Staying Healthy Through the Holidays: Expert Tips from Nutritionist Pamela Nisevich Bede

The holiday season is a time for joy, connection… and let’s be honest, a whole lot of pie. From pecan to pumpkin to the classic apple pie, our plates tend to get fuller as the year winds down. On a recent Late Night Health interview, host Mark Allen sat down with Pamela Nisevich Bede — six-time author, marathoner, and nutrition expert with Abbott’s Lingo program — to talk about how to enjoy holiday favorites without derailing your health goals.  Pamela explains that while overindulging is common this time of year, you don’t have to choose between celebration and wellness. Turkey, for example, is a great source of lean protein, and many holiday dishes can be enjoyed guilt-free with just a little strategy. One of her most surprising tips? What you eat first matters. Starting your meal with vegetables, protein, and healthy fats can help stabilize your glucose before digging into carb-heavy favorites. Mood also plays a big role during holiday gatherings — especially when navigating family dynamics. Pamela notes that mood is closely tied to glucose stability. By keeping blood sugar steady, you’re better able to stay focused, energized, and emotionally balanced (even when Uncle Joe pushes your buttons).  A new tool making this easier is Lingo by Abbott, an over-the-counter continuous glucose monitor that helps you understand how foods affect your body in real time. No prescription needed. With Lingo, she says, people can “take the guesswork out of wellness” and see what actually works for their unique metabolism.   And yes — you can still enjoy dessert. Pamela recommends taking a 10–20 minute walk after that slice of pie. Your muscles will use the incoming glucose for fuel, helping keep your energy up instead of sending you straight to the couch for an after-dinner nap.   
To learn more, visit HelloLingo.com. #HolidayHealth #HealthyHolidays #NutritionTips #GlucoseHealth #LingoByAbbott #WellnessJourney #HolidayEating #LateNightHealth 

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/late-night-health-radio--2804369/support.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:05):
This is a special edition of Late Night Health. I'm
Mark Gallant. Holidays are just around the corner, and of
course that means pecan pie, pumpkin pie, apple pie, which
is my favorite, and lots and lots of other not
so healthy things. Our guest is Pamela Nissivich be Jesus

(00:26):
sixth time author, has completed more than thirty marathons that
makes me speechless, and is a nutrition expert with Abbott's
Lingo Business. Pamela, welcome to Late Night Help.

Speaker 2 (00:41):
Hi, thank you for having me our.

Speaker 1 (00:43):
Pleasure real quick. Do people overeat at this time of year?

Speaker 2 (00:52):
Yes? They do, right. We look forward to the holidays
all year long, so it's sometimes it's hard to resist
some of those familiar favorites. But luckily there are actually
ways that you can incorporate a lot of those healthy well,
you know, your familiar favorites, but do it in a
healthy way.

Speaker 1 (01:07):
Well, but turkey itself is okay, right.

Speaker 2 (01:12):
The turkey is a great source of protein. So there's
there's different foods on our holiday table that move us
towards our health and wellness goals and some that while
you might think they're moving you away towards it you
can actually eat them in a way that works for
you your energy levels, your glucose, and your health. You just
have to strategize a little bit.

Speaker 1 (01:32):
What about mood, because you know Uncle Uncle Joe is
always pushing my buttons and Aunt Jane is pushing Uncle
uncle Joe's buttons. Is there a way to keep the
mood happy? Yes?

Speaker 2 (01:49):
Actually, you know what's interesting is we have we have
data on how mood responds to carbride rates, how mood
responds to glucose, and here's here's how it happened. Right,
So throughout the holidays, throughout the year, we have just
shifts in our healthy habits. Right, So maybe we're eating later,
we're moving less, we're dealing with Uncle Joe at the

(02:13):
Thanksgiving table, right, But if we can keep our glucose steadier,
we can keep our mood a bit steadier. Right, we
can keep our focus a bit steadier. It's just better
understanding how to do that in a way that works
for our lifestyle, in a way that works for our
own personal health. So yes, you can absolutely eat in
a way that keeps your mood in a better place.

Speaker 1 (02:36):
As a nutrition is, do you work with people on
these kinds of things all the time. During holidays, do
we have to.

Speaker 3 (02:49):
Be more more involved with what we're eating than, say,
you know, in non holiday times.

Speaker 2 (03:00):
I think sometimes the holidays challenge us a little bit
more foods that we look forward to. Our schedule is disruptive, right,
We have probably more access to a lot of foods
and treats than we might through other times of the year.
But a lot of the strategies that we can use
at holiday time work throughout the year. For example, our glucose,

(03:23):
which is one of the main energy sources in our body,
it fluctuates throughout the day, it fluctuates throughout the year, right,
and it fluctuates usually in response to our food, our exercise,
our stress, and much more. But having this, like having
a tight hold on your glucose, understanding how your body
reacts or responds to different foods can really help across

(03:47):
the holidays across the year, so you can make changes
so that you know, no one wants to overhaul their
holiday plate. Right. The think about the foods that you
look forward to on Thanksgiving, Right, you're not going to
walk away from those foods. But what if I told
you that what you ate first mattered. If you add
in vegetables, protein fat before your carbohydrates, before your sweets,

(04:13):
you can kind of have this approach of have your
cake and eat it too, but still stay more metabolically healthy.

Speaker 1 (04:20):
But I can't resist that apple pie or the pecan pie.
There's a new tool that you're talking about. It's a
it's technology, and it's I believe it's called Lingo from Abbot. Right.

Speaker 2 (04:37):
So, Lingo by Abbot is a over the counter continuous
glucose monitor, so you don't need a prescription to kind
of peek behind the curtain and understand what's happening with
your glucose minute by minute. So Lingo is designed to
help you take the guesswork out of wellness and show
you what works for you. And it's all about making

(04:57):
better choices and habits. Example, you love that apple pie
or that pumpkin pie of the pecan pie too. If
you have it and then you go for a walk,
say ten to twenty minutes after that meal, what happens
is your glucose is going to be sent to your
working muscles. Your muscles love using glucose for fuel. Right,

(05:18):
So you've enjoyed your pie, you go for a walk
rather than falling asleep on the couch, and that keeps
you steadier, It keeps your energy in a better spot,
it keeps your glucose within a healthy range. Right, So
it's just knowing how you're responding to the apple pie,
how you're responding to movement that actually moves you in
the right direction.

Speaker 1 (05:38):
That's a great idea. And of course then the older
guys won't unzip their pants and unbutton them and as
they fall asleep on the couch. If you want information,
go to Hellolingo dot com. That's Hello l Igo dot com, Pam,
thank you very much for spending some time. I know
you're busy. We'll let you go.

Speaker 2 (05:59):
Thank you very much, Mark, and have a great holiday
season you too.

Speaker 1 (06:03):
I'm Mark Allen and this is late night Hel