We all know how hard it is to stay healthy over the holidays. This year, be part of the solution – not the problem! Here are some gift ideas to help your family and friends be more, not less, healthy.
Choose Healthy Gifts
Typical food gifts encourage unhealthy eating during the holidays. Give a nutritious basket of fresh fruit or an edible fruit arrangement packed with vitamins and fiber instead of a tray of cookies or candy. You can also give a container of delicious mixed nuts and dried fruit. On the other hand, how about a collection of gourmet teas or flavored coffees? Coffee and tea are healthy gifts brimming with antioxidants and flavonoids.
You can find such healthy food gifts in stores or search for them online and have them directly sent. Many come in reusable containers that can serve as a reminder of your thoughtfulness for years to come.
Homemade Healthy Gifts
Another option is to prepare something yourself. Handmade food gifts, such as jars with ingredients for a pot of soup or fruit and nut bars, are thoughtful ideas during the holiday season. Another tip to remember is that if you give someone a mix that needs to add other ingredients to it, try to select recipes that feature commonly stocked pantry items. You want your present to be something your friends will use and enjoy, not something that causes stress because they need to make an extra trip to the grocery store. Alternatively, you can simply get a gift card to a health food store or a quality grocery store to encourage them to pick out what they like themselves.
Utilize Herbs and Spices
Encourage family and friends to cut down on salt by using herbs and spices to season food. Giving a spice rack or an assortment of spices as a holiday present is a great incentive. Black pepper, cumin, and coriander are among the herbs and spices that mimic the taste of salt but don’t contain sodium – good for those with high blood pressure. Sweet-tasting spices, like cinnamon and nutmeg, can reduce the need for sugar in foods while adding flavor.
Gifts That Encourage Better Nutrition
Other gifts besides food can promote nutritious eating. During the workweek, going out to lunch every day is expensive and can encourage unhealthy eating habits. Here is a healthy gift your friends and loved ones can take to work: a brand-new lunch tote or bento lunch box and thermos. Containers that hold only small portions of a variety of healthy foods can go a long way to encouraging healthier lunchtime eating at work. Bringing your lunch from home saves money and can help control fat, sugar, and salt.
Consider giving a portion control plate. This plate offers a fun way to control daily portions. Just fill the food sections as indicated: make half the plate fruits and vegetables, 1/4 of the plate whole grains, and the remaining 1/4 lean protein.
Share Your Favorite Recipes
Consider sharing your healthy recipes with those you love. Fill a pretty recipe box with your favorite heart-healthy home cooking classics — a personal holiday gift your friends will likely cherish for years. Not a cook? You can also give a healthy foods cookbook or a healthy cooking magazine subscription.
Encourage More Physical Activity
Physical activity, of course, is the other part of staying healthy. For kids, sports equipment can be a great gift. Even something small like a flying disc, boomerang, football, or soccer ball can provide hours of healthy and fun family activity.
Exercise clothing can make a great holiday gift. So can accessories, like a pedometer, which is an inexpensive device you clip to your waistband to measure how many steps you take per day. A good goal is 10,000 steps a day, which is approximately five miles. Buy one for yourself as well, so you, too, can stay fit during the holidays.
A watch with a heart rate monitor can be a wonderful gift for active people. It can help them exercise at a level that safely improves their fitness. For runners, a watch with a GPS (global positioning system) can help them track not only how far they’re running but also their average pace. Hikers might also appreciate a GPS device or other accessories, like a walking stick. A fitness tracker band would make another great gift, even for those who are not as active. They are handy for tracking steps, tracking sleep, and tracking heart rate.
Adding resistance training to an exercise regimen builds muscle strength and endurance. Exercise bands are inexpensive, portable, and easy to use. A stability ball is another healthy gift idea that can improve core strength, balance, and flexibility.
If you’re not sure what they’d like, consider giving a gift card to an outdoor or sports shop and let them pick something out themselves. For someone who’s not sure where to start, a gift certificate for an exercise session, such as Zumba, or a visit with a fitness trainer at a local fitness center might encourage them to get into the exercise habit.
Books and videos on health and fitness are also a good gift idea. These can outline a fitness program or help improve performance in a sport. Another idea is to give a subscription to a healthy living magazine. Whether cooking, fitness, or general health, monthly tips of good advice can help people stay on track all year round.
Stress Relievers
Chronic stress has been linked to high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, stroke, and other cardiovascular problems. So why not give something to help with relaxation? It could be soothing music, candles, or soaps. Also, consider a gift certificate for a massage or another soothing spa service. Laughter can also chase away stress, so consider a DVD comedy collection or tickets for a comedy club performance.
The arts can benefit both your mental and physical health. So how about some nice art supplies as a gift? Gather family and friends for a painting class. Be inspired by local artists who guide you step-by-step through a featured painting. At the end of the session…leave with your own masterpiece. A gift certificate for dance lessons can improve both mental and physical health.
Get Creative with Coupons
You don’t even have to spend any money to give a great gift, either. You can make up a coupon for a walk or run, a bike ride, or a workout together. Get creative and give a gift you know they will love and that will love them back.
Spending time with friends or loved ones could actually be the most priceless holiday gift you can give. Prepare a healthy holiday meal and deliver it during the hectic weeks before the holidays to give a friend a helping hand. These are gifts that will be remembered long into the New Year.
Written by Vicki Hayman, MS, University of Wyoming Extension Nutrition and Food Safety Educator