Digestion Tips for Jolly Holiday Eating

By Andrea Bartels CNP NNCP RNT Registered Nutritional Therapist 09 Dec 2024

Digestion Tips for Jolly Holiday Eating

For many of us, celebration the holidays is all about eating delicious food while gathered with friends and family. But overindulgence in rich treats and festive drinks can take a toll on your digestive system. The good news is, you can still enjoy the holidays and keep your tummy happy with a few mindful strategies. Let’s explore how to minimize the effects of enjoying good food throughout the season. 

Scan the spread: Before loading your plate, take a moment to see what’s available. Choose a mix of protein, healthy fats, and fiber-rich foods like vegetables to keep your meal balanced and your appetite satisfied.

Portion wisely: Instead of piling your plate, serve smaller portions. You can always go back for seconds if you’re still hungry.

Focus on connection: Engage with friends and family instead of solely focusing on food. Take a moment to enjoy the atmosphere and appreciate your peeps while you practice mindful eating.

Eat slowly: Chew thoroughly and savor each bite. This gives your stomach time to communicate with your brain, preventing overeating.

Avoid bowel-bullies: Some festive foods may not agree with everyone. Be mindful of common belly-ache culprits. Fried and fatty foods are best limited as they can slow digestion and cause discomfort and acid reflux. If you’re lactose-intolerant, steer clear of cheese dips and creamy desserts. Instead, go for aged cheeses, which have little to no lactose in them.  Finally, while spicy foods can be exciting to the palate, they can irritate sensitive stomachs and provoke symptoms.

Incorporate gut-friendly foods:  Probiotic foods like yogurt, kefir, or fermented vegetables (like kimchi or sauerkraut) support a healthy gut microbiome because they contain friendly bacteria and yeasts. But easy does it! If you’re new to these foods, use them as condiments; one dollup per day should suffice to start.

Go for fiber-rich options: Fruits and vegetables help keep things moving smoothly in your digestive tract. They also keep you feeling full. If you experience bloating from a lot of raw vegetables, go for steamed, roasted or stir fried ones instead.

Drink soothing teas: Ginger tea and peppermint tea are natural aids for digestion and can help soothe an upset stomach and help dispel gas.

In addition, consider supporting your digestive health with these supplements:

L-Glutamine is a major amino acid found in high-protein foods that’s needed by your intestinal cells. But if you’re finding certain foods are going ‘straight through’ you, you could benefit from supplementing it.
L-Glutamine helps repair the intestinal cells that get ‘abused’ by the ‘bowel bullies’ discussed above.  Plus, it has the added bonus of boosting your immune function.  Pure Lab’s new L-Glutamine is available in capsules and additive-free powder and can be taken daily for ongoing gastrointestinal support.

Zinc is a busy nutrient when it comes to gut health. It helps maintain the structural integrity of the gut lining, making sure harmful substances such as toxins, undigested food particles and bacteria can’t penetrate into the bloodstream.  Zinc does this by supporting production of mucous by the lining of the GI tract. It is vital for wound healing, inside and out, so it helps heal damaged intestinal tissue.
Zinc is crucial for the immune cells that line the GI tract, helping produce antimicrobial substances that protect you from infections, and potentially, foodborne illnesses. 
Finally, zinc is a cofactor in hundreds of enzymes, some of which are needed for proper digestion of the food we eat.

Be aware that zinc can be difficult to absorb from foods, especially from plants. Pure Lab’s Zinc Glycinate is a supplementary zinc offering 23 milligrams of highly absorbable zinc per capsule. Remember to take your zinc daily with a meal for optimal comfort.

Vitamin D3: It’s not well known that D3 plays a role in keeping your gut working properly. Vitamin D3 supports a healthy balance of gut microbes, keeps inflammation in check, and supports the maintenance of your intestinal barrier. But it’s tough to get enough from food, and the sun’s rays just aren’t there enough at this time of year to make our own supply. That’ why supplementing is the best surefire way to maintain your Vitamin D status.

Pure Lab’s Vitamin D3 is a high quality dry-form Vitamin D3.
It holds an important advantage over oil-based vitamin D products: dry-form vitamin D better resists degradation from light, heat and oxygen, giving it a longer-lasting potency and higher potential benefits.
Pure Lab’s Vitamin D3 comes in 1000 IU and 2500 IU potencies, in both regular and vegan varieties.

Now you can see that enjoying the holidays doesn’t have to mean sacrificing your digestive comfort.  With these tips, you can savour many of the season’s flavours while keeping your gut nourished. Happy holidays!