I love Thanksgiving and Christmas. Among many great things about the season are the specialty foods that we only eat during this time of year. It’s no secret that these foods can be calorie laden and people typically gain weight during the holidays. So here’s a few tips for eating healthy this holiday season.

Below are some of the healthiest choices that are typically part of a Thanksgiving and Christmas feast in the US:

Sweet potatoes – full of nutrients and fiber, sweet potatoes are a great choice year round. To save on calories in the sweet potato casserole, skip the topping – that’s where most of the calories are.

Turkey and cranberries – As long as the turkey is not deep fried, it’s a low calorie yet filling meat. Eat it with cranberries instead of gravy to get in some antioxidants and save on calories.

Green bean casserole – although this traditional dish is not very low in calories, it is often one of the only vegetable dishes on the table. So eat your veggies!

Stuffing can be a healthy dish if prepared with vegetables. Mashed potatoes also depend on preparation. A ton of butter, cheese and sour cream adds calories and fat, but the potatoes themselves are super healthy.

Use these tips to avoid a weight gain disaster this holiday season:

Go easy on gravy – it has tons of calories in it. When we’re not thinking about it, we can eat more calories in gravy than the rest of the foods on our plate.

Avoid snacky foods like creamy dips and chex mix. Both of these examples, like gravy, have tons of calories in a very tiny serving. In general, be careful around foods you eat in handfuls. That is always the best way to unknowingly take in a day’s worth of calories before you even sit down for a meal.

For alcohol, skip the Egg nog – it counts as a dessert.  Stick to wine or straight liquor.

And the best part: eat this for dessert (you didn’t think I would leave this out would you?)

Pumpkin pie. Pumpkin is a very healthy food. In a pie, most of the calories are in the crust so if it’s not essential to you to eat all the crust, leave some on the plate along with a bunch of calories.

What’s your favorite holiday treat? Tell me in the comments below.

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