Make smart choices this Christmas! Poor choices may follow us for the rest of our lives and may cost us more than we had planned. Let's talk about choices that we will be forced to make over the next few weeks as we join in the goodwill and joy of the season.

Reproductive choices

Everyone at our maternity wards knows that August and September are 'crop months', meaning that more babies are born in these months than any other time of the year. Why? It is because more babies are conceived around Christmas time! Unfortunately, most of these pregnancies are unwanted and unplanned. Men have a vital role to play in managing their reproductive health by choosing whether they want to father babies at this time. At this time, you should definitely carry a condom in the back pocket or wallet since there will be more Christmas parties and late-night events.

Avoid sexually transmitted infections

Of course, you don't want to spend the New Year in a doctor's office because you're experiencing painful urination or a discharge from your penis! Remember HIV, gonorrhoea, chlamydia and syphillis will be doing the Christmas rounds. You won't be able to identify them by looking! So make sure you have sex only with your permanent partner and use a condom every time if you do not have one single partner. Remember to purchase your condoms now!

Limit alcohol consumption

During this festive season free liquor is more available. At this time, men engage in binge drinking because it is seen as a once-a-year event, but binge drinking is also deleterious to health. Raised blood pressure is one of the effects of this activity. Men, let's choose to remain sober and avoid unfortunate errors of judgement. Limit yourself to two drinks of beer or wine or 30 millilitres of rum.

Limit quantities of food

It is unfortunate that men are offered more food at Christmas than any other time. Their plates are piled high with fat (meat and gravy) and sugars (cake and sweet drinks). Men must be willing to say no to most of this gourmandising and choose to eat regular portions. If you wish to appear as a part of the season's festivities, pile your plates with raw vegetables and drink lots of water or coconut water.

Keep it simple

This time of the year, everything becomes more complicated. A simple trip across town takes an hour instead of the usual 20 minutes because of the traffic congestion. A quick stop at the local pharmacy becomes a 50-minute chore because of the longer queues. Reduce your stress by planning to make purchases earlier than usual or choosing to wait until the post-yuletide season. Make plans for lowering your stress and for relaxation.

Remember Christ, the reason for Christmas. Make healthier, planned choices to enjoy the happiest time of the year.

Dr Pauline Williams-Green is a family physician and president of the Caribbean College of Family Physicians. Email: yourhealth@gleanerjm.com.