Category: holidays and observances

Simple Tips for Healthy Holiday Eating

Holiday traditions often involve special foods and beverages, posing challenges for individuals managing medical conditions like diabetes, food allergies, and obesity. Emphasizing mindfulness in eating and understanding personal dietary restrictions can alleviate holiday stress and enhance enjoyment.

updated December 5, 2025

Everyone enjoys the holiday traditions of eating and drinking special foods and beverages.  But these can cause problems for people who need to manage what they eat and drink for medical reasons.

sliced Stollen

Nutritional adjustments play a vital role in managing these health conditions

  • diabetes
  • high cholesterol
  • celiac disease/gluten sensitivity
  • nut and other food allergies
  • lactose intolerance
  • overweight/obesity
  • alcohol dependence
  • heart, kidney, and liver dysfunction
  • anorexia/bulimia
  • pregnancy
  • migraine
  • cancer

Share the Joy, not the Germs

Lessons learned from the COVID-19 public health emergency are useful as we plan to celebrate holidays with gatherings. Several illnesses, particularly respiratory infections, are more prevalent at this time of year.

As much as we hate missing activities with close friends and family, we risk spreading contagious diseases if we attend when we are ill. Be gracious and stay home when you feel unwell.

If you are at higher risk of complications from respiratory infections, consider whether attending gatherings is wise.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has been stressful and isolating for many people. Gatherings during the upcoming holidays can be an opportunity to reconnect with family and friends.

This holiday season, consider how your holiday plans can be modified to reduce the spread of COVID-19 to keep your friends, families, and communities healthy and safe.”

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
a dining table decorated for Christmas

Practical Tips to Plan Menus

Planning ahead to manage holiday stress also applies to cooking, entertaining, and eating during the holiday season.

If you plan and prepare holiday meals and parties, remember that some attendees need to avoid or restrict certain foods.  

Offer an ample variety of food and drinks so your guests will find something that works for them.

If you have house guests, they will appreciate your asking them about dietary needs or restrictions so you can have food available to meet their needs.

If you have special food needs, it may be wise to offer to bring a dish to an event or take food to eat if you will be someone’s house guest.

“Holidays can be a time of great anxiety for people with diabetes because it is so focused on food.

Don’t let questions about what to eat, how much to eat, and meal timing dampen your holiday. Plan in advance, so you can fend off stress and fully enjoy the day and keep your diabetes management on track.”

American Diabetes Association
Photo by fauxels on Pexels.com

The following links are provided for your information only and do not constitute clinical advice or endorsement. Always discuss health decisions with your personal healthcare professional.

Dr. Diana, an allergy doctor who blogs about cooking at White Coat, Pink Apron, suggests these

Edible Christmas Gifts

decorated Christmas cookies

 30 Best Gluten-Free Christmas Cookies

apples, oranges, and walnuts

Navigating the Holidays with a Food Addiction: 

” Eating disorders are not about food, it is about the underlying issues which can be triggered by anxiety and stress. Holidays can bring on both increased stress and anxiety and can be difficult for individuals to manage. When a person is in an active eating disorder, there are various ways to cope with the holidays.”

Addiction Hope.com

Time for you to plan

As you consider your holiday entertaining, whether as host or guest, what is most important for you to consider?

How will you plan ahead so that you can feel confident that your holiday celebrations are not only fun, but healthy and safe?

Who do you need to talk to or ask for help?

Exploring the HEART of holiday eating

I appreciate the resources I have linked to in this post for sharing their expertise online.

I’d love for you to follow this blog. I share information and inspiration to help you turn health challenges into health opportunities.

Add your name to the subscribe box to be notified of new posts by email. Click the link to read the post and browse other content. It’s that simple. No spam.

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Dr. Aletha

How to Manage Holiday Stress

The Christmas holiday season is starting earlier each year, often causing stress through shopping, cooking, and family gatherings. While celebrating with loved ones can bring joy, it can also create emotional tension. Managing expectations and preparing for potential stressors can help individuals find peace and enjoyment during this challenging time.

updated December 8, 2025

The Christmas holiday season seems to start earlier every year. Rather than post Thanksgiving, it now appears right after Halloween, if not Labor Day in early September.

