No. 1 Give a smile : A cheerful look brings joy to the heart – Proverbs 15:30

Some people might say that Christmas is the most unhealthy time of the year, and not just because because of all those Christmas parties and Grandma’s fat-saturated shortbread and Christmas cake.

There’s the frantic spending, exhausting socialising, crazy traffic and the frequently fraught family negotiations over just where and how to spend Christmas day. Yes, Christmas can be downright dreadful – exceedingly lonely or excessively stressful. But it doesn’t have to be.

It’s easy to forget that Christmas is all about celebrating the greatest gift the world has ever received: God’s gift of his son Jesus to anyone who wants to accept it. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world but to save the world through him. John 3:17

So on this theme of giving , I’m doing 12 healthy Christmas tips – spread out from now until Christmas.  They cover not just healthy food and exercise but also ideas for emotional, social and spiritual health. I would love to hear if you try any, or if you have any healthy giving tips you would like to share.

Fish has been known as brain food for decades, if not longer. Now we have the science to prove it. The WHO and FAO jointly recommend that pregnant and nursing mothers eat seafood twice a week to optimise brain and nerve development in the growing fetus and infant.

For toddlers and older kids it’s all about creating healthy habits. Whatever food kids learn to enjoy will be the food they most likely choose once they leave home. Teach your kids to love seafood. Don’t give up at the first screwed up nose. Set an example. Make it a habit. How about making Friday ‘Fish Day’?

Thank goodness – Australian bananas are finally affordable again! Today I bought a bunch for the same price as what just one cost a few months ago. I dumped them in the fruit bowl and with great nutritional joy told my family: “Eat as many as you want!”

To celebrate I whipped up a banana berry smoothie – perfect for a filling snack on a hot Sunday afternoon.

• 1 banana
• 1 cup frozen berries (the more you use, the thicker the drink)
• 2 cups reduced fat milk
• 3 generous tablespoons plain yoghurt (I use Jalna biodynamic organic)
• 1-2 tablespoons honey
• Optional: 2 tablespoons chia seed (for some ALA omega-3′s)

Blend in electric blender and enjoy! The finished article is pictured above.

How long will you lie there you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber…and poverty will come on you like a bandit. Proverbs 6:9-11

Most cultures have wise sayings about the negative result of being lazy or sleeping too much. But in today’s culture we seem to have the opposite problem – not enough sleep. Stress, computers, television, long work hours and burning the candle at both ends are just some of the habits that steal our sleep – and it’s making us fat.

Sleep is not optional, it’s essential to good health. While we sleep our body releases substances that fight infection, build and repair muscle, control appetite, consolidate memory (remember this if you are studying) and promote maturation in teenagers.

Lack of sleep makes our body work differently. It reduces insulin sensitivity and alters two key hormones: leptin and ghrelin. Leptin reduces hunger so it’s good to have plenty around. But lack of sleep, especially when combined with stress, drops those appetite suppressing leptin levels.