6 tips for a healthy Thanksgiving: The week in Well+Being

An intense workout on Thanksgiving morning may make it easier to skip a second helping of stuffing or pie. Findings from recent research show that strenuous exercise dulls hunger, at least for a few hours. If you want to avoid overindulging on Thanksgiving, think about a morning workout or even running a Thanksgiving Day race, often called a “turkey trot.” Read more.

Giving thanks is good for the person giving it as well as the one receiving it. So why don’t we express gratitude more often? Research suggests that many people don’t realize how much a simple gesture of thanks can mean.In one 2018 study published in Psychological Science, over 300 participants were asked to write a letter of gratitude to someone who positively impacted them — their parents, friends, coachesor teachers from long ago. The letter writers consistently underestimated how much the recipients appreciated being appreciated. Read more.

You’re having seconds? How’s school going? What are your college plans? When are you two going to give me a grandchild? The list of things not to talk about at Thanksgiving table is a long one. Here’s our guide for what not to say and how you can be prepared to change the subject when someone needs rescuing. Read more.

On Thanksgiving and every day, it’s good to start with fiber-rich vegetables. Studies show that starting meals with these instead of high-glycemic carbs that spike blood sugar levels tends to slow down the digestive process. It reduces the speed at which food leaves your stomach and enters your small intestine, a process known as gastric emptying, which makes you feel fuller longer. Read more.

One theory for why we crave sweets, even when we’re full, is called sensory specific satiety. It’s why we can stuff ourselves with turkey and mashed potatoes and gravy but suddenly feel hungry when the pumpkin pie arrives. Read more.

Grief doesn’t take a holiday. Our columnist Steven Petrow writes about the series of “firsts” that happen when a loved one dies, including a first Thanksgiving without his sister Julie. Read more.

Why does kale upset my stomach?

Kale is a rock star, nutrient-dense food containing magnesium, calcium, potassium and vitamins A, C and K, to name a few. But it’s not for everybody. Raw kale can wreak havoc on our guts. And people on certain blood thinners need to avoid eating too much kale.

To learn more, read our latest Ask a Doctor column. Our columnist is Trisha S. Pasricha, a physician at Massachusetts General Hospital and an instructor in medicine at Harvard Medical School. And she’s ready to answer your questions! Use our Ask a Doctor form to submit a question, and we may answer it in a future column.

Find your joy snack!

Happy Thanksgiving from the Well+Being team. Here are a few things that brought us joy this week.