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The many health benefits of regular exercise are well known. However, its impact on weight loss is less clear, as exercise increases appetite, potentially resulting in an increased calorie intake.

A new study appearing in the journal Metabolism presents a possible solution.

The research comes from the Scottish Universities Environmental Research Centre, the Universities of Glasgow and the West of Scotland, and Imperial College in London, all of which are in the United Kingdom.

It suggests that adding a certain appetite-suppressing supplement to moderate exercise increases the likelihood of weight loss, even without a change of diet.

The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council provided funding for this research.

A fascinating supplement

The study explored a supplement called inulin-propionate ester (IPE).

Propionate is a short-chain fatty acid produced in the digestion of dietary fiber by gut microbes. It is a natural and effective appetite suppressor.

Propionate breaks down quickly in the body, so to strengthen its effect, scientists have chemically bound it to inulin. This is a fiber common to garlic, Jerusalem artichoke, chicory, and onion. The result is IPE.

As corresponding study author Douglas Morrison notes, "There's a great deal of interest at the moment in how our gut microbiota affects our health and well-being."

The scientists' previous research established that the use of IPE as a dietary supplement increased the rate at which the body oxidizes, or burns, fat while at rest.

The research also found that IPE suppresses the urge to consume high calorie foods. As an example, those who the researchers offered all the pasta they could eat wound up eating 10% less than they usually would.

Their new study has revealed that IPE can enhance the weight loss effects of a moderate exercise program without requiring dietary changes.

As Morrison explains, "What we've been able to show for the first time is that this latter effect continues when exercise is added to regular IPE intake." The study did not examine the effectiveness of a weight loss diet plus exercises plus IPE.

The trial consisted of 20 women aged 25–45. Each had a body mass index (BMI) greater than 25. The trial lasted for 4 weeks.

The team divided the participants into two groups of 10. Both groups participated in moderate exercise programs.

One group received a supplement of IPE, and the other received a placebo supplement comprising cellulose. All participants maintained their normal eating patterns throughout the trial.

The researchers measured each person's resting fat oxidation levels both before and after the trial using blood and gas samples. They collected these before breakfast, after breakfast, and after lunch.

The participants who exercised while taking the placebo exhibited no change to their fat oxidation levels after the trials.

The group taking the IPE, however, showed a significant increase in the burning of fat at rest, even 7 hours after their most recent dose of IPE.

Limitations of the study

The new study was small and its duration brief, so its conclusions require additional verification.

Study co-author Dalia Malkova says, "While these initial results are promising, we should stress that there are limitations to this study, which was conducted with a small group over just [4] weeks."

"For example, we can't yet draw any conclusions about how the increased fat oxidation, combined with exercise, might affect participants' body composition and body mass."

The researchers are seeking funding for further trials of IPE, involving more people and for a longer period of time.

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On average, we are living longer lives; however, as people grow older, many live with diseases, such as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes. As lifespan extends, so does the risk of developing chronic illnesses.

Scientists have firmly established that lifestyle factors can make a significant difference to the risk of disease and length of life, overall. These factors include physical activity, smoking, alcohol consumption, diet, and weight.

The authors explain that "[s]tudies have shown that smoking, inactivity, poor diet quality, and heavy alcohol consumption contribute up to 60% of premature deaths and 7.4–17.9 years' loss in life expectancy."

Although this is well known, little research has examined how a combination of lifestyle factors impacts the length of time an individual will be disease-free.

To answer this question, a group of researchers took data from two sources; firstly, the Nurses' Health Study, which included information from 73,196 female nurses. Secondly, they gained access to data from the Health Professionals Follow-up Study, which included the data from 38,366 male health professionals. They published their findings in the BMJ.

Lifestyle and health over time

The scientists calculated a lifestyle score from 0–5 for each participant. They calculated this score by assessing five low risk lifestyle factors — healthy weight, never smoking, exercising for at least 30 minutes each day, moderate alcohol intake, and a good quality diet.

Researchers had followed the participants for many years and recorded diagnoses and deaths from cancer, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. As part of their analysis, the scientists accounted for a range of factors, including family medical history, age, and race.

The authors of the recent study found that women aged 50 who did not adopt any of the five low risk lifestyle factors could expect to live without cancer, diabetes, and heart disease for a further 24 years. However, those who followed four or five of these factors could expect an additional 34 disease-free years.

