Mayka Mafé, professional HLA San Carlos de Dénia, gives us some tips to avoid catching a few extra pounds this holiday season

Christmas has already arrived, a period of excess, which translates into an average increase in weight in 3kg per person. In addition, the attention in the emergency services increases, mainly due to hypertensive crisis, decompensated diabetes, attacks of gout and various pathologies related to these excesses.

Mayka Mafé Nogueroles, a specialist in internal medicine with a master's degree in clinical nutrition from HLA San Carlos, gives us some tips to avoid gaining weight and asks us to calm down. The specialist affirms that despite the fact that it is Christmas time, and not eating too much is a challenge, it is not necessary to change the usual eating habits and exercises.

- Avoid arriving at lunch or dinner with fasting many hours. The misconception of "compensate" for the foreseeable dietary excess is a mistake, because, instead of avoiding such excess, actually facilitated. "A prolonged fasting results in an increased appetite and a faster absorption and metabolism, therefore, before a copious lunch or dinner predictably, the best breakfast or afternoon snack properly" recommends optional.

- A healthy menu, From starters to desserts. Eating healthy at Christmas, without giving up enjoy the table is easy, because we can continue traditional family meals, but adding some practical advice. "For example, when the starters, we can change the companajes typical for low calorie snacks based on vegetables, such as raw vegetables, asparagus or lowfat cheeses, among others," he says professional. In addition also it adds that for main dishes, food is advised with less fat and sugar, such as shellfish, fish and lean meats such as turkey or rabbit, avoiding very red meat or fats such as duck, suckling pig and lamb " .

- Steam cooker, oven, papillote and iron They are the healthiest cooking methods, therefore you have to avoid batter and fried, and it is preferable to season the dishes with herbs and spices than with sauces, explains the doctor.

- Avoid industrial sweets rich in saturated fats and sugars. "To do this we can draw on home homemade desserts, and use sweetener to reduce the amount of sugar, we advised the doctor. Another good idea too, it is preparing desserts based on fruits, full of color and flavor, and are very healthy.

- Drink plenty of water throughout the day, to the detriment of sugary drinks and sodas. And be careful with alcohol because it contains many empty calories, and if despite this, we drink, it is beneficial that after water intake ingested in large quantities. This measure facilitates debugging of alcohol in the blood and, especially, speeding up the elimination of its primary metabolite, acetaldehyde, responsible for most of the effects of the "hangover". As a tip, Dr. Mafé recommends taking between drinks a glass of water, to better control what we drink.

- While shopping planMaking a list before going to the supermarket, to avoid leftovers. And reduce the size of the portions.

- Increase our exercise, with 30 more minutes a day of sport, you can try to compensate for the extra calories of Christmas meals. "So that the only thing we earn during this time are gifts," the doctor concludes.