Gut Happy Holidays
Gut Happy Holidays – as life begins to return to normal, or at least the ‘new normal’, you may be thinking about, or even have booked, your next holiday. Whether you are taking advantage of the ‘travel corridors’ and travelling overseas, or staying a little bit closer to home, travelling can be an unsettling time for our gut health.
Here are a few tips to help you keep your gut healthy whilst on holiday…
Eating
Travelling is a great way to try new cuisines, but for some, certain foods can trigger unpleasant gut issues. As tempting as they can be, try to avoid any of your no-go foods.
It’s important to remember to eat fruits and vegetables whilst you are away – these fibre filled foods will help keep your gut happy.
Drinking
Keeping hydrated can help keep your gut moving. Particularly if you are holidaying somewhere hot or you are doing lots of activities you may need to drink more water than you are used to. By taking a refillable water bottle with you will mean you can have access to water whilst you are out and about and reduces your use of single use plastic bottles – but check whether the tap water is safe to drink first or only refill from drinking water stations. Drinking unsafe tap water could cause you a whole different set of gut issues!
Exercise
This doesn’t have to be planned exercise, even swimming in the pool or sea, or walking to explore your new surroundings can be helpful ways to keep your gut moving.
Hygiene
Before you eat, wash your hands. This is good practice even when you are not on holiday, but particularly whilst you are away and in a new environment, washing your hands can help prevent you passing any potentially harmful bacteria whilst you are eating.
Also be aware of the food hygiene – buffet food which is sat out for a while can be a risky source of harmful bacteria. Make sure cold foods have been kept chilled and hot foods are served hot.
Travelling
Although the government has given the green light to travel, we mustn’t forget the importance of staying alert whilst we are still in the midst of a global pandemic. Before you travel, check the requirements for the country you are travelling to, such as when and where do you need to wear a face covering?
Travelling during the pandemic can be more stressful than usual and this could exacerbate you gut issues. So, on the lead up to your holiday and whilst you are away, make sure you take time for yourself to try and relax – whether that’s by doing some exercise, reading a book or practising some yoga or meditation, any activity that helps you relax make time to do it.
Love Your Gut
See the Love Your gut website for information on Getting Gut healthy – https://loveyourgut.com/getting-gut-healthy/ What the gut does – https://loveyourgut.com/what-does-the-gut-do/ and Getting Gut Active – https://loveyourgut.com/getting-gut-healthy/gut-active/
Remember whatever you do – most of all…enjoy your holiday!