Men aged 50 who did not incorporate any of the low risk lifestyle factors into their lives could expect to live an extra 24 years free of chronic diseases. However, those whose lifestyle included four or five low risk factors had around 31 years of disease-free life.

Men who smoked more than 15 cigarettes each day, and anyone with obesity had the lowest amount of disease-free life expectancy after 50. The authors summarize:

"[W]e observed that adherence to a low risk lifestyle was associated with a longer life expectancy at age 50 free of major chronic diseases of approximately 7.6 years in men and 10 years in women compared with participants with no low risk lifestyle factors."

Improving survival

The scientists also found that men and women with four or five low risk lifestyle factors who received a diagnosis of cancer, cardiovascular disease, or type 2 diabetes lived longer than individuals with the same diagnoses who did not have any low risk factors. As the authors explain:

"A healthful lifestyle not only decreased the risk of incident cancer, cardiovascular disease, and type 2 diabetes but also improved the survival after diagnosis of those diseases."

The authors are quick to note that the study is observational, so it is not possible to conclude a causal relationship. Also, lifestyle factors were self-reported, which, as the authors write, means that "measurement errors are inevitable."

Even though the scientists controlled for a wide range of factors, there is always a possibility that unmeasured factors might account for the results.

However, the scientists had access to detailed information from each participant at multiple times over a substantial followup period; overall, they conclude:

"Public policies for improving food and the physical environment conducive to adopting a healthful diet and lifestyle, as well as relevant policies and regulations (for example, [the] smoking ban in public places or trans­ fat restrictions) are critical to improving life expectancy, especially life expectancy free of major chronic diseases."

According to a recent study, individuals with obesity who undergo weight loss surgery have a reduced risk of developing skin cancer, including melanoma.

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Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States.

Melanoma accounts for just 1% of skin cancer cases, but it causes the majority of deaths from this type of disease.

There are an estimated 96,480 new melanoma diagnoses each year in the United States, and according to the authors of a recent study, the rates of malignant melanoma are rising faster than those of any other cancer.

In the U.S. there were 8,650 deaths due to melanoma in 2009 — and despite improved treatments and better 5-year survival rates, there were around 10,130 deaths from this cause in 2016.

Although scientists have identified risk factors associated with melanoma, such as fair skin, family history, and sun exposure, it is not clear why incidence rates are rising.

Because obesity is a risk factor for certain cancers, some researchers have asked whether it might also raise melanoma risk. However, to date, studies have failed to find a clear-cut association.

Revisiting old data

A Swedish study from 2009 found that women with obesity who undergo bariatric surgery have a reduced risk of cancer. When the results were published, there was not enough data to assess whether weight loss surgery impacted skin cancer risk, specifically.

However, researchers have continued to follow the participants in the original study, now for an average of 18.1 years. A team recently revisited the dataset in an effort to "investigate the association between bariatric surgery and skin cancer, including melanoma."

In total, the new analysis included data from 2,007 individuals with obesity who underwent bariatric surgery and 2,040 matched control participants who had obesity but who only received conventional treatment, such as lifestyle advice, at their primary healthcare centers. The scientists recently published their findings in the journal JAMA Dermatology.

Individuals in the bariatric surgery group, at the 15-year follow-up, had lost an average of 47.6 pounds (21.6 kilograms). Those in the control group had remained at a relatively constant weight, with an average loss or gain that never exceeded 6.6 pounds (3 kilograms).

Overall, 23 individuals in the surgery group had developed malignant skin cancer — squamous cell carcinoma or malignant melanoma. In the control group, 45 individuals had developed this type of disease.

The researchers found that the largest difference between the two groups concerned malignant melanoma. In the control group, there were 29 cases of the disease, while in the surgery group, there were just 12 cases. This equates to a 57% reduction in malignant melanoma risk.

"This provides further evidence for a connection between obesity and malignant skin cancer and for the view that we should regard obesity as a risk factor for these forms of cancer."

First author Magdalena Taube, Ph.D.

Why does obesity increase risk?

Scientists will need to carry out more research to understand the mechanisms that underpin the relationship between obesity and skin cancer. However, the authors outline several factors that could be involved.

