The One Food You Must Avoid This Holiday Season

What’s the saying? “Have a happy, healthy New Year?” Start the new year healthy by making good choices during the dwindling days of this year. Don’t put this on your plate at holiday parties… 1. Glazed Ham Have you ever seen a cardiologist eating a glazed ham? Ham on its own provides some health benefits, but it also inserts a whole lot of sodium into your system. Hearts hate that. Add the caloric, sugar-based glaze and you could be looking for long-term trouble, especially if the glaze has corn syrup. Leave the other white meat out of your red and green celebrations. And while we have your attention, better to avoid the following six foods and drinks as well… 2. Gravy Okay, you made a healthy choice and choose turkey over ham. Just don’t drown the bird in gravy because you’ll be filling yourself with fat and sodium. If you really crave the topping, you can make heart-healthy, flavorful gravy with turkey stock, vegetables and herbs. Then you can pour on as much as you’d like! 3. Gingerbread Men Is nothing sacred? These holiday favorites can give your cholesterol and blood-sugar levels an unhealthy boost. A small cookie can have 160 calories while a large guy could pack up to 360! (By comparison, one slice of pizza has 285 calories.) Gingerbread also has sodium, something you want to consume in moderation. The next food is a drink, and avoiding it will save you money. 4. Peppermint White Chocolate Mocha Starbucks sweetened coffees and hot chocolates make winter almost worth the freezing cold temperatures. But these hot drinks contain so much white stuff (and we don’t mean snow) that even Willy Wonka would flinch. Sugar does nothing but harm the body and a 16 oz. Peppermint White Chocolate Mocha puts 76 grams (that’s 19 teaspoons!) into your blood. Opt for a regular coffee and add a little sugar. It costs less too. 5. Egg Nog Nothing says “holidays” like a frothy cup of 600 calories, 21 grams (or 5 teaspoons) of sugar, cholesterol, and sodium. Mmmmm. This cream, eggs, sugar, and bourbon concoction is almost a must at holiday parties. It’s almost a must. Choose a healthier beverage and do your heart a favor. 6. Cheese Fondue It’s tempting to dunk your healthy broccoli spear in the vat of gooey cheese. But don’t do it! That cheese soup is swimming with sodium, saturated fat, and cholesterol. It doesn’t take much to boost your daily intake levels beyond the recommended daily value. Skip the dip and give your veins, arteries and heart a few more years on the job. 7. Rust Remover Oh, we meant cola. You can drink a cup of this black, bubbly sugar, or you can put it on a cloth and wipe away rust, clean up motor oil stains, loosen rusty bolts, and clean your car battery terminals, tile grout, and toilet bowl. Just don’t drink it!!! It’s so unhealthy, city governments worldwide are encouraging their citizens to choose other drinks every day of the year.