-keep up your fitness routine!

2.  How Not to Get Sick

We are in the midst of cold and flu season.  Don't forget to wash your hands, cough or sneeze into your sleeve or a disposable tissue, and do what you can to keep your immune system strong.  In addition to trying to maintain a balanced diet, don't drink alcohol excessively, make sure you remain well hydrated, and try to get some rest.  Lack of sleep has been shown to increase your chance of getting a cold, so really try to sleep.   Read this for some helpful hints on how to sleep better.

3.  Cope with the Holiday Blues

The holidays mean different things to different people and are sometimes a combination of happy and sad at the same time.  Reasons for feeling blue in what is supposed to be a happy time include financial and other types of stress, a disruption in routine regarding rest, diet and exercise, and drinking more alcohol than usual.  Family tensions can also make get-togethers stressful.

What are the holiday blues?

Symptoms are similar to those of clinical depression, but are limited to the few weeks around the holidays in December, and usually resolve by the time New Year's Day has passed.  These symptoms can include:

-feeling sad or depressed

-losing interest in activities you normally enjoy

-feeling overwhelmed

-irritability

-fatigue

-sleep or appetite disturbances

-anxiety, feeling nervous, edgy

 -feeling guilty

How Can I Avoid Getting or Minimize the holiday Blues?

-try to keep up your sleep, eating and fitness routines as much as possible

-avoid excess alcohol

-prioritize your social commitments and decline invitations or limit time at social events, if you find them draining

-schedule downtime for yourself

- avoid caffeine, sugar, and processed foods.  Instead, eat these superfoods which can help combat "blues" or symptoms of depression:

-Eat your spinach! Leafy greens are high in magnesium, which can relieve anxiety and insomnia

-Grains: oats, quinoa, barley, brown rice, and other grains contain B vitamins, can balance mood swings

-Lentils and garbanzo beans: these contain tryptophan, which is necessary for the production of serotonin, a brain chemical important for mood control

-Drink your milk! Dairy products are a good source of vitamin D, of which a deficiency can cause depressed mood

-Fish is brain food: the omega-3 fatty acids in fish such as salmon, mackerel, sardines and tuna are important in neurological functioning

-Go bananas: these contain potassium, tryptophan, and B vitamins

-Dark chocolate- Yes- a treat! Dark chocolate is rich in antioxidants as well as potassium, magnesium, and vitamins D and E. Dark chocolate stimulates the secretion of endorphins, "feel good" brain hormones

4.  Don't Drink and Drive

While drinking alcohol might make someone the life of a party, leaving intoxicated and driving is an illegal and irresponsible act of danger. According to Mothers Against Drunk Driving, more than 1,000 people die every year from Thanksgiving to New Year's Day in car crashes related to drunk driving incidents.  In 2008, an estimated 11,773 people died in alcohol-impaired traffic crashes.

The solution is simple: don't drink, or designate a driver

And, to make sure you and your host are happy after those holiday parties...

5.  How To Remove Red Wine Stains

Before: 

Red wine on my friend's white upholstered dining chair!

After: 

gone!

Fancy gadgets? Expensive cleaners?

No!

Cool trick using basic household staples:

1.  Apply seltzer to the fresh stain, and then dab, do not rub, with a clean cloth or paper towel.  The bubbles bring the stain to the surface.  Rubbing as opposed to dabbing can disrupt the fabric's fibers and rub the stain in deeper.

2.  Sprinkle lots of table salt onto the stain.  This is absorbs the remaining wine.

3.  Vacuum off the salt when it dries.

4.  If the stain hasn't yet disappeared, apply a mixture of cold water, dish soap, and hydrogen peroxide into the stain, then let it dry.

This really works! Unfortunately, this is not the first time I have had to try this technique...

Happy, healthy holidays!

• Go Healthy, Not Hungry for Holiday Eating (nlm.nih.gov)