Mrs Claus Appeals To The US To Have A Heart-Healthier Holiday

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Do you leave milk and cookies out for Santa? Officially I suppose my answer to this would be for many years yes. When my children were smaller my oldest son would put them out himself, wanting to be sure that Santa got the treats. Once he was older and didn’t believe anymore he stopped putting cookies out. And I took over. You see I usually wind up wrapping gifts on Christmas Eve until the wee hours. And of course I usually snack during that time. So while I didn’t put out an official plate of cookies for Santa like my son used to, I did make sure that cookies were available – for me. The whole rich and tasty cookie tradition is very sweet (pun intended) but not exactly the healthiest thing. And I’m not the only one that realizes that.
In a recently launched campaign, Mrs Claus appeals to us to have a heart-healthier holiday by being more selective about what we put out for Santa on Christmas Eve. Obviously she worries about Santa, because she loves him very much. So she wants to see him getting healthy too. And she cares about the citizens of the world also. Without us to carry on the tradition of Christmas would never be the same if you think about it. She will be working to make some healthy lifestyle changes at the North Pole, and also will be working to raise awareness for nutrition’s role in heart health.

For me, and many others people, Christmas is a favorite holiday. Which to me, makes it seem a bit ironic and sad that more cardiac deaths occur on Christmas Day than any other day of the year. Heart disease is currently the number one cause of death here in the US.  More than 25 percent of the U.S. population is living with heart disease, and the prevalence of heart attacks increases by 5 percent over the holiday season, according to researchers at The University of California, San Diego, and Tufts University School of Medicine. And as you can see from the infographic above (click to view full size), there are plenty more of stats about heart disease that we the people need to take to heart.
“It saddened Santa and me to learn that not only are 80 million Americans living with heart disease, but also that the number of heart attacks increases over the holidays,” said Mrs. Claus. “Santa and I want to set a better example when it comes to nutrition, so we’re making our grocery list and checking it twice to focus on heart healthy foods and dietary habits, and we’d like to invite families across the U.S. to join.”
The Claus’ journey is partly inspired by Oklahoma City’s commitment to losing 1 million collective pounds. After reading about the city’s continued health goals, Mrs. Claus took out a full-page advertisement in The Oklahoman to praise the city’s residents and share her plan to change the Claus family’s health habits. In hopes of paying the inspiration forward, Mrs. Claus made a rare public appearance via video message from the North Pole, encouraging families to swap out Santa’s oatmeal raisin cookies for, well, just raisins and chocolate chip cookies for dark chocolate. Mrs. Claus also created www.clausnutrition.com to house all of her nutrition tips and exclusive interviews with nutrition and health experts. The site will be updated throughout December to help Americans have a happy, healthy holiday season.
For more information, including additional facts about essential nutrients for heart health like omega-3s, beta-glucan and vitamins D, and E, visit Mrs. Claus’ trusted source, www.vitaminsinmotion.com.
You can learn more about the whole campaign in the slideshow below.

What do you put out for Santa on Christmas Eve?