Once activities move into high gear we may start wondering if it really is

“the most wonderful time of the year.” 

The extra work of shopping, cooking, decorating, wrapping, planning, and entertaining can make it the least wonderful time.

We welcome celebrating with family and friends, yet find those encounters create emotional tension and strain. When we feel sad that loved ones can’t be with us, either through distance or death,  the season can become the worst of the year.

By anticipating stressful holiday events and the feelings they trigger, we can prepare ourselves for the physical and emotional stress of the holiday season, and find a way to enjoy the festivities with “hearts all a-glowin’.”

snowflakes making a Christmas tree

Resources for Conquering Holiday Stress

Writer Bruce Y. Lee takes a lighthearted but serious look at the holiday season and suggests music may help us cope better in

 How To Reduce And Deal With Holiday Stress

“Twelve Days of Christmas”: Keep perspective. If the Holidays are tough for you, remember that the season is temporary and will pass.

Try not to take yourself and things too seriously. Just make sure you maintain healthy habits and avoid behaviors that will lead to health problems (such as gaining weight) beyond the holiday season.”

colorful wrapped packages

Consider this advice from WebMD before going 

Home for the Holidays 

“Don’t worry about how things should be. Most people have less than perfect holiday gatherings — they have family tension, melancholy, and dry turkey too.

If you have negative feelings, don’t try to deny them. Remember that there’s nothing wrong or shameful or unusual about feeling down during the holidays.

a cute snowman

31 Tips for a Stress-Free Christmas from Woman’s Day

Know when to say no.

Can’t say no? Then keep your gatherings small and intimate. Get together with a few of your closest friends or relatives for the holidays.

Choose to throw the big blowout parties at another time of the year, when you and your guests will have fewer commitments competing for your precious time.”

glowing cancles

 A Simple Christmas: A Faith-filled Guide to a Meaningful And Stress-free Christmas (Spirit of Simple Living) 
A Simple Christmas book cover

by Sharon Hanby-Robie

“The secret to a happy holiday is learning to collaborate and to create a plan that is uniquely yours with a goal to experience more serenity, more joy, and more opportunities to nurture the souls of those you love.

But, most important, it is to remember the greatest gift ever given, the gift of the Christ Child. Take time to simply sit and ponder this amazing miracle. “

(an affiliate link provided for your convenience and to help support this blog)

a nativity arrangement of the manger

And in this blog post, Joshua Becker reminds us to

Choose Holiday Traditions That Serve You

“Traditions should draw our attention to the underlying reason for the season.
Traditions should not detract from the season, they should elevate it.”

5 keys to manage holiday stress before it manages you 

  1. Set realistic expectations for yourself and others.
  2. Anticipate stressful situations, places, and people.
  3. Plan and prepare carefully, but stay flexible for the unexpected.
  4. Keep your self-care routine- healthy eating, exercise, adequate sleep.
  5. Remember what is most important about the season-family, friends, faith.

How will you manage holiday stress?

  • Which of the 5 keys listed above do you most need to focus on?
  • What makes that important for you?
  • What do you need to do today to make and implement a plan for success?

Sharing the HEART of Christmas

Thanks to Pixabay for the Christmas photos used in this post.

I’d love for you to follow this blog. I share information and inspiration to help you turn health challenges into health opportunities.

Add your name to the subscribe box to be notified of new posts by email. Click the link to read the post and browse other content. It’s that simple. No spam.

I enjoy seeing who is new to Watercress Words. When you subscribe, I will visit your blog or website. Thanks and see you next time.

Dr. Aletha
Mankind is a great family..proved by what we feel in our hearts at Christmas
Christmas graphic from the Lightstock.com collection (affiliate link)

The holidays wouldn’t be the same without food. Here are some tips to make it easier and healthier.

Healthy Holiday Eating: Practical Management Tips

This post shares how holiday foods like marshmallows and eggnog, appear in traditions and songs. Holiday foods can challenge nutritional management of multiple health conditions. Here are practical tips for planning meals to accommodate dietary needs, while offering insights on healthy eating and managing sobriety during festivities. Ultimately, we can celebrate human connections over food.

Keep reading