Food excesses during the holiday period should not be condemned, provided that temporary and appropriate corrective actions are promptly undertaken. To do this, we must mainly go back to following a varied and balanced diet and practicing physical activity. We can also further assist the process with the use of molecules deriving from foods useful for metabolism.
The holiday season is full of “food excesses” that start in early December (corporate dinners and school parties), reach their peak around Christmas (with friends and family) and “end the day in style ” with what’s left in the fridge until the Epiphany, when we return to our everyday life, feeling heavy and weighing a few extra pounds. This is not just an aesthetic matter: health is also compromised because of the abundant consumption of fats and sugars with a relative increase in cholesterol, blood sugar, fat mass and water retention. Last, but not least, is the concurrent lower consumption of healthy foods such as fruits, vegetables and sources of good carbohydrates which are rich in vitamins, fibers, antioxidants and purifying molecules. These behaviors tend to cause symptoms such as the feeling of bloating, tiredness, slow digestion, constipation, dark urine, heavy and tired legs, swollen ankles, typical of the overload of the excretory organs, delegated to the elimination of toxins (liver, kidneys, intestines, lymphatic system, skin and lungs). The accumulation of harmful substances overloads the liver, intestines and kidneys, thus slowing down the metabolism.
The new year usually involves many good intentions and often one of the first is to get back in shape after the Christmas feast. To do this, we must mainly go back to following a varied and balanced diet and practicing physical activity. We can also assist the recovery process of our body with the use of molecules deriving from foods useful for metabolism.
The first thing to do is to drink a lot of liquids, avoiding sugary drinks and alcohol and preferring water or herbal teas and infusions.
In addition to the “cleansing” of our body, we can work on the metabolism, understood as the speed with which the body “burns” the calories consumed by avoiding storing them as adipose tissue. Due to the sedentary lifestyle, an immense food intake and / or an alteration of the basal metabolic rate (minimum energy expenditure necessary for vital functions), the metabolism can be slowed down. This can cause an increase in fat mass. Some physical activity, and therefore the improvement in muscles tone, keeps the metabolism active since muscle is the tissue most capable of increasing its energy demands and consequently the calories burned, even when at rest. Together with the increase in motor activity and an adequate diet, the use of some ingredients capable of contributing to normal energy metabolism (such as biotin, niacin, thiamine, vitamin B2, vitamin B6, vitamin B12 and pantothenic acid) is recommended. Others contribute to normal macronutrient metabolism (such as chromium and zinc) and to lipid metabolism (such as choline).
In conclusion, our body is a “perfect machine” that needs to be taken care of. For everything to work well, we must make sure that every single component is in a position to function optimally. This can be done by introducing the best possible fuel into our “machine”, through the consumption of healthy food, and molecules that help it stay healthy.