For many women, the holidays are a time for spending time with loved ones at parties and celebrations. Traditional holiday foods usually play a large role in these gatherings and many of these special dishes are only served once a year. However, although these foods are delicious, they can also be very fattening and lead to holiday weight gain. Women shouldn’t be expected to avoid these tasty treats completely, but understanding which foods are the worst of the worst can help you make smart choices at your next holiday party.

First, eggnog is a traditional drink that is usually served warm and may include alcohol such as rum or whiskey. Unfortunately this sweet and creamy beverage is also loaded with an average of 12 grams of fat and 530 calories per class. A healthier option would be a mug of hot chocolate. Next, desserts can certainly be hard to resist, but try your best to avoid the pecan pie because it has over 500 calories in each slice. Carrot cake is another bad choice with a misleading name. This dessert actually has a whopping 650 calories per slice. A healthier dessert option is pumpkin pie.

As for appetizers, a cheese ball may sound like a great option, especially when it is covered with nuts, but each small serving actually has up to 400 calories. This number doesn’t even include the buttery crackers served with the cheese. Finally, the favorite comfort food of macaroni and cheese is another fattening choice with over 400 calories in just one serving. This high calorie count is due to the heavy whole milk and fattening cheese.

If you simply can’t resist the temptation of these holiday dishes, keep your portion sizes small and don’t go back for seconds. By making these smart food choices, you can avoid holiday weight gain.