Top 5 Tips for Healthy Winter Eating

The winter season can prompt us to change many aspects of our lifestyle, particularly our diet. For many people, food becomes a primary source of comfort and warmth, during a period when the thought of exercising and getting out of the house can be less appealing. These changes to our diet often result in winter weight gain and reduced immune functioning, meaning that our ability to fight winter illnesses may be reduced. Eating healthily during the winter months can have several benefits for your health and emotional wellbeing, particularly for your immune system.

1. Boost Your Immune System

Our top tip for healthy winter eating is to eat foods that help you boost your immune system. The immune system is a network of cells and proteins that work together to defend our body against infections such as bacteria and viruses. With a robust immune system, your body can better protect you from winter illnesses and speed up your recovery when you do come down with something.

Our immune system is also closely connected to our emotional wellbeing. When you are feeling stressed, it is not surprising that you might become unwell, for example with a cold or a cough. Many studies have shown that short- and long-term stress has a detrimental impact on our immune system. For example, research studies from the 1980s found that medical students immunity levels were decreased each year during their examination period. Studies have also shown that depression, social isolation and feelings of loneliness also weaken immunity.

2. Foods for a Positive Mood

You have probably heard about the benefits of healthy eating for your physical health. A healthy diet plays an essential role in our mental health too. When we are experiencing difficulties with our mental health such as anxiety or feeling depressed, it is common to experience a loss of appetite, skip meals, or find that you are eating more processed and takeaway foods, and reduced fresh fruit and vegetables. Research has found that people with mental health difficulties are deficient in essential nutrients, including essential vitamins, minerals and Omega-3 fatty acids.

People with an unhealthy diet have also shown to be at higher risk of experiencing depression and anxiety. Foods that are high in sugar and fat may increase your mood and energy initially, but over the long-term can lead you to feel fatigued, sluggish and lacking in energy.

Did you know around 70% of the immune system is found in the gut bacteria (otherwise known as the microbiome)? Our gut bacteria is influenced by the foods we eat. Therefore, eating well can help increase your immunity, reduce stress, and improve your mental wellbeing. Processed foods are high in unhealthy fats, sugar and refined carbohydrates, and have a particularly negative impact on the gut.

Current research suggests that plant-based foods and a high-fibre diet are key to healthy gut bacteria, which can boost your immune system and help promote your emotional wellbeing. Most people do not eat their recommended daily intake of fibre (i.e. 30g). The good news is that you can find fibre in a variety of different food sources including nuts, vegetables, seeds, fruits, vegetables, legumes, pulses, wholegrains or wholemeal carbohydrates including barley, rye, oats, bread. It is essential to drink adequate water so that these fibres can do their job correctly.

In addition to fibre, you should ensure your diet has a diverse range of prebiotic, probiotic, polyphenol and omega-3 rich foods. These are all associated with improved gut health. See our table below for some ideas for how you can add more of these foods into your diet and weekly shopping list:

3. Comfort Foods to Help your Mood and Keep you Warm

In the winter months, many of us find that we are exercising less and less exposed to sunlight that helps produce serotonin, and dopamine, which improve our mood. Therefore, during the colder months, we might turn to comfort foods to help us feel good and receive a dose of those same mood-boosting chemicals. Typical comfort foods include unhealthy processed foods such as packaged biscuits, chips, frozen pizza, and fast foods.

Comfort foods don’t necessarily need to be unhealthy. Swap out some of your go-to comfort foods for some of these healthier options that will keep you warm:

• Vegetable soup with a side of wholegrain bread
• Chicken noodle soup
• Vegetable curries or stir-fries (e.g. using cauliflower or sweet potato)
• A hot bowl of chilli
• Porridge for breakfast
• Salmon and brown rice
• Roasted vegetable salad
• Cottage pie with lots of vegetables, or try a vegetarian version!
• Vegetarian pasta bake
• Spaghetti bolognese packed with vegetables

Strategies for managing emotional eating

For some of us, food can be a primary coping strategy for managing stress and other challenging emotions. Unfortunately, this can lead to weight gain and can result in feelings of guilt, frustration, and over time may contribute to fatigue, low energy, irritable moods, and low self-esteem.

To overcome emotional eating, you need first to develop an awareness of the types of emotions and situations that tend to trigger your emotional eating. It might be helpful to keep a diary of conditions when this occurs. Are there any particular feelings that tend to trigger you to eat, e.g. Boredom? Loneliness? Anger? Anxiety? Stress? Sadness?

Secondly, it is crucial to start to recognise the difference between when you are experiencing physical versus emotional hunger. Some signs of emotional hunger include the sudden urge to eat instantly, craving specific foods, feeling unsatisfied despite your stomach being full, and experiencing feelings of guilt and shame after eating. Physical hunger is more gradual, less urgent, not specific to particular food cravings and the sense of hunger ends when you are full.

Ask yourself, am I hungry? When did I last eat? Do I need to eat? Develop other ways to help you cope with these difficult emotions until they pass. For example, find self-soothing activities (e.g. look at something beautiful, listen to soothing music, light a candle, drink a warm drink like tea, have a warm bath). Relaxation exercises, or use mindfulness to help accept and tolerate these feelings and focus on the present.

4. Mindful eating

Emotional eating is often automatic, and you might not even realise you are doing it. All of a sudden, you might find that you have finished a block of chocolate or a bag of chips without even realising you are doing it.

Mindful eating means paying attention to the present moment and your physical hunger cues while you are eating, eating slowly and without distraction, paying attention to each bite. Notice how your food tastes, smells and feels in your mouth. Be aware of physical hunger cues, only eat when you are hungry, and notice when you become full. Distinguish between feelings of emotional hunger and physical hunger. Notice any emotions or thoughts that come before and after eating. Sit with these feelings as they pass, and shift your attention to objects in your environment.

You may want to try practising guided mindfulness meditation (for example, this video from Headspace) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eY54f3dyhcI).

5. Plan Your Week

A busy schedule and an empty pantry are two of the main reasons that people opt for unhealthy takeaway meals at the last minute. Break this pattern by planning what you are going to eat in advance. Avoid the last minute, so you are not deciding what to eat at the end of a busy day. Planning can save you time, money, as well as helping to ensure you have a more healthy and balanced diet.

• Step 1: Research some recipes for healthy meal ideas
• Step 2: Decide what you are going to eat for each meal (breakfast, lunch and dinner) and snacks. Plan this out in a weekly calendar.
• Step 3: Write a shopping list and take it with you to the supermarket

Cooking meals in advance and freezing them may also help to ensure you always have a healthy meal option ready to go. Cooking extra food so that you have leftovers for lunch can also help make meal preparation a little easier!