One theory concerns inflammation; they explain that "Obesity leads to chronic systemic inflammation, which could provide a permissive environment for tumor growth."

Lifestyle factors, such as changes to diet following surgery, might also help explain this link.

Similarly, obesity is associated with a sedentary lifestyle — itself linked with increased cancer incidence and mortality. Following bariatric surgery, individuals may increase their levels of physical activity, thereby reducing cancer risk.

The current study has a number of strengths, including the long follow-up duration and the use of matched controls. However, there are also certain limitations; for instance, the scientists did not use randomization.

In an ideal world, it is best to assign participants to the control or experimental groups randomly. For this study, it was not possible, primarily because when the study began in the 1980s, the mortality rate for weight loss surgery was relatively high, so randomization would have been unethical.

It is also worth noting that, although the melanoma rates between the two groups were significantly different, the overall number of cases was small — in total, there were just 41 cases of melanoma. Scientists will need to continue this line of investigation to gather more evidence. For now, the authors conclude:

"These findings suggest that melanoma incidence is significantly reduced in patients with obesity after bariatric surgery and may lead to a better understanding of melanoma and preventable risk factors."

Consuming caffeine may offset some unhealthful consequences of an obesity-inducing diet, according to a new study in rats.

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Scientists at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign fed rats a high-fat, high-sugar diet. They then gave some of the rodents caffeine extracted from mate tea and others decaffeinated mate tea.

The rats that consumed the caffeine extract gained 16% less weight and 22% less body fat than those that consumed decaffeinated mate.

The anti-obesity effects were similar among rats that consumed synthetic caffeine or caffeine extracted from coffee.

By studying the rats' cells, the scientists found that caffeine exerts some of its effects by altering the expression of certain genes.

They report their results in a recent Journal of Functional Foods study paper.

"Considering the findings," says corresponding study author Prof. Elvira Gonzalez de Mejia, Director of Nutritional Sciences at the university, "mate tea and caffeine can be considered anti-obesity agents."

Caffeine reduced body fat accumulation

The team fed six groups of rats a high-fat, high-sugar diet for 28 days. In addition, they supplemented the diet of five of the groups with one of the following: synthetic caffeine, mate tea containing caffeine, caffeine extracted from mate tea, caffeine extracted from coffee, and decaffeinated mate tea.

The amount of caffeine was equivalent to the amount that humans ingest from drinking 4 cups of coffee per day.

After 28 days, there was a marked difference in lean body mass among the six groups of rats. The rats that had consumed caffeine from any source had gained less body fat than their counterparts in the noncaffeine group.

There was a close link between the storage of lipids in fat cells, the gain in body weight, and the increase in body fat.

The findings add to increasing knowledge about the potential for mate tea to help combat obesity. This is in addition to other health benefits conferred by the vitamins, flavonoids, and phenolic compounds in the herbal tea.

Mate, or yerba mate, is a beverage made from the leaves of the tree Ilex paraguariensis St. Hilaire. It is a popular drink in South America, where consumption in countries such as Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay can reach 3–10 kilograms per capita.

The drink has become a popular alternative to black tea and coffee because of its reputation as protective against infection, obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular conditions.

A typical serving of mate contains between 65 and 130 milligrams (mg) of caffeine. A cup of brewed coffee, in contrast, can contain 30–300 mg of caffeine.

Caffeine altered gene expression

In addition to studying the effects of the various forms of caffeine in live rats, the researchers investigated the effects in cell cultures.

They exposed fat cells from mice to all three types of caffeine: synthetic, coffee extracted, and mate extracted.

These tests revealed that lipid buildup in fat cells decreased by 20–41%, regardless of the type of caffeine.

Examination of genes relevant to lipid metabolism and obesity also revealed that caffeine reduced the expression of certain genes.

Caffeine downregulated the expression of genes that code for fatty acid synthase (FASN), an enzyme that helps produce long-chain fatty acids, and lipoprotein lipase (LPL), an enzyme with a key role in breaking down triglycerides.

All three types of caffeine — synthetic, mate extracted, and coffee extracted — reduced the expression of both genes by a considerable amount.

The cell culture tests revealed that FASN expression decreased by 31–39% and LPL expression decreased by 51–69%.

In the rats, the consumption of caffeine extracted from mate reduced FASN expression in fat tissues by 39% and in their livers by 37%.

