegetables, whatever they have. Just load it up. You can eat that to your heart's content. Give yourself a little bit of something indulgent in the starch department, a little something indulgent in the protein department, and call it a day.

Melanie: If you're somebody that journals to really keep your eye on your weight, is it possible to keep that up during the holidays?

Catherine: Sure! I mean, it's not that fun, but, I mean, if it's something that . . .

Melanie: Trying to keep track at a party of every chip you put in your mouth or every glass of wine that you have, I mean, it can be quite daunting, so if somebody is doing that, and they're trying to keep track, do you advise they use maybe some of the apps that are out there that they can, and I'm not talking appetizers, but some of the apps that are out there to help keep track of what it is they're eating, and then when they get home, they can kind of go through it and see what they did?

Catherine: Well, yes. I mean I don't recommend the apps for everybody, because I've got plenty of patients that are not tech savvy or they prefer pen and paper; they're old school. But, for those that like the smartphone, whether it's writing it down or tapping it into their phone as they're consuming it, so that they don't forget later, or maybe they want to take a quick snapshot photo of everything. I mean, their friends might think they're a little kooky, but who cares? They're the ones that are not going to be feeling heavier.

Melanie: But that's a good idea, though, because you can look at it afterwards. Now, what about the alcohol, Catherine, because it add up? Those calories, wine, beer, margaritas, drinks with cream in them. So, what do you tell people about the calorie content and the weight gain involved with so much alcohol over the holidays?

Catherine: Well, what I say is as much as possible, stay away from the mixed drinks. The ones that are made with, as you said, the fruity juices and the creams, and like the egg nogs, the margaritas, whatever, those ones are going to be the calorie bombs. They're going to just put you over the limit. I would rather my patients, and I would rather myself, I would rather eat my calories. So, have a small glass of wine, have a small glass of champagne, or, if you like liquor, do it with club soda and lime instead of tonic water, or juices, and things like that. And, try to one for one with a tall glass of water instead of just going glass of booze after booze, just pace yourself a bit and you'll still enjoy yourself and save a bunch of calories.

Melanie: And do people "But resveratrol is supposed to be good for me." So, I want to have the wine!

Catherine: Yes, I hear it every day, but what I tell them in return is I say, "Look, if you want potential heart-healthy benefits from red wine because of the resveratrol, then, yes, if you decide to have an alcoholic beverage, you might want to go with a glass of red wine." But, if you are not a drinker, there is not enough evidence to say, “You should start drinking and especially red wine.” That we can’t advocate. We can't support that yet. But, yes, there might be some benefits--not in excess.

Melanie: And, so, then there's the next day. You go to a party and people always want to know, “Can I then starve myself the next day to make up for what I did last night?” What do you tell them to do the next day?

Catherine: Well, the next day. No, you can't starve yourself the next day or the day before to kind of balance everything out. Number one, it's painful to do that, and number two, I don't really think it's necessary. Ideally, what I like to see with my patients is that they're eating cleaning, real fresh, real wholesome foods about 80% of the week, and then the other 20%, then they're having some indulgence. They're having some fun. The same thing applies during the holidays. If they're going to go to a couple of events one day, then the next day that's part of their 20%. Then, they just go back to regular eating. No fasting or skipping. A nice balanced breakfast, lunch, and dinner. That's how I feel.

Melanie: So, wrap it up for us, Catherine, because it's great advice for people to listen to as these holidays start to come upon us with everything from Halloween candy all around to Thanksgiving and then onward. So, give your best advice for people as it starts into this season what you tell them every day about watching what they eat and trying to make those healthy choices.

Catherine: I'd say, bottom line is don't deprive yourself of your favorites. If you have a favorite candy from your kids or your Halloween bag, then give yourself one a day for a week, or whatever. If your mom or your sister's apple pie or the green bean casserole or whatever it is, you have to give yourself those things and you should because it gives you great pleasure, but don't overdo it. Don't take a bunch of every one of the indulgent items that are being offered. Be like, “This is the one that is my favorite and I'm going to have a piece of it and I'm going to love it and enjoy it and the rest of my plate is going to be a bit more sensible.” And the same thing applies for appetizer time or for desserts. Ideally, you're going to just take a little bit of the indulgent and then fill up with the fruit and the vegetables to fill up your belly and once the New Year comes and goes and you're back to normal, then, hopefully, the plate method idea sticks and the idea of the alcohol and the lower-calorie drink sticks. And the not showing up to just a regular dinner with your friends starving or ravenous. Hopefully, that sticks as well.

Melanie: That's great advice and something people really should take to heart. Thank you so much for being with us today. You're listening to UVA Health Systems Radio. For more information, you can go to www.uvahealth.com. That's www.uvahealth.com. This is Melanie Cole, thanks so much for listening.