Pork kebabs and traditional Christmas pudding are two festive foods that diet expert Tim Spector would never allow to be served on this day.
The scientist, co-founder of the popular diet app ZOE, said he is generally more relaxed about healthy eating at Christmas compared to the rest of the year.
However, “pigs in blankets,” which are full of saturated fat, salt, and contain processed meat, are categorically off his menu.
"Even though it's Christmas, I wouldn't touch processed meat. Try a home-made goose if you want something meaty," he told The Telegraph.
Professor Spector, also an expert in genetic epidemiology at King's College London, has previously warned of clear evidence that processed meats are harmful to health.
These meats contain high levels of saturated fat, which can raise blood cholesterol levels, increasing the risk of heart disease.
The high salt content in processed meats like bacon and sausages can also contribute to dangerous increases in blood pressure if consumed frequently.
Processed meats are also a known risk factor for bowel cancer due to substances added during the preservation process, such as nitrates and nitrites, which react in the body by damaging cells.
According to Cancer Research UK, almost a sixth of the 44,000 annual cases of bowel cancer in Britain are caused by excessive consumption of ultra-processed meats.
Professor Spector has also shown that some sausages, “the 'pig' part of pigs in blankets,” contain emulsifiers — an industrial food ingredient used to improve texture and shelf life.
Emulsifiers in particular are suggested to cause intestinal problems such as irritable bowel syndrome and inflammatory bowel disease and have been linked to an increased risk of bowel cancer.
The traditional Christmas pudding is also not welcome in the Spector household.
Professor Spector said this festive dessert, along with other overly sweet options, contains too much sugar to make an exception, even for Christmas.
"I wouldn't serve overly sweet options like Christmas pudding or caramel pudding," he said, according to the outlet. GazetaExpress.
As an alternative, the expert recommended a homemade chocolate mousse that includes a combination of "dark chocolate, olive oil, maple syrup, and the juice from a jar of chickpeas."
He added that a rhubarb crumble "with a mixture of kefir and yogurt for the filling, instead of cream" is another option.
Christmas puddings are loaded with sugar, and some options on supermarket shelves contain almost 38g of sugar per portion, which is above the daily limit of 30g of sugar that the NHS recommends for British adults.
Excessive sugar consumption can lead to weight gain and obesity, which increases the risk of heart disease, some types of cancer and type 2 diabetes.
Professor Spector has previously described how sugar consumption can cause worrying spikes in blood sugar levels, increasing feelings of hunger throughout the day and causing you to eat more between meals. /Express newspaper/
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