Ho ho ho, the Christmas season is upon us! I know this because Phoenix has been overrun by enormous tins of Quality Street.

We’re talking a wall-to-wall invasion of chocolate. It makes me sweat a little just walking past this national flirtation with diabetes.

I mean, I know it’s Christmas and it’s a treat … but unless serious complications like erectile dysfunction, kidney disease and amputation count as a “treat” too, I think we need to stop thinking of sugar as fun. Yikes, that sounds heavy-handed I know. Am I now on the naughty list? Help!

It’s practically impossible to escape the connection between sugar and fun though, isn’t it?

I fall into this trap too sometimes. Sweet things are delicious and make us feel good. Would you like to understand why? If so, let’s delve into the science.

When you eat, your taste buds send messages to your forebrain. One area there — the cerebral cortex — has different sections that process different tastes.

Once stimulated, the “sweet” area activates the reward system in our brain, basically making us feel warm and fuzzy. Your brain will ask if you want to do that again, and what’s our usual reply? Yes!

The problem is that it’s easy to over-activate the reward system. We experience loss of control and develop an increased tolerance, which means that it takes more and more sugar to achieve the same amount of pleasure.

The result? Sugar addiction, overconsumption and an overstimulated palate. Healthy food doesn’t taste good because relatively, compared with processed food, it’s bland.

When I teach our Nutrifit classes, we spend six weeks readjusting your palate. We do this by reducing exposure to processed food and introducing healthy food that uses a combination of amazing natural ingredients to satisfy your taste buds instead.

This Christmas salad is a great example of healthy eating that packs a punch when it comes to flavour.

It’s a superfood knockout, packed full of flavour and nutrient dense, too. Beetroot is the ultimate detox vegetable — it’s packed with iron, calcium, betaine, B vitamins and a variety of other antioxidants. Beets improve liver function largely by thinning the bile, allowing it to flow more freely.

Note that the dressing does contain a little maple syrup, but you can switch that out to apple juice long-term, or even replace the dressing altogether with a drizzle of olive oil and a squeeze of lemon.

It’s a much better way to use up those leftovers rather than continuing to stuff them in between white bread with lashings of mayo! Instead of the bread, try making these sweet potato wedges to enjoy on the side. The cinnamon brings out the natural sweetness and the rosemary adds an interesting twist. So simple, so delicious.

Christmas Salad (serves 4)

Ingredients:

• 8 cups of arugula

• 2 cups of shredded chicken, organic

• 4 small beets, roasted

• 1 apple, cut into matchsticks and dressed with a little lemon

• 4 scallions/salad onions

• 4tbs pumpkin seeds or Munchy Seeds Pumpkin Power (Supermart)

Dressing:

•2tbs extra virgin olive oil

• 1tbs maple syrup or 2tbs apple juice

• ½-1tbs raw apple cider vinegar

• 1 tsp mustard

• Sea salt and pepper to taste

Method: Toss shredded chicken, warm roasted beets, apple, scallions and arugula with dressing. Sprinkle with pumpkin seeds.

Roasted sweet potato wedges (serves 4)

Ingredients:

• 2 medium sweet potatoes cut into 1-inch wide wedges

• Light olive oil or refined coconut oil

• Sea salt and black pepper

• Approx ½tsp cinnamon

• Rosemary (optional but delicious)

Method: Preheat oven to 400°F. Toss wedges with a little olive oil and spices. Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour until tender.

• The advice given in this article is not intended to replace medical advice, but to complement it. Always consult your GP if you have any health concerns. Catherine Burns BA Hons, Dip ION is the managing director of Natural Ltd and a fully qualified nutritional therapist trained by the Institute for Optimum Nutrition in the UK. Please note that she is not a registered dietitian. For details, please go to www.natural.bm or call 236-7511. Join Catherine on Facebook: www.facebook.com/nutrifitandnaturalnutritionbermuda