Top tips for digestive care over the festive season

It’s that time of year again where all the rules and routine seem to go straight out the window to be replaced with over indulgence, late nights, less exercise and way more cake than usual. Most people have experienced the effect of the festive season on their digestive tract in one way or another. During a time when we want to feel our optimum, we often end up suffering from heartburn, indigestion, stomach aches, constipation and general gut health issues. We have put together a few great tips to help guide you on how you can take extra care of your digestive system this festive season.

It’s all about moderation

The key to digestive health is moderation. There is absolutely no problem in having larger than usual meals here and there so long as you balance this out with eating slightly less the next day or perhaps even the next 2 days. Become conscious of the food that you are eating on your ‘off days’ and try to rather eat simple healthy foods such as veggies, lean meat and cut out sugar, excessive carbs and red meat where you can. This will give your body the space it needs to fully digest the large meal and prevent you from overloading your digestive tract which results in various digestive health issues.

When partaking in festivities try to also be conscious of moderation. Perhaps instead of having a starter, main meal and dessert, just have a starter and main or just a main meal and dessert. Be aware of your alcohol consumption as alcohol has a significant amount of sugar in it. Simply
reducing your alcohol intake by a glass or 2 can make a significant difference to indigestion, heartburn and extra weight gain over this time.

Intermittent fasting

Have you heard of intermittent fasting? A new buzz word and practice that is sweeping through the health world with great results. Intermittent fasting is a practice of daily extended fasting. There are a few different ways of practicing intermittent fasting but in general the guideline is to not eat after 5 pm in the afternoon and to only have your next meal around 11 am the following day. This extended 18 hour fast has incredible health benefits for your body. Digesting food takes a significant amount of our bodies energy so when we give our bodies an extended break from digesting food, our bodies are able to use this energy to repair cells of the body, to break down stored fats and replenish and heal other areas of the body.

When you have your first meal of the day at around 11 am make sure this meal is healthy with ideally no carbs, refined sugar or processed foods. You can then snack on seed or health bars, fruits, nuts or veg sticks throughout the day and have a nice big healthy meal at 5 pm.

This is a great practice to incorporate into your festive season on those days that you do not have any big plans. By giving your body these break periods in between, you will be able to easily cope with the rich festive meals with family and friends without having to feel guilty or sickly for days afterwards.

If intermittent fasting is something you are interested in learning more about you can read more in this article: INTERMITTENT FASTING AND HUMAN METABOLIC HEALTH

Supplements

Often as much as we may try our best to eat in moderation and stay balanced through the festivities, our digestive system may still need some extra support. Our digestive tract is made up of enzymes that breakdown our food and if these enzymes are not fed healthy nourishing foods, one will begin to struggle with digestive and gut health.

The human gut is more complex than previously thought and has a huge impact on your entire body’s health. A healthy gut contributes to a strong immune system, heart health, brain health, improved mood, healthy sleep, and effective digestion. A healthy gut also communicates with the brain through nerves and hormones, which helps maintain general health and well-being. AVALIFE™ Flora Restore is a symbiotic blend of probiotics that effectively help to balance and maintain digestive and gut health.

AVALIFE™ Daily Flora Balance is a symbiotic formula containing premium, documented probiotic strains and is specially formulated to help maintain daily gut health. The 5-strain formulation is tailor made to address the major cause of improper digestion and compromised gut health. A suitable daily probiotic formula that also helps overcome lactose intolerance.

When ingested regularly AVALIFE™ Flora Restore and Daily Flora Balance should improve or normalise the microbial balance in the intestines and thereby improve the functioning of the digestive tract. This directly elevates digestive issues.

You can order these supplements directly from our website or find the store closest to you via our online store locator: https://avalife.co.za/where-to-buy/