Between finals, holiday shopping and family parties, college students often forget to tend to themselves by staying healthy and active during the winter months.

One of the most pressing problems posed to college students during the holiday season is healthy eating; for many, going home to mom's home-cooked meals results in binging on their favorite foods.

"A lot of people just eat what they want because it's the holiday season and people want to eat what they like," White Building facility coordinator Brandon Buhay said. "But instead of eating one big meal, it's better to space those meals out so that they don't overstuff themselves and then go to sleep."

A recent article in Glamour magazine offers better options when eating a big holiday meal, such as eating mashed potatoes -- with between 240 and 300 calories a cup -- instead of candied sweet potatoes, which can have up to 500 calories per cup. Turkey is also the better choice over ham, with skinless white meat having about 193 calories per 5-oz. serving, as opposed to the same portion of ham having about 340 calories.

While cold weather often discourages students from going to the gym, it shouldn't stop students from staying fit during the winter months, said Spring Cooper, of the Penn State Office of Health Promotion and Wellness, who also suggested that students explore different options.

"There are a lot of things health experts recommend for people to do indoors to stay fit," Cooper said. "Lifting hand weights, jumping rope and even jumping jacks for a few minutes a day keep you in shape and get your metabolism going."

Stephanie Zisa (freshman-secondary education) said she just wants to unwind during her free time.

"I mostly hang out over the break," Zisa said. "I just really try to relax whenever I can."

But students can relax while also staying active during the holiday season by participating in many holiday season activities. According to the American College of Sports Medicine, many activities the average person will do this season burns calories. Having a snowball fight with friends, dancing at a holiday party and removing snow with a snow blower can each burn about 321 calories an hour. Activities such as walking around the mall while holiday shopping or going ice skating with friends can also burn calories and help students stay in shape.

Buhay says the White Building is packed with students right after the holiday break.

"We see the most students in January, probably because of the New Year's resolutions that people make," Buhay said. "A lot of people are also motivated to get in shape before spring break."

Staying in shape and eating right isn't the only thing students should be aware of over the break. Cooper said students commonly catch the flu and upper respiratory infections during this time of year.

"We consistently stress to students that they should wash their hands consistently because it's really easy to spread germs," he said.

No matter how students spend their holiday season, Cooper says one thing is a must: Make healthy decisions.

"Students can still do the things they like and eat the foods they enjoy," he said. "It's all about balancing that in a healthy way."