Naturally, I'm a big fan of healthy lifestyle gifts. What about giving a stress-melting 60-minute massage? A private lesson with a tennis or soccer coach? A soup-to-nuts subscription to Nutrition Action Newsletter? I've been recommending these old favorites for years. When it comes to living and giving a healthier lifestyle, it's out with the fruitcake, in with the fruit.

Since this holiday season may be a bit dimmer than others, it's especially important to shine a bright light on your holiday list and maybe even rethink your gift-giving policy. Never before has gross materialism seemed so gross, felt so uncomfortable. Why waste your hard-earned dollars on little Tyler's 23rd truck or Aunt Ethel's sixth scarf when you could be doing something really smart and useful with your money? Like saving it. Or insulating your house. Or buying your loved ones a goat.

I snuck that last one in just to get you thinking outside the gift box this December. Why bother with a box at all? At Heifer International (www.heifer.org) — one of many worthwhile not-for-profits deserving your consideration this year — you can change people's lives in the most wonderful way by buying them a goat, a cow or a flock of chicks. You send your $20, $50 or $100 or more to Heifer, and they send your list of loved ones an acknowledgement that your money is being donated in their honor. It is going to help end hunger and poverty one heifer, llama or water buffalo at a time. Heifer also funds worldwide training in self-reliance, and teaches families in need to raise healthy animals, grow nutritious food in sustainable ways, and to care for the earth as they care for themselves and their neighbors.

Doesn't that sound better than one more pair of mittens soon to be lost on the school bus?

"We have lived with nothing all our lives," says Kein Tien, a farmer from Vietnam whose life was changed by a Heifer-donated cow. "Our house was empty, but now full of hope. Because we have received the cow from Heifer, we will be able to send our children to school."

A mo-oo-ving story, for sure. And there are so many others out there, this time of year, on line and live, around the world and on the streets of your community.

So that's my number one gift-giving suggestion for this year: Go find a charity you really like and know for sure is legit, and donate to it in lieu of individual gifts. It could be Heifer . . . or it could be something more local — something that expresses your values, your interests, your need to make a difference in your neighborhood. A soup kitchen? A homeless shelter? An after-school sports and fitness program for kids at risk? (That's my hometown favorite. www.girlsinthegame.org. Shameless hustling for a very good cause.)

And the kicker is, giving is really good medicine. According to a number of solid studies in a terrific book with the tongue-numbing title of "Why Good Things Happen to Good People: The Exciting New Research that Proves the Link Between Doing Good and Living a Healthier, Happier Life" (by Bioethics professor Stephen Post and journalist Jill Niemark), giving to others produces "the helper's high." It boosts your own sense of control and self-esteem, pushes back against harmful negative emotions (anger, jealousy, hopelessness) and lowers the effects of stress.

STRESS?

Now we're talking. Donating definitely beats heavy drinking when it comes to handling the holiday heebie-jeebies. Have you taken a hit in the market? Lost your job? Or god forbid, been forced to give up your health club membership?

Know this: When you invest in a better life for someone who is struggling, your own struggle gets put in perspective. In the scheme of things, gratitude always trumps greed. That's why being thankful for what you do have is part of a healthy lifestyle and turning your back on others is so not.

EN/X ALERT: GENEROSITY BEGINS AT HOME

What holiday gift will enhance your own health and well-being?: a solid stationary bike you'll really ride, a month of classes at your favorite yoga studio or a juicer. Remember to whisper in Santa's ear yourself.

ENERGY EXPRESS-O! OPPORTUNITY FLOCKS

"Go hog-wild with the gift of pigs! ... The gift of rabbits quickly multiplies! . . . Bees make a honey of a holiday gift!" —Headlines from the Heifer International gift catalog

Marilynn Preston — fitness expert, personal trainer and speaker on healthy lifestyle issues — is the creator of Energy Express, the longest-running syndicated fitness column in the country. She welcomes reader questions, which can be sent to [email protected]. To find out more about Preston and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.