5 Ways To Improve Your Digestion While Travelling

To help you avoid bloating, heartburn and irregular bowel movements on your next trip, we asked Lily Soutter, resident nutritionist at Press London, for her top five tips on keeping your gut happy and healthy whilst on the move…

1. Pack Smart Snacks

Early morning flights and broken sleep on a plane can leave us feeling groggy and craving quick fix foods. In fact, research has shown that when we have less than seven to eight hours sleep our appetite hormone increases, and we’re more likely to consume an average of 330 more calories made up of quick-fix foods.

Often, these quick-fix snacks can wreak havoc with digestion. Instead pack a few nutrient-dense, high-fibre snacks to keep hunger at bay – try nuts, fruit or even PRESS London’s energy bars for a healthier alternative.

 2. Add Your Own Fibre To Meals

Fibre is essential for healthy digestion and preventing constipation – but, on average, the UK population are only consuming half their recommended daily fibre intake. Whilst abroad this figure may drop even further.
 
Chia seeds can be a fast-track way of increasing intake; just two tablespoons provide 11g of fibre. These little seeds can be easily packed into a suitcase and consumed as a snack or sprinkled over your breakfast. If you’d prefer to take a supplement, try Renew Life Fibresmart capsules, which contain a gentle combination of marshmallow root and flaxseeds.

3. Consider Taking Probiotics

It’s not only the lack of fibre which can be bothersome to digestion; depending on the country, travellers’ diarrhoea may affect as many as 5-50% of holidaymakers, which can put a huge dampener on any trip.
 
Interestingly, there’s more and more research to suggest that taking probiotics during the trip may be a safe and effective preventative tool. I always recommend Wild Nutrition’s Multi-Strain Biotic to clients going abroad – it’s complex blend of eight strains of bacteria supports shifts in the gut and doesn’t need refrigerating.

4. Choose Herbal Teas

Bloating and cramps are not uncommon with air travel – due to air pressure, gas in the intestines will expand at around 30% when flying. To prevent the bloat, it’s advisable to pass on the carbonated drinks and gassy foods like broccoli, beans, and onions before your flight.
 
You may also want to switch your usual aeroplane coffee with peppermint tea. Animal studies have shown peppermint has a relaxing and soothing effect on the gut, while human studies have looked at peppermint leaf in relation to managing IBS.

5. Keep Moving

Whilst lying on the beach for weeks is seriously appealing, a lack of movement can cause our digestion to become sluggish. Research suggests that moderate exercise has positive effects on those suffering from digestive complaints, and may stimulate gut motility – so skip the taxi, bring your trainers and go exploring. You’ll reach your 10,000 steps whilst saving money and taking in the sights.