This is possibly the time of year when the most exaggerated things are done: company Christmas dinners, friends' dinners, Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve. These are moments of sharing and friendship and it's no secret that the tables are laden with all the typical Christmas products and sweets.
season.

Normally, this is synonymous with calories. But more than calories, we're talking about the high amountof sugar and salt ingested in these days that, of course, can have an impact on health. Keeping a dietary balance during this month is essential for controlling cholesterol, blood pressure, glucose or weight.

During this season, there are a few steps you can take to ensure that the parties do not jeopardise your health - but if you stop having fun, of course.

Steps to take during the festive season:

- Choose your ingredients well. Are you having Christmas dinner or Christmas Eve at your home? Creativity is your best friend, and with it you can reduce the butter in your cooking,substitute vegetable oil for olive oil, introduce more vegetables into recipes and exclude saturated fats from recipes.

- Before you leave home, have a snack. Arriving at Christmas dinner with a table full of temptations, can help you consume more than you are supposed to. So, an hour before leave home, eat a nutritious snack to feel satiated and not so hungry.

- The 10-minute rule. Did you know that the information that the stomach is full takes 10 minutes to reach the brain? You should therefore wait 10 minutes before, for example, you move from the first course to the second, or to dessert. Also, chew and swallow your food slowly to achieve the same effect.

- Watch your alcohol intake. And for two reasons: firstly, wine, beer or cocktails can reach up to 300 calories; and secondly, you should not drink them on an empty stomach, since alcohol increases your appetite, so you will be more likely to snack while drinking.

- Don't skip meals. Skipping lunch to get your fill at dinner is not a rule you want to follow. If you do, you will consume perhaps twice as much as you should and subject your body to many more calories. keep doing the right meals, eat throughout the day and insist on vegetables and fruit.

- Go for fibre foods. Fibre-rich foods are not only low in calories,
they are also highly satiating. If you know one of your meals will be heavier, then on the next one, invest in foods such as chickpeas, lentils, apples, oats, beans, soup, peas, linseed, pumpkin, among many others.

- Physical activity should be present. Even if it is not intense, it is important to go on walks, exercise at home or any kind of activity.

- Portions are important. This means that you should not fill your plate to the top. However appetising the Christmas table may be, managing the portions you put on your plate is a great help in not overdoing it.