It’s no secret that holiday traditions are very different worldwide, so, the European continent is no different. Besides the fact that not all of us celebrate Christmas on the same day, every single country celebrates its traditions and its cuisine along with the holiday.
While, for example, in Serbia and Bulgaria a round loaf of bread called “Česnica” is being broken among the family members and the Christmas fast ends with a freshly prepared pork, in Poland and Russia things are little different. There in honor of the twelve apostles for the Christmas dinner they serve twelve different dishes.
The Christmas dinner in France (réveillon) consists of turkey, oysters, lobster, snails, goose liver and fine French wine. In contrast, Scandinavians cook their wine (Glögg) adding almond and berries. The Portuguese, for example, serve goulash or dried cod with octopus and vegetables, and the feast ends with a portion of rice pudding or a sweet fried pastry “Sonho de Natal” (Christmas Dream). Another variation of the Christmas cuisine is found in Luxembourg, where you can find Blood sausages with mushed potatoes and apple sauce on the table.
When we think of Christmas, we do not usually think of Africa or Asia, but in some countries of previously mentioned continents, Christmas is recognized as an official holiday. In Egypt, Christmas is celebrated on January 7th with fish specialties “Zalabya” and “Bouri”. This can be explained because of the enormous influence of Western media, as it is the case in India, the Hindu country, where Christmas is called “Bada din”, which means “big day”, in which Santa Claus gives presents and the students have Christmas holiday. Although Christmas is not an official holiday in Japan, Santa Claus appears everywhere and Christmas Eve is celebrated as a day of love, a couple’s holiday, where you express your love by presenting a gift to the loved ones.
Whether it may be Germany, France, Russia or Australia, each country has its own traditions and customs. After all, we can say that Christmas is a celebration of love for all and that we always celebrate it with our loved ones. But because we sit at the dinner table with our loved ones, we do not hold back regarding food, so we often overfeed and overdrink, which can lead to quite a few health problems at the end.
Your digestive system requires more blood to digest the food that you’ve just consumed, which means less blood to transport oxygen and nutrient to other parts of the body, making us feel drowsy and dizzy. Any food intake increases your blood sugar, which releases excess insulin hormone and your body receives energy. However, if you eat more than your body needs, you will experience a short burst of energy, but it will be quickly followed by a fall. Since your body does not require all of this energy as a fuel, it begins to store it in the form of fat. In addition, if you consume alcohol, you will probably have trouble sleeping, and after waking up you will feel like you are starving because the pancreas has been active and overloaded, which can add up to a headache as a side effect.
The DOX expert team recommends that you regularly hydrate with mineral water and green tea during the holidays, which will trigger the detoxification process, in which case the body will be requiring more rest. So, plan your days to find time for celebrating and recovery. It is necessary to compensate for minerals and vitamins through dietary supplements or nutrient-rich foods (bananas, spinach, nuts, etc.).
No matter how, when and where you are celebrating Christmas and what traditions you belong to, we want to help you live a healthy and vibrant lifestyle. We wish you happy holidays!
2018