Holidays planned? Or staying in the UK? Whatever your plans may be, it will be good to maintain a healthy gut as you wouldn’t want the likes of diarrhoea, constipation, heartburn or bloating ruining your holiday! A few lifestyle tips to consider so you can enjoy and relax during your time off!

  • Top up on fibre intake – try to eat more high-fibre cereals or dried fruits, which can help digestion and reduce constipation. For a healthy bowel, you need a variety of fibre such as wholemeal bread, brown rice, fruit and veg, beans and oats.
  • Stay hydrated – drink plenty of fluids, especially water. It encourages the passage of waste through your digestive system and helps soften stools. Fibre acts like a sponge, absorbing water, and without fluid the fibre can’t do its job, causing constipation.
  • Reduce fat intake – fatty foods, such as chips, burgers and fried foods, are harder to digest and can cause stomach pain and heartburn. Cutting back on greasy, fried foods eases your stomach’s workload. Try to eat more lean meat and fish, drink skimmed or semi-skimmed milk and grill rather than fry foods.
  • Be prepared – if you’re travelling visit your GP beforehand to see if there are any vaccinations you may need to have before travelling to your chosen destination. Probiotics are so-called ‘friendly bacteria’ that also occur naturally in the gut and have been linked to all sorts of health benefits, including helping irritable bowel syndrome and traveller’s diarrhoea. You can also consider prebiotic foods in your diet such as asparagus, onions, and artichokes.
  • Stay active – long periods of inactivity can make the digestive system sluggish so if you’re travelling on the plane do your leg exercises as suggested in your flight handbook or walk up and down the aisle every so often. When you’re relaxing by the pool or lying on the sun loungers, get up and move around every hour.