While Yuletide traditions such as sending greetings cards and gathering around to watch the TV have been falling in popularity in recent years, the Christmas dinner continues to go from strength to strength.
In fact, you could say it’s a case of winner, winner, Christmas dinner as last year a survey found that 94% of people in the UK who celebrate Christmas said they'd be tucking into the traditional meal on the 25th December.
When it comes to what’s on the plate, everyone has their favourites – and least favourites. From turkey and sprouts to carrots and potatoes, social media is awash with opinions and claims about your festive feast.
Sprouts
"Sprouts have more vitamin C than an orange"
It’s the veg that people either love or hate, and with a Statista survey suggesting that 52% of people in the UK eat sprouts on Christmas Day, it would appear that as a nation we are almost split down the middle when it comes to these little ‘mini cabbages’.
But if you’re in the loathing camp, it’s worth considering what you’re missing out on because an 80g serving of Brussels sprouts can contain more vitamin C than an orange!
Vitamin C is important to help protect our cells and keep them healthy, and it can also help to maintain healthy skin, blood vessels, bones and cartilage. In addition to vitamin C, sprouts are also rich in antioxidants, which are protective compounds that may help lower the risk of chronic disease.
As sprouts are a high-fibre food, for some people they may cause bloating and gas, particularly those with conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) or Crohn’s disease.
If you're concerned that you may have one of the conditions discussed, you should speak to a GP.
Turkey
"Turkey makes you tired"
It’s true that turkey contains a sleep-inducing natural substance called tryptophan that can help with sleep. This is an The building blocks that make up a protein molecule. that's believed to cause sleep and it also helps your body to create the sleep-inducing chemicals serotonin and A hormone that controls when we sleep and when we wake. in your brain.
For tryptophan to be effective it has to compete with other amino acids to cross the blood-brain barrier and research suggests that combining tryptophan-rich foods with carbohydrates give it an advantage. Think turkey with lashings of roast potatoes!
The NHS lists turkey as a high tryptophan food (others include chicken, cheese, eggs and milk) and recommend it to parents as a food that can help assist a child’s sleep.
However, more research is needed in this area and the amount of tryptophan in foods is still relatively small and may only have a modest effect on sleep.
Potatoes
"There are no nutrients in potatoes"
Forget Last Christmas and Food Aid, when it comes to Christmas number ones, the potato is top of the pots with 73% of people saying they enjoy having roast potatoes with their festive dinner.
It is true that potatoes don’t count towards your five portions of fruit and vegetables a day - this is because in the UK we mostly eat them as a starchy carb to replace foods like pasta or rice. But they are a good source of carbohydrate and also provide fibre, B vitamins and potassium.
Potatoes can also be beneficial for our gut as they contain ‘resistant starch’ that is resistant to digestion but can be broken down by gut bacteria, providing the bacteria with fuel to function and thrive.
Whether potatoes are a ‘healthy’ choice depends on how they're cooked. The Christmas dinner staples of roast and mashed are only healthy if prepared with a small amount of fat or oil and no added salt. Adding butter and salt, or roasting in goose fat, will make them a much less healthy option.
Carrots
"Carrots can help you see better in the dark"
There is some truth in this – as well as a surprising reason that it is so well known.
It’s true that carrots contain vitamin A and this is found within the compound Beta-Carotene (what makes carrots orange). Vitamin A, which is also known as retinol, is used by your body to help your vision in dim light as well as helping your immune system work properly.
If you develop night blindness due to a vitamin A deficiency, eating carrots would correct this and improve your night vision, but only to the point of an ordinary healthy person.
The idea that carrots might let you see in complete darkness comes from World War II propaganda when the British Air Ministry claimed that British pilots were eating lots of carrots to improve that night vision. This rumour was started in an attempt to stop enemy forces finding out that Britain was using radar to intercept bombers on night raids.
The propaganda was so effective that it not only fooled the enemy but also the British public - and an enduring myth was born!
Food for thought
Make sure you only consider nutrition and health advice from trusted sources and professionals.
If the advice given contrasts with what you’ve learnt in the past, it could be misinformation and should be taken with caution.
Don’t alter your eating habits unless you’ve carried out your research or spoken to a health professional.
If you're seeing lots of similar claims on your feed, you could be in your own echo chamber. In this case it's worth exploring alternative points of view and opinions in order to get the full picture. You could find videos from different creators or check the comments under a post to see whether others are disagreeing with the advice given.
Not sure if the news you’re seeing on social media is true or false? Can you always tell if the things you see online are real or fake? Learn how to get the other side of the story with our quizzes, videos and explainers.
