10 Reasonable Reasons to Clean Your Plate

If you approach mealtime more like an audit or than a pleasant interlude, calculating calories and ferreting out the good and bad fats this holiday might be the perfect time to take a vacation from your nutritional bean counting.

Denying yourself favorite foods, especially during the often emotionally charged celebrations of Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, and Christmas, almost, always comes back to bite you in the thigh (among other places). Deny yourself now, and you'll probably end up overeating later.

Besides, holiday foods aren't the villains some make them out to be. The standard menu of Turkey, vegetables, cranberries and even pecan pie provides a generous amount of phytochemicals, an impressive lineup of vitamins and minerals, and a rich supply of fiber.

Your caloric intake may be higher than normal but the typical thanksgiving meal can contain more than half the recommended 20 to 25 grams of roughage a day.

You have holiday food maybe once, twice or perhaps a few more days during the course of the year. If, that is all people are off their nutritional game, it won't make a huge overall difference in their health.

It can make a considerable difference in there, however, in their holiday cheer. We know that every human needs to celebrate, and food is a huge part of it.

The holiday raises the bar of everyone's expectations. Most people think that everyone else is having a fantastic time. So it's important to find ways to make those days happy for you too. Denial doesn't work, at some point you find yourself at the end of the indulgence scale, only to wind up back in the middle. Go right to middle this holiday and you'll be a happier person for it.

Eat, drink and be healthy. Here is how:

1. GO FOR NUTS. Almonds are rich source of heart healthy monounsaturated fats, which help lower blood cholesterol levels; Riboflavin, magnesium and vitamin E.A quarter cup also provides 4 grams of fiber. Walnuts are a storehouse of linolenic acid (a good fat).
2. TALK ABOUT TURKEY. Got protein? Three ounces of lean white or dark meat contains 26 grams of it. Turkey's also a good source of the vitamins Niacin, B-6 and B-12; per bite, it packs more tryptophan than any other protein. This chemical helps produce serotonin, the feel-good neurotransmitter.
3. SCOOP UP OYSTER STUFFING. An ounce of the shellfish (About four cooked oyster) contains a whopping 400 percent of the daily allowances for vitamin B-12 and Zinc, in addition to 23 percent of the iron you need each day.
4. DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH. Red wine is especially rich in a trio of antioxidants, resveratrol, quercetin and catechins all of which benefit your heart and cholesterol, reducing the bad kind, and increasing the good.
5. CRANTASTIC. A half-cup of berries provides one and 1 and 1-quarter grams of fiber and a healthy dose of proanthocyanidins that helps prevent tract infections. Choose whole cranberry sauce instead of jellied.
6. GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE DECONSTRUCTED. Beans have 2 grams of fiber per half cup, along with folic acid and vitamin c. Tip: Steam or microwave beans to retain more vitamins. The creamy casserole's milk content provides 85 milligrams of calcium per serving.
7. SWEET ON POTATOES. Even beneath a cloud of marshmallows and brown sugar, a medium sized tuber of delivers 3.5 grams of fiber (2 grams of which are insoluble) 300 percent of the daily allowance of vitamin A, and 40 percent of that for C.
8. POWER SPROUTS. You get 3.5 grams of fiber in half a cup of Brussels sprouts and 64 percent of your daily allowance for vitamin C. These little cabbages are also rich in antioxidant and glucosinolates, which reduce the risks of cancer and heart disease.
9. DON'T SKIP DESSERT. A slice of pumpkin pie provides half your daily requirement of Vitamin A and 3 to 5 grams of fiber. A slice of pecan pie delivers heart-healthy fat, 3 grams of fiber and 20 percent of your day's selenium.
10. DIP SHRIMP. Three ounces of the shellfish (About nine or 10 cooked shrimp) provides less than a gram of fat and 12 grams of protein. Enjoy with cocktail sauce of horseradish and ketchup to get a healthy dose of the antioxidant lycopene.