Balancing Nutrition with Holiday Eating

Decadent foods are a staple for many holiday meals, so how can everyone keep nutrition in mind while celebrating? Debbie Fetter ’12, Ph.D. ’18, an associate professor of teaching in the Department of Nutrition at UC Davis, shares healthy strategies for planning holiday meals.

What is your top tip for holiday meals?

I think that one of the biggest things I see people do is saving up for the holiday meal or restricting in preparation for a big holiday dinner. The best advice is to maintain your consistent regular routine. Eat your typical meals as you usually would. 

What are the best holiday dishes, nutritionally?

A lot of the holiday foods aren't as unhealthy as people think. There are a lot of nutrient-dense options. If you consume animal source foods, turkey is a great high-quality, protein-lean source. Protein comes with a lot of essential vitamins and minerals as well, and dark meat is a good source of B12 and iron. If you incorporate any type of roasted veggie, they come with essential nutrients and fiber — like sweet potatoes, brussels sprouts, roasted onions, peppers and potatoes. 

What are some tips for preparation styles?

Try to make food at home if you can. Store-bought foods tend to come with ingredients to prolong the shelf life, so they might have more saturated fat in them or added sugar. Typically, I recommend baking instead of frying things. I aim to bake or roast things when possible or do a gentle stir-fry, because that will help limit the fat and energy that you're adding into your dishes. I recommend using an air fryer to get that nice crispy texture with a lot less of the added fat.

What about exercise during this time?

Try to maintain your usual physical activity. Just finding some way to move your body does wonders for your mental health. You can go on a family walk before sitting down for the holiday meal or maybe do an after-dinner yoga YouTube tutorial all together. Even a game of Twister counts as physical activity, or a dance party and karaoke.

How do you feel about alternative meat dishes?

They allow us to be inclusive of people's dietary patterns. They also allow you to get creative about different dishes. Non-meat options, like tofu, are a great high-quality vegetarian protein source.

I think the tricky thing is that the perception of plant-based meat alternatives, like Impossible Meat and Beyond Meats, is that those products are healthier than the actual animal source. Nutritionally, they're designed to mimic the animal source food, so they provide similar nutrients as the meat equivalent.

How can we make sure we don’t overeat?

I think that when you're navigating the holiday food scene, first take an inventory about the options. I make some mental notes, like I know I want to save room for my favorite pumpkin pie. This can help you create a strategic plan for what you want to consume, rather than just eating everything that's placed in front of you.  Fill up on more nutrient-dense sides before filling in with more energy-dense options. By filling up your plate with the more nutrient-dense foods you'll have less room for less nutrient-dense foods, and still enjoy it in a mindful portion.