The researchers found that downregulation of FASN and two other genes in the rats' livers reduced the production of triglycerides and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol in those organs.

Need for affordable, accessible interventions

The imbalance between the intake and use of energy by the body triggers storage of excessive triglycerides in fat tissues.

The World Health Organization (WHO) defines overweight and obesity as "excessive fat accumulation that may impair health."

Obesity is a major health challenge worldwide. Once confined to higher-income nations, it is now also a growing health problem in middle- and low-income countries. At least 2.8 million deaths per year result from obesity and overweight.

Overweight and obesity are major risk factors for many chronic health conditions, including type 2 diabetes, fatty liver disease, and cardiometabolic diseases.

While various interventions — including lifestyle changes, drugs, and surgery —can help people with obesity lose weight, keeping it off remains a major challenge.

The pressing need for widely available and affordable strategies is encouraging scientists to search for solutions in plants and herbs.

"The results of this research could be scaled to humans to understand the roles of mate tea and caffeine as potential strategies to prevent overweight and obesity, as well as the subsequent metabolic disorders associated with these conditions."

Prof. Elvira Gonzalez de Mejia

As the incidence of diabetes continues to increase globally, the fight against this chronic condition continues. New research explains not only what triggers type 2 diabetes but also how to reverse the condition. The findings also shed light on what leads to remission after reversal for some people.

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Between 1980 and 2014, the number of people living with diabetes across the world increased from about 108 million to 422 million.

As many as 90% of these individuals have type 2 diabetes.

Pharmacological interventions have done little to stop what some have referred to as the diabetes pandemic.

Lifestyle interventions, however, may succeed where other approaches have failed.

A couple of years ago, Medical News Todayreported on the first results of a clinical trial, which showed that intensive weight loss programs could help people with type 2 diabetes achieve remission without taking any medication.

The trail was called the Diabetes Remission Clinical Trial (DiRECT), and one of its co-leaders was Prof. Roy Taylor from Newcastle University in the United Kingdom.

But how does this remission occur, and can it last in the long term? Why do some people achieve lasting remission while for others, the condition returns?

Prof. Taylor set out with his team to answer these questions, using data from the DiRECT trial and applying cutting-edge imaging and blood monitoring techniques.

The researchers published their findings in the journal Cell Metabolism.

Testing the 'twin cycle hypothesis'

The study aimed to test — and confirm — the so-called twin cycle hypothesis, which Prof. Taylor and team put forth more than a decade ago.

The theory proposed that type 2 diabetes results from the accumulation of fat in the liver, which induces insulin resistance and increases blood sugar production.

These effects, in turn, increase plasma insulin levels, precipitating "a self-reinforcing cycle" in which insulin stimulates fat production.

These increased levels of liver fat cause the lipids to overspill into several tissues, including the pancreas.

Beta-cells, which are responsible for creating insulin, are located in the pancreas. "Long-term exposure to saturated fatty acids is harmful to [beta]-cells," write the authors.

In the present study, the authors investigated the predictions of the twin cycle hypothesis 2 years into the DiRECT trial.

The researchers wanted to "describe the pathophysiologic processes underlying the recurrence of type 2 diabetes in the group that initially achieved remission but then relapsed back to diabetes."

To this end, the researchers quantified intra-organ and abdominal fat using cutting-edge MRI scans at 12 and 24 months. They looked at pancreatic and liver fat, specifically.

The analysis included measurements of glucose, HbA1c, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, and triglycerides. The team also analyzed fatty acids, insulin secretion, and beta-cell function.

When liver fat 'clogs up' the pancreas

The study revealed that the majority of the trial participants maintained remission over the 2 years but that this was only possible if liver triglycerides and fat in the pancreas remained low.

Specifically, almost 9 out of 10 participants who managed to lose 15 kilograms or more in the DiRECT trial reversed their condition.

After 2 years, more than one-third of these individuals had been free of diabetes and the need for diabetes medication for at least 24 months.

A small group, however, experienced relapse, which was associated with a return to high liver triglycerides and high intrapancreatic fat levels.

Prof. Taylor explains: "We saw that when a person accumulates too much fat, which should be stored under the skin, then it has to go elsewhere in the body. The amount that can be stored under the skin varies from person to person, indicating a 'personal fat threshold' above which fat can cause mischief."

