Optimum’s hot topic: “Chrishaps” are scientifically proven hazards – but we don’t have to be Scrooge to avoid them

By Richard Staines

Ebeneezer Scrooge, perhaps Charles Dickens’ most famous character, is thought of as one of literature’s greatest villains because of his hatred for Christmas. 

This most notorious of misers might have taken things a little too far, but maybe there is something we can learn from him as we approach the festive season and its perils. 

Google “health risks” and “office party” and several topics immediately jump on to the screen. 

Alcohol and drug misuse, slip, trip and fall hazards, food safety, transportation, misconduct, and sickness absences among those highlighted by the search engine. 

The U.S. National Center for Biotechnology Information has gone a step further and helpfully highlighted the hazards “scientifically associated” with Christmas in a literature review paper published last year. 

These “Chrishaps” pose a “minor public health threat” according to the paper, but the list is nevertheless instructive. 

In 1983 an 86 year-old woman was left with peritonitis after accidentally eating a plastic robin that was hidden inside a Christmas cake. 

An experimental study also raised awareness of the dangers of wearing a Santa Claus costume, such as spatio-temporal gait, balance, and reduced ground reaction. 

More worrying than unfortunate accidents is the increase in “bad” LDL cholesterol values identified in a 2019 paper. 

The “calorie overload” from eating Christmas Pudding was identified as long ago as 1946 – and it’s perhaps these observations that are most useful. 

Refusing to engage with Christmas is probably not the answer, but being selective about what we choose to do over the festive period certainly has its benefits. 

We don’t have to be a Scrooge and say “Bah Humbug” to everything this Christmas, but it’s scientifically proven that selective celebration can have health benefits.