December is here and it's the favourite time of the year for most of us. We get long holidays to meet and spend quality time with friends and family. And most important of all is the festive food. So, here is the thing that I want to talk about - the after-effects of binging.
Apart from celebrations, this time of the year also calls for stomach issues like bloating, acidity and constipation among others. So let's look at how we can manage our gut health during these festivities:
Issue: Alcohol intake makes the body acidic and if we are binge drinking then it increases the stomach acid drastically, which can then irritate the gut lining. This leads to inflammation known as gastritis and can also leach out calcium from bones making it brittle.
Solution: Let's stick to moderation and avoid aerated drinks with your alcohol.
Try to drink a glass of warm lemon water at the start, in between and at the end of an alcoholic drink to keep the body alkaline.
Choose healthy accompaniments like raw or cooked veggies or unsalted nuts when drinking alcohol. These help in keeping the body alkaline and reduce acidity.
It’s important to eat first and then drink so your stomach is partially full and you end up drinking much less.
Issue: Our body isn't designed to digest food late at night, which leads to acidity and bloating. Our metabolism slows down at night, which can make the body store extra fat.
Solution: Include a good portion of veggies (cooked or raw) to fill your tummy partially. Then choose an option that is available at the feast. Veggies will fill and add fibre to improve stomach health and when your stomach is partially full, you end up having a lower quantity of other options.
Mix one teaspoon of carom, cumin, fennel seeds and take it immediately after your meal. Chew well to get digestive enzymes to improve digestion.
Keep your meal timings the same for five out of seven days. Finish meals early to enjoy your late-night dining during the two days of festivities.
Avoid water with a meal; it dilutes digestive juices. Drink water 30 minutes before or after the meal. Keep up with your water intake during the day.
Issue: Late night parties are also going to affect the sleep cycle and once sleep gets affected, the entire healing, repair, recovery, detoxification cycle will get affected badly too.
Solution: Try to sleep well on five out of seven days to rest and recover the gut issues. In addition, try to catch up with your sleep on days when you are not going for late-night commitments.
(The writer is a clinical nutritionist with a focus on healthy lifestyle choices)