Five Tips for Beating Christmas Bloat

We’ve all been there. Over-indulgence on rich food and drinks over the festive period naturally results a Santa-esque bloated belly and the inevitable discomfort that goes with it. Maybe this year will be different though if a little care of our digestion is taken.

Sarah Keogh, expert dietician with Heart Up+ says it’s easier than you would think to avoid the festive bloat:??Sweet treats, carb laden meals and alcohol tend to go hand in hand with the festive spirit each year. It can be easy to forget good nutritional habits. You don’t have to put up with that sluggish feeling though, if you simply follow a few easy steps over the holidays you’ll feel and look fabulous.?

Sarah has the following tips to remain bloat-free and jolly this Christmas:

1. Don’t neglect your 5-a-day.
Apart from keeping your vitamin C topped up, your fruit and veg will also top up your fibre and help keep things moving as they should.

2. Start the day the right way.
Keep breakfast at least a little healthy with a high fibre cereal or wholegrain bread.? For the best benefit, look for cereals with at least 6g of fibre per 100g. You can also check out some of our healthy breakfasts, see our recipes for porridge bread and green eggs royale.

3. Keep drinking – water that is!
Fibre works by soaking up liquid and this helps keep you regular.? Make sure you still drink eight glasses of water every day.

4. Keep moving.
Exercise helps digestion as well as everything else and can help speed up a slow digestion. Don’t forget about all of the incredible pilates and yoga instructors on Instagram if you need some help. We particularly love yoga instructors Kathryn Budig and Rebekah Borucki (and her absolutely adorable five kids).

5. Add a little something extra.
Add some extra fibre by topping up with seeds and fibre supplements like Heart Up+ which contains barley beta-glucans soluble fibre.? Simply sprinkle this on breakfast cereals, porridge, yoghurts, salads, smoothies or soups. It’s an easy way to boost fibre intake and aid digestion.

So leave the jolly belly to the guy in the red suit to don this Christmas and instead take these simple steps to keep you looking and feeling beautiful this festive period.

Heart Up+ is available in three natural flavours including original, blueberry and red berries in Lloyds Pharmacies, Sam McCauley Chemists, The Health Store, selected Dunnes Stores and Super Valus, Eurospar, Spar stores and pharmacies and health stores nationwide and online here.