December is traditionally about eating, drinking and making merry; a time to let out the belt a notch or two. Or at least, it was.

For a growing group of health-conscious shoppers, Christmas is not about over-indulgence. They’re behind what retailers claim is a surge in requests for healthy hampers – festive food baskets containing the likes of quinoa, coconut oil, flaxseeds and grain-free cereals.

Take the eco-friendly Healthy Hamper from Primrose’s Kitchen which consists of a cardboard box filled with shredded paper containing a trio of raw nut butters (almond and hemp, almond and chia and five seed butters) plus two raw vegetable mueslis: carrot, apple and cinnamon and beetroot and ginger muesli, described as “perfect for a healthy Christmas morning”.

In a similar vein is the Retreat Café and Jax Coco’s gluten-free hamper, filled with homemade sundried tomato pesto and chia jam, organic honey, goji berries, herbal tea, coconut water and coconut oil.

If this isn’t tickling your tastebuds, maybe Whole Foods Market’s Healthy and Fit hamper (£90), containing magnesium flakes, hemp protein powder, vitamin C and a yoga mat, among other things, will be more to your liking? The company also sells raw and vegan hampers. Benjamin Woodgate, of Whole Foods Market, says: “Without a doubt, this is a growing trend.”

It’s all somewhat different to the bacchanalian hampers synonymous with the festive season for the last 300 years. Fortnum & Mason has sent its posh tuck boxes from London’s Piccadilly to the slopes of Everest, the battlefields of Iraq and the grassy lawns of Wimbledon.

Filled with candied fruits, decadent puddings, indulgent tipples, premium chocolates and rich pâtés and cheeses, food hampers have long been the ideal treat for any bon viveur. For many – including troops on the frontline – these boxes were Christmas in a wicker container. So why the change?

“Traditionally we’ve sold hampers filled with fine foods,” says Chinzalee Sonami, head grocery buyer and hamper creator at gourmet food chain Planet Organic. “Fine olive oils, balsamic vinegars, indulgent chocolates … But we have had a lot of clients request healthier, more nutritious hampers that are still fun.

“So this year we’ve expanded our range to cope with the demand. We’ve done gluten-free hampers for years and we will still be doing those, but we’ve also created a £65 Paleo friendly hamper [so named after the Paleolithic diet, whose followers eschew modern foodstuffs in favour of produce that was eaten by our ancestors thousands of years ago], which is grainless, dairy-free, free from processed sugars and free from legumes. It features our Paleo-nola cereal, special muffins, bars from the primal kitchen … that type of thing.

“Over the past couple of years, we’ve seen much more of a crossover between health and food. Eating well means being healthy and our hampers show you can still be indulgent while on a speciality diet.”

The brand has also created £125 raw Christmas boxes “for the ultimate raw foodist”, containing raw chocolate, raw bread made from broccoli, chia seeds, coconut oil, raw nuts, raw tahini and some jars of raw nut butters.

Nutritionist Ian Marber isn’t surprised by the rise in popularity of health-conscious food boxes. “The best way to maintain a healthy weight is to eat sensibly all year, whether it’s Christmas or not,” he says.

“Increasingly, people realise that this idea of feasting for a few days, then quick-fix dieting come January, doesn’t work in the long term.”