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How healthy is your Christmas dinner?

Reasons to be cheerful no 1: your average Christmas dinner is chock-full of essential nutrients and health-giving vitamins and minerals

'Healthy’ 'and ‘Christmas’ are not words that often appear in the same sentence. In fact, there are plenty of woeful features on how unhealthy Christmas is. Bah humbug, we say – the truth is there’s a lot of goodness packed into the average turkey-with-all-the-trimmings spread.

Here, Higher Nature nutritionist Christine Bailey explains how, despite the calorie count, your Christmas dinner is actually chock-full of essential nutrients. So, you can have your turkey and eat it!

Despite the calorie count, your Christmas dinner is actually chock-full of essential nutrients.

Turkey

“Turkey is a fantastic source of lean protein, iron, zinc, selenium and B vitamins,” says Christine. “These nutrients are vital to help support energy levels, protect against disease and boost the immune system.”

Roast potatoes

Everyone loves the humble roast spud – which is great, as they provide us with fibre, immunity system-boosting vitamin C, and iron – essential for transporting oxygen around your system. They’re also a good source of copper and manganese, essential for good respiratory function and metabolism of foods, respectively.

Brussels sprouts

Love them or hate them, it’s worth piling your plate high with sprouts: “They’re bursting with cancer-fighting sulforaphane, vitamin C, fibre, and folate, which has been shown to reduce DNA damage,” says Christine.

Parsnips

Fibre-rich – vital for healthy bowels – and bursting with potassium, which helps to control blood pressure, parsnips taste pretty fine, too.

Carrots

Carrots are rich in antioxidant compounds and beta carotene, which, as well as being good for our eyes, is also believed to benefit our lungs. Another helping here, please!

“There is also mounting evidence that people who eat lots of vegetables are less likely to develop chronic diseases such as coronary heart disease and some cancers,” advises Christine – even more reason to be heavy-handed with the veggies!

Cranberry sauce

“These little gems are rich in flavonoids to help immune health and keep urinary tract infections at bay,” says Christine. Also, if you’re making your own cranberry sauce, sweeten with orange juice instead of sugar for an added dose of vitamin C.

Bread sauce

This great, classic British sauce contains bone-building calcium, plus the bread provides B vitamins and a little fibre.

Gravy

Finish off with a rich, unctuous homemade gravy: make it using the water from the vegetables, the remains of the roasting tray and some flour to thicken it to get an extra shot of health-giving minerals and vitamins.

Red wine

“Instead of creamy liqueurs and cocktails opt for red wine or mulled wine,” advises Christine. “Rich in heart-protective antioxidants, particularly resveratrol, which is reputed to help prevent damage to blood vessels, reduce bad cholesterol and prevent blood clots.”

So, while there’s no denying that your Christmas meal can be a calorific affair, there’s an awful lot to recommend it, too. Eat, drink and be merry indeed!

This article was written by DialExpotel for Expotel, the UK’s leading hotel, travel and venue booking agency. To find out more about Expotel, call 0844 793 7300.

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