"When fat cannot be safely stored under the skin, it is then stored inside the liver and overspills to the rest of the body, including the pancreas. This 'clogs up' the pancreas, switching off the genes [that] direct how insulin should effectively be produced, and this causes type 2 diabetes."

Prof. Roy Taylor

'Diet and persistence' can reverse diabetes

"This means we can now see type 2 diabetes as a simple condition where the individual has accumulated more fat than they can cope with," continues the author, stressing the hopeful implications of this finding.

"Importantly, this means that through diet and persistence, patients are able to lose the fat and potentially reverse their diabetes. The sooner this is done after diagnosis, the more likely it is that remission can be achieved."

"For the first time," conclude Prof. Taylor and team in their paper, "we are able to report the underlying physiologic changes during a full cycle of disease reversal and re-emergence."

In the U.K., the National Health Service (NHS) will roll out a program that will test the weight loss therapy in thousands of people living with type 2 diabetes.

Do we make New Year's resolutions just to ignore them? Are they merely promises doomed to fail? In this feature, we ask whether, statistically speaking, these resolutions work, and what increases the chances of success.

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New Year's resolutions are an ancient tradition that continues to this day.

The Babylonians started each year with pledges to pay debts and return borrowed items.

The Romans began their year by promising the two faced god, Janus, that they would behave better.

In modern societies, many people still promise to make changes as the new year dawns; this desire, in many cases, is fueled by the excesses of the holiday period.

Most commonly, it would seem, New Year's resolutions revolve around weight loss, quitting smoking, reducing drinking, and exercising more.

Although resolutions are popular, they are not always successful. In this article, we will dissect the evidence and answer the question: Should we bother making New Year's resolutions in 2020?

How effective are annual resolutions?

A study from 1989 tracked 200 people living in Pennsylvania as they attempted to make changes based on New Year's resolutions.

On average, the participants made 1.8 resolutions, most commonly, to stop smoking or lose weight. Less frequently, people pledged to improve relationships, and a surprisingly low 2.5% were hoping to control their drinking habits.

An impressive 77% managed to hold to their pledges for 1 week, but the success rate dropped to 19% over 2 years. Although that is a substantial drop out rate, it means that 1 in 5 of those participants achieved their goal.

Of the 77% successful resolvers, more than half slipped at least once, and, on average, people slipped 14 times across the 2 years.

A study in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology in 1988 followed the efforts of 153 New Year's resolvers who were determined to quit smoking.

At 1 month, 77% of participants had managed at least one 24-hour period of abstinence. Overall, though, the results seemed a little disappointing with the authors writing:

"Only 13% of the sample was abstinent at 1 year, and 19% reported abstinence at the 2-year follow-up."

Another study, appearing in PLOS ONE, took a more general look at behavior. The research team tracked the food shopping habits of 207 households from July 2010 to March 2011.

Unsurprisingly, the researchers found that, during the holiday period, expenditure increased by 15%. Three-quarters of this increase went on less healthful items.

Also, as expected, when January rolled around, the sale of healthful items shot up by 29.4%.

However, the sale of less healthful items did not drop in tandem with this health drive — people were buying more nutritious items, but still purchasing the same amount of unhealthful food.

Overall, the number of calories they purchased in the New Year was higher than during the holiday period. The authors conclude:

"Despite resolutions to eat more healthfully after New Year's, consumers may adjust to a new 'status quo' of increased less-health[ful] food purchasing during the holidays, and dubiously fulfill their New Year's resolutions by spending more on health[ful] foods."

The authors believe that the key to successful resolutions is to focus on replacing unhealthful items with healthful ones, rather than buying both.

That is sound advice, but not necessarily easy to implement.

Successes and failures of weight loss goals

In 2009, GlaxoSmithKline released Orlistat, which they hailed as "the first clinically proven over-the-counter weight loss aid" in Europe.

As part of their marketing push, the company also conducted an internet survey about weight loss that included questions about New Year's resolutions.

Although the survey was not meant to be a scientific study, it generated a substantial pool of data with 12,410 females from six European countries responding.

A group of researchers took advantage of this dataset and published an analysis in the journal Obesity Facts.

They found that around half of the women had made a weight loss New Year's resolution in the past 2 years.

