Health and Wellbeing

Christmas Cuisine for the Festive Season
Get all your recommended dairy goodness this Christmas

As Christmas approaches, the National Dairy Council would like to remind you about the importance of a healthy balanced diet, including your recommended daily intake of dairy. This Health and Wellbeing page aims to provide you with tips to achieve such recommendations
throughout the festive season.

Naturally people tend to stray from their typical diet during the holidays. Below are tips on how to include nutrient-rich foods in your diet even at this time of the year:

Breakfast: Choose your favourite cereal with warm milk, perfect to set you up during these cold mornings. Or why not try porridge made with milk, even add a pinch of cinnamon to create a festive feeling.

Lunch-time: Refuel at lunch-time with a traditional cheese toastie - a nutritious and ideal option for busy shoppers. And enjoy a mid-afternoon break with a frothy cappuccino or milky hot chocolate.

Dinner: Try a selection of tasty vegetables with a milk-based sauce. Those with a sweet tooth, why not try a seasonal fruit salad with natural yogurt.

Warm hearts!
As readers of the Health and Wellbeing page, you may be familiar with the fact that research suggests that dairy foods
can actually contribute to heart health. A series of scientific studies suggest that milk drinking may be linked to a reduced risk of heart disease and stroke. Another series of studies report that the DASH diet may be effective in managing blood pressure. In short, the DASH diet endorses 2-3 portions of dairy (predominantly low-fat) per day, rich in fruit and vegetables, and a reduced fat content. Research also indicates that minerals present in dairy foods and milk peptides (short chain
amino acids) may play a beneficial role in blood pressure management.

An alternative present this Christmas
Often wonder what to get the neighbours or the children’s teacher at Christmas? Why not surprise them with a cheese
hamper. A hamper of delicious Irish cheeses is a great gift and something that will be appreciated by all cheeselovers
and food critics! Make sure to keep refrigerated.

A special treat for children!
Many children tend to over-indulge in December. Santa Claus can be very generous when it comes to filling stockings with delicious treats. However, it is important to incorporate dairy into your child’s diet as the nutrients in milk and milk products are essential for growth and development. So give your children the treat of good nutrition this Christmas by encouraging
children to eat 3 servings, and teenagers 5 servings, of dairy each day.

Squeeze dairy foods into these hectic festive days with:

Frothy cappuccino
Mug of hot chocolate
Mug of warm milk
Cheese toastie
Breakfast cereal with warm milk
Custard
Milk pudding
Cheese board with a selection of crackers
Festive vegetables served with milk/ cheese sauce

Did you know?

Promotion of dairy and other nutrient-rich foods may assist, at least to some extent, in correcting nutritional shortfalls in the Irish diet. Unfortunately, a recent survey revealed that Irish teenagers consumed more energy from ‘top shelf’ compared to the ‘dairy shelf’ of the food pyramid (11% v’s 15%).

NutriMyth of the month

Myth: Cooking destroys calcium in foods.
Truth: Heat has little impact on the calcium content of food, therefore, meals containing milk, cheese or yogurt retain their
calcium goodness and can help you meet the recommended daily intake of dairy foods.

 

Don't miss our January issue: ‘Kick start the New Year with healthy eating’