Useful Information for Better Health from the Western Maryland Health System

Monday, November 25, 2013

Happy, Healthy Holidays!

On November 12, the WMHS Weight Management Support Group met and enjoyed a wonderful food demo by Registered Dietitians Hana Smith and Liz Kauruter.  Hana and Liz not only shared tips to make your favorite holiday meals healthier, they prepared a very interesting and delicious hot cocoa recipe made with sweet potatoes and shared two other dishes, roasted root vegetables and mac n’ cheese made with pumpkin puree. (see the recipes below! Click on them to view larger and to print!)  They got rave reviews from all there, including me!  I thought they were all delicious! 
Some of the tips shared include:
1    Using less bread and more veggies in your stuffing.  To increase flavor and add extra     vitamins and fiber add whole grain breads, celery, mushrooms, onions and carrots. Other options for a sweeter stuffing include apples, currants, raisins, apricots and cranberries. 
2    
     Skip the skin on the turkey and save 11 grams of saturated fat per 3 oz. serving.
3   
     Move your socializing away from the food table to minimize unconscious nibbling.
4   
     Don’t starve yourself before the big meal.  Eat something small before, so you aren’t tempted to overeat at meal time.

More ideas for making the holidays healthy will be shared at the next Weight Management Support Group that meets from 5-6 on Tuesday November 26th in Auditorium Room 3 at WMHS. 
For more information, call Carey Moffatt, Certified Health and Wellness Coach at 240-964-8418 for more information. Read more about the Weight Management Support Group here: http://wmhs.com/Weight-Management-Support-Group-Nov-26.html.

Happy healthy holidays to all!

-Theresa Stahl, RD, LDN