Preparation is key. Enhancing your gut health prior to travel is vital to help prevent tummy bugs, colds and other sickness that may ruin your holiday.
1. Preparation is key. Enhancing your gut health prior to travel is vital to help prevent tummy bugs, colds and other sickness that may ruin your holiday.
- Start taking a high strain probiotic at least 30 days prior to travelling this will give your gut enough time to reap the benefits of probiotic supplementation. Make sure when you get home after your holiday you follow up with another 30 days of probiotics to help rebalance the gut bacteria (the bacteria we are exposed to in foreign countries can imbalance our gut health long after we are home). When it comes to probiotic supplements the more natural form and the more strains the better it will work. I really like a product called Tummify, it is naturally fermented and contains over 13 strains of different beneficial bacteria, the best part is it comes as a mini shot so it’s easy to take for people of all ages.
- Alongside probiotic supplementation, making sure you are eating a diet rich in probiotics (these guys acts as food to the bacteria in our gut). Things like garlic, onion, leeks, green tea, chicory root tea and artichokes are all great options.
- Bone broth: A delicious snack and now easily accessible you can even buy powders that you just add to hot water. Bone broth helps support the health of the gut wall, which is integral to the proper functioning of our gut, immune function and more.
2. Travel with herbal teas: Pre-packaged herbal tea bags are a convenient and easy way to support your gut health whilst travelling. The top herbal teas I recommend to take whilst travelling to support gut health are:
- Ginger tea: Perfect for nausea. Bloating, after eating too much, and also aids in the breakdown and digestion of food. Particularly beneficial if you plan on eating your way around Europe.
- Peppermint Tea: This Is the perfect all-rounder tea for gut health: It soothes stomach cramps, indigestion, reflux and heartburn and is also used in gas/ & diarrhea.
3. May Make sure you walk every day, even 20 minutes, especially if you have spent the day on a plane, train or sitting in a car. Walking helps stimulate digestion, speeding up the process and preventing food from sitting in our gut for too long rotting & fermenting creating gas, bloating and pain.
4. Lemon & warm water: If you are staying in a hotel or even a hostel you should be able to get access to warm water and lemons. Having warm water with lemon juice first thing in the morning will kick start your digestion and help support liver health. Both of these are important when travelling since we tend to overeat and overindulge in things that aren’t that great for out gut and liver. Bonus it helps with clear, glowing skin and who doesn’t want that when on a holiday?
5. Eat one raw vegetable meal a day: Of course this depends on where you are travelling, but getting in one raw vegetable meal a day will ensure you get the fiber and probiotics you need to support your gut health. This may be a simple side salad alongside your dinner or some veggie sticks. So even if all you eat for the rest of the day is almond croissants and half a wheel of cheese, you know if you have eaten your daily serve of vegetables, then you have a little insurance policy for your gut health.
Michaela Sparrow is a naturopath, clinical nutritionist and certified anti-ageing practitioner at Longevity Remedy Clinic.
Talk to one of our Travel Specialists on 1300 551 353 or contact us here to discuss tailor-making your perfect Gut Health Holiday.