As for success rates, they observed that women with a body mass index (BMI) of under 25, which health experts define as "normal," were successful 20% of the time.

However, of thos with a BMI of 30 or above — which doctors class as overweight or obese — only 9% reported some success.

In the overweight group, three-quarters of the female respondents said that their primary reason for failing to lose weight was that it took too long to see results. Around one-third of those who were obese or overweight stated that they were not successful due to a lack of confidence.

What increases the chances of succeeding?

In the Pennsylvania study we mention above, the scientists found no link between success rate and participants' sex or age; similarly, the type of resolution did not influence how likely they were to succeed.

The researchers contacted participants by telephone after 1 week, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, and 2 years.

During these interviews, the researchers also asked participants what techniques they used to help them keep their resolutions, and how often they implemented each one.

They found that the most successful resolvers were applying stimulus control at all five checkpoints.

Stimulus control is the act of keeping things around you that remind you why you chose the resolution.

For instance, someone who is quitting smoking might keep a picture of their young child nearby to remind them why they decided to stop.

At the 6-month and 2-year mark, successful resolvers were using self-liberation (or willpower), and reinforcement management — rewarding themselves for being successful.

Conversely, individuals who did not keep their resolutions most commonly employed self-blame and wishful thinking.

The study we highlighted above that followed the fates of 153 smokers also looked at factors that made quitting more likely. The authors explain:

"The use of multiple strategies for cessation was associated with abstinence at the 2-year follow-up. A strong motivation to quit was found to be important for both initial success and long-term maintenance."

Other studies that have investigated smoking cessation more generally have identified factors that increase the chance of quitting. These factors include staying away from smokey environments, abstaining from alcohol, stress management techniques, and will power.

Another paper took a different approach. Publishing their work in the Journal of Clinical Psychology, the authors set out to understand why some people succeeded where others failed.

To do this, they recruited two sets of participants: 159 New Year's resolvers and 123 people who were interested in solving a problem at a later date. The researchers followed the participants for 6 months and charted their successes and failures.

In agreement with other studies, the most common reasons for New Year's resolutions were losing weight, increasing exercise, and quitting smoking.

The authors found that the most successful resolvers used more willpower, stimulus control, reinforcement management, positive thinking, and avoidance strategies.

Conversely, those who were less successful tended to use more wishful thinking, blame and criticize themselves, and make light of the problem.

Ending on a high

Some of the results above might cast a shadow across ambitions to make a change in 2020, but they shouldn't.

The authors of the study above made some overarching conclusions that should boost the confidence of any New Year's resolver:

"Resolvers reported higher rates of success than nonresolvers; at 6 months, 46% of the resolvers were continuously successful compared to 4% of the nonresolvers."

So, although the cards might be stacked against anyone who plans to make a New Year's resolution, simply by making that resolution, you have boosted your odds of success.

According to this data, forming a New Year's resolution increases your chances of generating change more than 10-fold.

The authors write that, "[C]ontrary to widespread public opinion, a considerable proportion of New Year resolvers do, in fact, succeed, at least in the short run."

In conclusion, New Year's resolutions do not work for everyone. But, as the saying goes, "you've got to be in it to win it."

If you are considering making a resolution for 2020, according to the findings of these studies, the best approach is to keep things around you to remind you why you want to make those changes.

Also, reward yourself for successes, and stay motivated. Throw a healthful dose of willpower into the seasonal mix, and you are likely to succeed. Good luck!

It's Christmas Day, and you want to enjoy yourself — that's only natural. In this feature, we provide some quick tips that will allow you to have the fun you are hoping for without affecting your health too significantly.

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The holiday period is, commonly, a time of overindulgence. With almost infinite food at our fingertips, it can be difficult not to go overboard on the cheeseboard.

Studies have found that during the holiday season, people usually put on a little extra weight.

This finding is no surprise, but research has also shown that people typically don't shift that weight before the next holiday season rolls around.

In fact, some scientists believe that this seasonal weight gain might be one of the reasons why people tend to get heavier as they age. As one author explains:

"Since this gain is not reversed during the spring or summer months, the net 0.48 kilogram weight gain in the fall and winter probably contributes to the increase in body weight that frequently occurs during adulthood."

Of course, eating poorly is not the only seasonal hazard that we face. Below are a few simple tips to help you cruise through Christmas Day without denting your health (too much).

