Bloat-free holidays: what to eat to calm your gut

The festive season is meant to be a time of joy – not digestive discomfort. If tummy troubles are overshadowing your celebrations, you’re not alone. Indulgent dinners, including alcohol, caffeine, cheese, biscuits, chocolate, and sweets, can all start to take a toll.

67% of the UK population suffers from digestive issues, including acid reflux, diarrhoea, and indigestion, with 61% blaming the festive season for making these issues worse.¹

Cheese and biscuits are always a crowd pleaser, but did you know the high fat and lactose content can make cheese one of the worst triggers for IBS symptoms?²

Tips for calming your gut

Begin by focusing on soothing, easily digestible, and anti-inflammatory foods, as well as gut-friendly fermented foods. Foods to include are:³

Bone broth
Bananas
Kefir
Peppermint
Ginger
Oats
Rice
Asparagus
Leafy greens
Blueberries
Raspberries
Carrots

Intermittent fasting

Intermittent fasting can give your digestive system a much-needed rest, and it doesn’t have to be a long fast. You can start small by making your eating window 7am – 7pm, which means you’ll fast overnight for 12 hours. There are various benefits to fasting or time-restricted eating, including blood sugar balance, weight management, reduced inflammation, cell repair, brain health and gut microbiome balance.⁴

What to avoid

Foods to avoid or limit may vary from person to person. You may have personal ‘trigger’ foods, but the usual culprits are inflammatory foods such as:⁵

Alcohol
Dairy
Gluten
Caffeine
Fatty and fried foods
All processed foods and artificial sugars

Planning ahead

Have you heard of digestive enzymes? These are amylase, protease, and lipase. There’s a different enzyme for each food group. Along with pepsin (stomach acid) they are made naturally in your body to help digest and absorb your food optimally. However, when Christmas is in full swing, certain factors, such as stress and overindulgence, can deplete these all-important enzymes.

To improve the production of these enzymes naturally, certain foods can help get digestive juices flowing, such as; ginger, avocado, rocket, lemon, fermented foods like kefir and sauerkraut, and apple cider vinegar.⁶ These foods are ideal to have at least 30 minutes before a meal to help boost your enzymes and stomach acid ready to receive and digest your food more efficiently. This can help with bloating and other unwanted digestive symptoms.⁷

How to deflate

If you’re still struggling after a big meal, try some natural peppermint to ‘deflate’, drink plenty of water, reduce alcohol and try to get back to your normal routine. You could also try smoothies or juices to give your digestive system a rest from larger meals. Going for a walk in nature also helps de-stress and gets your bowels moving!

Take a look at some of our other brilliant holiday season articles on the Gut Health Express, and some recipes that you, your family and friends can enjoy during the holiday season!

Any questions? Contact one of our Nutritional Therapists via live chat, weekdays from 8am to 8pm.