The holiday season has arrived — the time of the year when nutrition guidelines tend to go out the door and unhealthy holiday sweets and fats sneak into our diets. Here are some tips to help you avoid these mistakes during the holidays.

“Plan ahead,” said Rose Martin, senior lecturer of food science and human nutrition. “It’s hard when you have a little bit of a lot of things. That can be too much.”

If you go in with a plan of what you want to eat, stick with that, Martin said. 

Martin also recommended that people to avoid foods that they can’t tell what was added to them.

“If I don’t know what is in them, I’m just not going to get them,” she said.

If it’s hard to tell, then just avoid them and eat something that is plain and the full ingredients are known, Martin said. 

Along with that, if something has one healthy ingredient, don’t just assume that it is good for you.

“Because [people] know that one ingredient is healthy, [people] think they can have as much of it as they want,” said Sally Barclay, registered dietitian at the Iowa State Nutrition Clinic for Employee Wellness. 

Some of these deceiving foods include pumpkin pie, vegetable pizza and fruit pizza. Try to eat these things in moderation, or just avoid them all together, Barclay said. 

At most holiday parties, crackers and dips are a huge part of the menu. They are simple to make and easy to serve to guests. The problem is that these dips are high in fat and are usually cream cheese- or sour cream-based, Barclay said.

“We encourage people to use the healthier versions with lower fat,” Barclay said. 

Holidays also are notorious for the desserts. Barclay said it’s important to eat these foods in moderation.

“Pick your favorite. You don’t have to try them all,” Barclay said. “Pick a couple and have a small serving, or pick your favorite one and savor and enjoy it.”

Another big part of holiday parties are alcoholic drinks and punches.

“[Drinks] don’t spread out in our stomach … and so you don’t get the sense of fullness you get when you eat solid food,” Barclay said. “So people don’t think to eat less when they are drinking more.”

Drinks also are loaded with calories and often sugar, Barclay said. She said to try to avoid drinking a lot of these. If you do decide to drink an alcoholic drink, try to use a diet soda or flavored water to mix the alcohol with.

“Realize that the food is just a part of it and there are other enjoyable parts of the holiday too,” Barclay said.

The holidays are about family and friends. Try and socialize with them away from the table. Then you can avoid temptations.