As the holiday season gets into full swing, many are indulging in all kinds of tasty canapés, cakes and nibbles.
And while that's half the fun, Australian dietitian Susie Burrell has revealed some of the main offenders when it comes to to high calorie snacks.
'The party invites are arriving each day and the shops are filled with tempting treats,' said Susie.
'But if your goal is to keep as lean and healthy as possible during this time, here are the foods best avoided at this time of year to avoid the gradual kilo creep.'
MINCE PIES
Like Hot X Buns at Easter time, mince pies pop up everywhere at this time of year.
But according to Susie, the issue with mince pies is that they are packed full of saturated fat thanks to the thick pastry they are generally made with.
'They offer at last 200 calories and 10-12g of fat per pie,' she said.
'If you love a mince pie, try and limit the number you consume each week, look for minis where possible or better still make your own healthier version that are smaller in size with more fruit and less pastry.'
PASTRY BASED CANAPES
'Whenever you attend a function, chances are you will be offered a range of deep fried or pastry based canapes,' Susie said.
'The mini sausage rolls, pies, arancini balls and mini quiches - just two or three of these tasty morsels have as many calories as a small meal.
'For this reason try not to arrive at functions or parties hungry, and if you are tempted stick to a canape limit of just two or three per party and avoid all the deep fried varieties in favour of prawns, sushi or grilled chicken or lamb skewers.'
CHOCOLATE COATED NUTS
Although they are small, these tasty treats tend to keep us going back for more.
'It's so easy to grab a handful of these each time you walk past the container,' Susie said.
'Festive choc coated candy is easy to eat mindlessly, is rich and tasty and also gives you large serves of chocolate without you even realising it.
'With just 10 chocolate coated almonds offering almost 300 calories (a small meal), it is best to stick to individual chocolates you can count rather than random handfuls of choc covered nuts multiple times each day.'
SHORTBREAD
'Another festive favourite marketed heavily at this time of year is shortbread,' Susie said.
'It is the high butter content of good quality shortbread that packs in the calories and let’s be honest who can stop at a single biscuit once the packet is opened?
'With two shortbread fingers containing 200 calories and 11g of fat, try and limit the shortbread to once or twice a week, or enjoy a single packet when Christmas gets a lot closer rather than overdosing now.'
DIPS
Although dips are a party favourite, they may not be doing you any good.
'Since these are often made using a vegetable base we wrongly assume they're healthy,' Susie said.
'Most dips are 20-30 per cent fat made from cheese or sour cream bases and as such pack a mighty punch when it comes to our calorie intake.
'In addition we dip using chips or corn chips or high fat biscuits meaning a few crackers and dip can equate to more than 20g of fat and several hundred calories.
'For this reason unless the dips you are choosing are low fat avoiding them altogether is an easy way to take a few hundred calories out of your party food intake.'
Daily Mail