Stacey Karkkainen, APRN, CNP, a weight management specialist at Essentia Health, provided some holiday health advise ahead of Christmas weekend.

Karkkainen explained that salty food are a big thing that can lead people to hospital after a holiday meal.

“When we are going into holidays that always focused around foods, there’s going to be congestive heart failure because people tend to eat high sodium goods and that can lead up to some excess sodium and fluid building around the heart,” explained Karkkainen. “So, we can see some heart failure flares, which can lead to hospitalizations.”

She went to explain that people don’t need to deny themselves of their favorite meals, but that portion control should be kept in mind.

Concerning leftovers, Karkkainen recommended freezing food if its not going to be eaten right away.

She said that she would not recommend eating leftovers that have been left in the refrigerator more than 2 to 3 days.