1. Christmas spirit

During the Christmas period, there is often more alcohol in the home than usual, which can increase the temptation to indulge. At this time of year, people also tend to socialize more, providing a spike in the number of opportunities to drink alcohol.

Although taking it easy can be challenging, moderation will make Christmas Day much more pleasant. Here are some quick alcohol-related tips:

• at parties, intersperse alcoholic drinks with soft drinks
• eat before you drink and avoid salty snacks as they make you thirsty
• refrain from starting to drink early in the day
• remember that you are not under any obligation to accept every single party invitation
• bear in mind that you do not need to stay until the bitter end of every event
• remember that it is not necessary to accept every offer of a free drink
• assign yourself as the designated driver and stick to soft drinks
• stay hydrated
• add more mixer to your glass so that your drink lasts longer
• try nonalcoholic beers
• choose drinks with lower levels of alcohol
• drink slowly
• avoid rounds and drink at your own pace

2. Do not remain seated

On Christmas Day, it can be tempting to stay sitting on the couch for the majority of your time, other than the hour or two that you spend sitting at the dining table. Many families gather around to watch seasonal movie marathons.

Of course, there is nothing wrong with indulging in some sofa time, but it will benefit your general sense of well-being if you also get up and move around now and again.

A quick walk in the park, a game of frisbee, or even some star jumps in the middle of the lounge will suffice.

If nothing else, a brief spate of activity will reduce the time available for consuming candy and roast potatoes.

3. Obligatory overeating

Christmas Day is, for many of us, the most gluttonous day of the year. Dinner is vast, and there is an accompanying array of biscuits, cheeses, chocolates, and snacks to choose from throughout the day. Of all the topics on this list, reducing food intake is perhaps the hardest at this time of year.

If you are tempted to go in for a second helping of dinner, force yourself to wait 20 minutes and then assess whether you truly need any more turkey or nut roast.

Once your meal has had time to reach your stomach, you might realize that you are not actually hungry and that the additional calories are not in your best interest.

4. Eat something healthful

As we have established, Christmas Day is bursting at the seams with sinful cuisine, but that doesn't mean that you can't opt for a little light relief.

Perhaps try to replace a few calorific snacks with a piece of fruit or two. Alongside the obvious benefits of taking in more vitamins and minerals, you might find that you will be fuller and, therefore, more unlikely to tuck into the less healthful options surrounding you.

When you are shopping for the holiday season, make sure to add some healthful food items to your list.

Some people find that starting Christmas Day with a large, healthful breakfast is helpful. It means that you are less inclined to begin snacking early and that you have had a good dose of nutrients before the onslaught begins.

5. Mind your mental well-being

There are numerous ways to look after your mental health during the holidays. In 2018, we dedicated an entire feature to tips on maintaining mental well-being during the holidays, and you can read that here.

Rather than repeating what we have already written, we will just provide one important tip: Consider doing something for someone else. Not everyone enjoys the holiday season, so a little bit of kindness might do wonders for someone else... and for you.

Being kind brings rewards to both the giver and the receiver. Some research has shown that altruism might boost self-esteem. Another study concluded that carrying out acts of kindness increased self-reported life satisfaction.

Although there are many ways to guard your mental well-being over the holiday season, being kind guards someone else's mental well-being, too.

6. Be careful!

Accidents do happen, and they often happen around the holidays. Alcohol and a hot stove do not mix. Then, there are batteries for children to swallow, Christmas trees that the cat can pull down, and sharp knives cutting through lumps of meat.

First and foremost, although candles are nice to look at, they are still an open flame. Avoid placing candles near your Christmas tree, even if it is plastic. In fact, limit your candle use wherever possible.

Make sure that toys are age appropriate and that children remain under supervision. According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, in 2013, U.S. hospital emergency departments provided treatment for about 256,700 toy-related injuries.

Turn off all of your lights before you turn in for the night. Santa always carries a torch, so he won't need your tree lights.

And, finally, although leftovers are a delicious treat, make sure that you refrigerate them as soon as possible and reheat them thoroughly before eating them.

People often view the holiday season as an open invitation to do whatever they please. Instead, this year, consider it an invitation to be good to your mental and physical health. From all of us at Medical News Today — Happy Christmas!