Many of you have been working hard all year changing your diet and improving your health. Congratulations on that good effort! Some of you have lost weight, lowered your cholesterol, blood pressure, blood sugar or made other positive changes to important health indices. Or, for some of you it’s been about having more energy, less joint pain, better digestion, elimination of headaches, less depression and anxiety, elimination of hot flashes, or myriad of other symptoms.

Now it’s the “holidays” and you’re concerned about blowing it, or reversing all the great progress you’ve made. It’s also part of the "American tradition" to have the post-holiday blues - including fatigue, depression, illness and unfortunately, 7-10 extra pounds. But with some conscious intention, you can leave that part of the tradition behind.

The problem with the holidays is that we extend them so much. There is nothing wrong with eating a holiday meal. In fact, many of you know about my “90% diet” philosophy. Meaning eat healthfully 90% of the time. This allows for 10% of the time when we can indulge a little. The holidays are only about 7 days a year. Unfortunately we turn them into weeklong celebrations and the period from Thanksgiving to New Years, although only containing 3 holidays, can turn into a 2-month celebration. And that’s how the damage to our good work is done! I’d like to share a few tips to help you stay focused on your good health while still enjoying the holidays. Follow these tips and you’re likely to be much happier on January 2nd!

1. Keep up your exercise routine no matter what. Make it completely non-negotiable. Exercise helps maintain the connection between the mind and body. Usually, when the exercise routine stops, the good healthy food plan follows. Let your exercise set the bar.

2. Enjoy your holiday meal, then get rid of the leftovers. Give them away or throw them out. (Not everything - just the sweets, starches and rich foods!).

3. Remember: there are only 3 holidays from November to New Year’s. (And one has already happened). Any celebrations added are by your CHOICE.

4. CONTROL your own schedule. If you accept invitations for social events – choose ahead of time where you’ll indulge a little and where you’ll stick to your healthy eating plan. A little pre-planning in this area goes a long way.

5. Eating sugar and drinking alcohol 2 days in a row will make it very hard to avoid it on the third day. It can start you on a sugar cycle. Avoid indulging 2 days in a row.

6. Prepare for a party or social event by eating healthy all day long before the event. Then the next morning, be right on task again with healthy eating.

7. Get enough sleep, time for yourself and relaxation throughout the season. Don’t set yourself up for stress eating. And remember – control your calendar!

8. When you have an alcoholic drink or a sweet, eat it consciously. A little goes a long way when you pay attention to the taste, texture and aroma. Savor.

9. Stay conscious of your eating throughout the entire season. Keep a food log to help you stay aware.

10. Lastly, don’t cancel our appointments no matter how busy you get. It’s another way to stay conscious. Keep all your other self-care appointments as well – acupuncture, massage, personal trainers, etc.

Just water? “I get so tired of just drinking water” is the refrain I hear from clients time and time again. And, of course, I understand the frustration. We’ve become used to so many options – most of which are some version or sugar-water, or artificially sweetened water. But I’d like to offer some other ideas that will provide variety, as well as maintain health.

First, let’s put a spot light on the culprit. There are many problems associated with having too much sugar in our diet, beyond the classic one of weight gain. In fact, a recent study conducted by Tufts University found that people who follow a low sugar diet have lower levels of depression and anxiety. This is completely consistent with what I have learned over the years working with clients struggling with anxiety and depression. I’ve found that eating a balanced, complex carbohydrate anti-inflammatory diet is a first step to reducing depression and anxiety.

Also, a recent 4-year study conducted in San Francisco of elderly women and reported in the Journal of Nutrition, Health and Aging, suggests that chronically elevated blood sugar is associated with an increased risk of mild cognitive impairment or dementia. These are just two recent studies joining the mounting evidence of the danger of excessive sugar in the diet. Without doubt, we know a high sugar diet impairs health in many ways, including causing increased inflammation that can aggravate asthma, allergies, arthritis and all other inflammatory conditions. It can facilitate heart disease and cause diabetes. Sugar feeds intestinal yeasts, fungi and cellular cancer. And, if you remember from October's newsletter, each serving of sugar suppresses immunity for about 8 hours - which is why colds and flu are so common around the holidays.

And, as if all the above were not enough, sugar cravings often go hand-in-hand with high levels of stress hormones circulating in the body. Unfortunately reaching for a sugary drink or a caffeinated or alcoholic drink is often the easiest (though clearly not the best) way to satisfy these cravings. Therefore it becomes even more important when we are stressed to be extra vigilant with making sure we have healthy beverages available.

What about artificial sweeteners like NutraSweet (aspartame) and Splenda? Are they safe? Do they work? I wish I had better news, but the truth is these kinds of artificial sweeteners can cause myriad symptoms in the body ranging from rashes to wheezing to migraines to neurological problems. Also, BOTH sugar and artificial sweeteners increase appetite and increase desire for sugar, creating a vicious cycle of wanting more and more sugar! Stay tuned to a future issue of this newsletter where we’ll address the problems with these artificial sweeteners in more detail.

OK, now let’s talk about alternatives. If you are trying to get off of soda and replace it with healthy beverages – here are some ideas. Try adding to a pitcher of filtered water in the refrigerator one of the following: cucumber slices, raspberries, orange slices, lime slices, fresh ginger slices, or mint leaves. Soak overnight to allow time for the flavor to permeate the water. Or blend a juice drink from a variety of vegetables. Or experiment with some of the many varieties of herbal tea, which are available in spicy, sweet and fruity flavors, some of which are very good as iced tea as well. You may want to have a super-green drink for an energy boost. I have one available, see the bottom of the recommended products page, Paleogreens, which is mostly organic, very digestible and with a nice lemon-lime flavor. Caffeinated and alcoholic beverages can be part of a healthy diet if kept to moderate levels. That is, no more than one cup of a caffeinated beverage a day, and no more than one drink three times a week. Start with having a variety of non-sugary beverages available in your kitchen.