5 Tips for Managing your Gastrointestinal Condition During the Holidays

The holidays bring families and friends together, typically over a table laden with yummy delights and treats. For the 60-70 million Americans who have a digestive disease, that same table often represents potential landmines that can leave them feeling less than merry.

To help you navigate the holiday feasting this year, our team of gastroenterology experts here at LaSante Health Center pulled together a few tips. 

Whether you’re struggling with acid reflux, Crohn’s disease, irritable bowel syndrome, or some other digestive issue, these tips should prove very helpful.

Watch those holiday treats

You walk through the door at a holiday party and the host immediately puts a small glass of eggnog in your hand. Surely there’s no harm in that small glass. Think again. 

Just 4 ounces of eggnog contains up to 9 grams of saturated fat and 16 grams of sugar, not to mention alcohol — all of which are big no-nos for many people with digestive distress.

Whether it’s the eggnog or the Hanukkah latkes, many holiday offerings just aren’t good for people who are struggling with digestive problems.

So study up in advance on some of your favorite holiday treats to figure out whether it might be a good idea to start a new tradition this year with healthier foods and drinks for your gut.

Bring your own

If you know that you’re entering a feast that will be long on things that aren’t good for your gut, it might make sense to bring your own eats. For example, if you can’t eat a holiday pie because of gluten intolerance, why not bring your own gluten-free dessert?

If alcohol is off the table, pack your own special drink, such as some sparkling apple cider.

Graze, don’t gorge

Another good technique for people with digestive distress during the holidays is to view eating as grazing, not gorging and feasting. Go very slowly and put only small portions on your plate. 

Get moving

No matter what digestive issue you’re dealing with, keep your digestive tract moving along by moving along with it. Going for a nice walk after your holiday meal helps keep acids down and encourages food and drink to move through the digestive process more easily.

 Come see us to prepare

We invite you to come see us so we can pull together a holiday plan that’s best for your particular digestive condition. During this visit, we can review your triggers and remind you about where some of these triggers may be hidden.

We can also help you devise a plan for your holiday eating that will keep you comfortable — and this plan can work for any social occasion in the future.

Lastly, we can make sure that you have the medications you need to weather the holiday feasting with relative ease.

To get started, please contact our clinic in Brooklyn, New York, today. We serve the Flatbush and East Flatbush, Crown Heights, Park Slope, Little Haiti, Little Caribbean, and Prospect Lefferts Gardens communities.