8 Helpful Tips for Celebrating Chinese New Year - 健康新一年

With all the festive foods around, how do we stay controlled and still be a healthy-eater? Here are 8 helpful tips (8 is always a lucky number and it's symbolize for wealth):
1. Look for healthy alternatives: replace some of the high fat and sugary (empty calorie) items from your "Tray of Togetherness" with some healthy snacks choices such as: rice crackers, dried fruits such as apricots, wolfberries, cranberries, dates, blueberries; UNSALTED nuts such as almonds, walnuts, etc., which will provide more fiber, calcium, DHA.

2. Portion Control: since dried fruits still are concentrated in sugar and all nuts and seeds are high in fat, for those who have high blood sugar and needs to control their weight, portion control is utmost important. For example, limit yourself to only one to two tablespoon of melon seeds or nuts a day.

3. Modify food preparations: when preparing the turnip cake, try to replace the traditional preserved meat and sausage with Chinese mushroom, dried scallops and dried baby shrimps to lower the saturated fat content. Try steaming the turnip cake instead of pan-frying. For "nian gow", use microwave to first warm it up and then use non-stick pan to panfry with just 1 teaspoon of oil. Baking is also a good option.

4. Compensation: when eating the sticky rice cakes and turnip cakes in between meals as snacks, try to reduce the portions of grains and oil in the next meal.

5. Go for high Fiber foods: use more high fiber ingredients in the meaty dishes. Ingredients like black fungus, different types of mushrooms, and vegetables. Always start with vegetables.

6. Avoid overeating: before a big festive meal, always drink enough water, and try to have a fruit before you go to avoid overeating at the meal.

7. Save some room: Always eat up to only 70% of fullness.

8. 100 kcal rule: If you're watching your weight, try not to exceed 100 kcal from snacks (candies, sweets, cookies, nuts, seeds, etc) a day.

Interested in learning about weight goal and nutrition needs?

Schedule a free body weight and fat% analysis with Hazel at 626-283-5128 or email to hazel@smarteater.net.

健康新一年
新年期間有不少精緻及傳統的節日美食吸引我們的食慾。要在中國新年時節的飲食上輕鬆過關就要稍作籌謀了。以下有8個小秘訣，助你能在新春期間也能維持健康：

選擇健康的小吃: 以低脂﹑低糖和低鹽的健康小吃代替高脂肪及高糖份(糖份只含熱量，並不含任何營養價值)，例如乾果、杏脯、無鹽堅果，如：杏仁，核桃等，這些小吃都含有較高纖維素、鈣質及DHA。

控制份量: 由於乾果含有糖份，而堅果類食物則含有脂肪，所以份量也需要控制，特別高血糖和控制體重的人。每天將乾果或堅果食物的份量控制於1-2 湯匙。

改良煮食方式: 減少食物中的脂肪含量，如於蘿蔔糕中加入冬菇、乾貝和蝦乾，以代替高脂肪的臘肉或臘腸;以蒸煮的方法代替煎或油炸。年糕則可先用微波爐或烤箱加熱，然後用1茶匙的油以不粘鍋煎熟，也可以用烤焗的方法。

拉上補下: 吃完年糕或蘿蔔糕後，主餐應減少攝入穀類和油類的份量。

多吃高纖維食物: 菜餚內多放蔬菜﹐用膳時多吃蔬菜。蔬菜纖維成份高﹐不但容易有飽足感﹐對大腸也有清掃的作用，如加入多種菇類和蔬菜。主餐應先吃蔬菜以增加飽肚感。

避免吃得太多: 七分飽應該是每一餐的標準。

不要吸收超過 100 卡路里 - 要減重的朋友要緊記每天小吃(糖果、甜品、堅果等)的攝取量不要超過 100 卡路里。

想學習如何制訂適合的營養減肥計劃嗎?請致電626-283-5128與吳希素註冊營養師預約免費體重分析及訂立減重目標，或電郵至hazel@smarteater.net