How to Prevent ‘Travel Tummy’
Our CMO & frequent well-wanderer, Dr. Sarah, is our constant source for the latest data on how to stay healthy while travelling. Researchers are constantly uncovering new travel related bio-hacks, nutrients + supplements, and our resident wellness pro is our go-to when it comes to the latest & greatest in natural medicine studies to help us prevent the dreaded ‘travel tummy’ / ‘Bali belly’ / ‘Montezuma's revenge’.
There's nothing worse than losing a few precious days of vacation holed up in your hotel dealing with the aftermath of an undercooked whole fish dinner or poorly refrigerated salad. Well-wanderers are especially vulnerable to GI disturbances while travelling because we know that you health-minded folks are actually drinking water & eating vegetables while on vacation (while a diet of guacamole + chips & margaritas will probably keep you safe from traveller’s diarrhea, it is still not a great vacation lifestyle choice, in our opinion).
So how do you follow doctor’s orders while travelling (protein, vegetables, water) without ending up stuck in a bathroom for half of your trip? We’re got you! Below we’re sharing our well-wandering approved, tried & true tips to prevent travel tummy:
Go to bed at a reasonable hour, seriously. Jet lag, along with the sleep disturbances that come from late dinners and way too much mezcal, all have powerful effects on your gut health. New research is connecting the disruptions in sleep and circadian rhythms that occur due to crossing time zones (aka jet lag) to significant disruptions in the type and quality of bacteria that live in your gut, leaving your more vulnerable to food-born pathogens that cause travellers diarrhea. Given this relationship we advise that well wanders take a proactive approach to “gut lag” in order to maintain optimal health while traveling; this means getting to bed & waking at a fairly consistent time each day & preventing time zone change associated gut changes with strategic supplementation to prevent jet lag.
Add sugar-free electrolyte powders or tabs to your daily 2L of vacation H20 to keep yourself hydrated while travelling. This helps to continuously flush your digestive system of potentially harmful pathogens and acts as an insurance policy just incase you do end up losing a few fluids to a suspicious road side taco - see below:
Some of our most memorable holiday meals come from food stall vendors. Side-of-the-road food stops are super common throughout Central / South America + Mexico and they’re a great way to get an inexpensive & authentic meal while simultaneously supporting local families that make a living selling homemade cooking. Our two tips for ‘safe’ food stall dining; pick high traffic stops - if there are a lot of people eating there it typically means that the food is great and there’s a high turn over rate so meals aren’t sitting out in the hot sun for too long & watch out for hot foods that aren't actually hot or anything that looks like it's been sitting uncovered for a while.
BYO herbal tummy teas; bags of fennel, chamomile, turmeric, ginger & peppermint teas are easy to fly with (portable & not an unmarked suspicious baggie of pills or powder, which is always a plus when trying to get through customs) and they can help improve your digestion while travelling. Drink 1 cup of gut-supportive herbal tea with each meal to give your GI system a little extra boost while on vacation.
DO NOT EAT THE GARNISH (we’re looking at you, Bali bestie): Mr. guts-o-steel lost 2 days of holiday last time we were there from munching on plate-side greens. Do not ever do this, even in North America, these garnishes are typically not treated with the same respect / refrigeration as the items on the plate: you know the ones that are actually meant to be eaten..
Take an anti-bacterial, anti-parasitic, anti-inflammatory + gut supportive supplement before, during and after your holiday. You wouldn’t run a marathon without doing a little training first and this level of thoughtful preparation should also apply to your gut health when travelling. There are plenty of safe, natural supplements that can promote optimal digestive health while travelling. Look for a formula that has some combination of anti-bacterial (grapeseed extract, ginger, garlic), anti-parasitic (oregano, black walnut, activated charcoal, goldenseal) and gut-supportive probiotics (Saccharomyces boulardii + Bifidobacterium bifidum are the 2 best researched strains when it comes to preventing traveler’s tummy) to reduce your chances of messing up your GI system while on your trip.
At the end of the day if you’ve listened to all our tips & taken all of the supplements and you still end up with a bit of tummy troubles while travelling it’s not the end of the world. Great gut health is just as much about cultivating resilience as it is preventing any and all adverse effects of travel on your digestion. More exposure to new foods, bacteria & even some harmless low-grade parasites can help you build a flexible gut, which is more important that perfect BMs every single day of your life (we’re look at you woman at the airport who told us she was only eating protein bars while in Mexico for the week, bless you). With that in mind, if you do notice some digestive changes while on vacation take a few extra anti-everything digestive supplements, drink a bit more water, get a good nights sleep and rest assured that you’re probably just cultivating resilience in your GI system and that it’s all for the best!
note: if you do get home and notice that your digestive changes post-travellers illness last >2 weeks then feel free to reach out to our CMO at her private virtual practice to discuss some comprehensive stool or gut testing, just to make sure you didn’t bring home more than a few kitschy souvenirs or bottles of local booze; certain types of parasites are legit a problem & it’s best to treat them asap.
This information is not intended as a substitute for the advice provided by your Naturopathic doctor or primary care physician. Do not use the information in this document for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease. Always speak with your Naturopathic doctor or general practitioner before taking any medication or nutritional or herbal or using any treatment for a health problem. If you have or suspect that you have a medical problem, contact your health care provider promptly. Do not disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking professional advice because of something you have read online.