{"id":129266,"date":"2020-12-14T12:00:20","date_gmt":"2020-12-14T18:00:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/carolalt.com\/?p=129266"},"modified":"2022-01-06T10:26:07","modified_gmt":"2022-01-06T16:26:07","slug":"holiday-heartburn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/carolalt.com\/holiday-heartburn\/","title":{"rendered":"Heartburn and the Holidays: Tips to avoid that familiar, dreaded holiday burn"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><em>This holiday season, whether you\u2019re ordering in or whipping up a meal in your home, plan ahead so that you don\u2019t have to feel the burn.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Acid reflux, heartburn, indigestion<\/strong> \u2013 it goes by different names, but we\u2019ve all been familiar at one point or another with that indistinguishable burning sensation. If you\u2019ve ever had acid reflux, there\u2019s no difficulty in recognizing that burning pain in the chest. Other common symptoms often include belching, irritation in the throat and difficulty swallowing \u2013 all of which become worse when you lay down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Overtime, and especially as we get older, many of us seem to just accept that certain feelings of physical discomfort are well\u2026normal. At events and over a glass of wine, many of my girlfriends have told me about aches, pains and digestive issues that they now have and have been trying, <strong><em>unsuccessfully,<\/em><\/strong> to get rid of using Tums, antacids, pain relievers and more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The thing is\u2026many of our discomforts, including acid reflux are avoidable<\/strong>. That\u2019s right! It\u2019s not about treating these aliments after we notice them, <strong>it\u2019s about preventing them in the first place!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Sooooo how do you do that? Sounds easy right? It can be!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Keeping acid reflux at bay is all about understanding what your body needs to help it do its natural job of digestion and then making balanced decisions to help your body do just that. Don\u2019t worry, I\u2019m not going to tell you to totally give up a glass of wine, or a special dessert <strong>\u2013 it\u2019s all about balance,<\/strong> so you can still enjoy your traditional favourite treats \u2013 just with a few important reminders and alternative choices to keep you from feeling the burn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This holiday season, whether you\u2019re ordering in, whipping up a meal in your own kitchen or accepting delicious doorstep drop offs from family and friends, <strong>keep these holiday tips in mind to keep acid reflux at bay.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Plus, let\u2019s face it\u2026the tips below aren\u2019t just for the holidays, they\u2019re healthy approaches to eating and digestion that we should embrace year-round \u2013 because unfortunately, <strong>even just a few minutes chewing a few bites, can lead to hours of discomfort later.<\/strong>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Know your trigger foods<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are known foods that trigger acid reflux and make symptoms worse, but they are different for everyone. Know which ones are your biggest food flare-ups. Some of the most common ones are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Spicy foods<\/li><li>Citrus<\/li><li>Tomato sauces<\/li><li>Vinegar<\/li><li>Fatty foods<\/li><li>Chocolate<\/li><li>Caffeine<\/li><li>Onions<\/li><li>Alcohol<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Embrace foods that are raw or minimally prepared<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Raw foods have a whole host of vitamins, minerals and benefits that cooked foods don\u2019t. This is one of the many reasons I\u2019ve become a raw food expert and advocate. I could write a whole book about the benefits of raw food \u2013 in fact, I\u2019ve already written a few, but for the sake of this blog post, here are three quick tips to use over the holidays:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Incorporate a simple raw veggie tray as an appetizer<\/li><li>Roast or boil vegetables such as carrots, sweet potatoes, broccoli and squash<\/li><li>Instead of off the shelf, prepared rich sauces, make a simple saut\u00e9 with olive oil and fresh herbs<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>To learn more about raw food and to try some tasty recipes, check out my book <a href=\"https:\/\/www.barnesandnoble.com\/w\/a-healthy-you-carol-alt\/1120682452;jsessionid=776948CF2E71441143ADB3C0001502B7.prodny_store01-atgap13?ean=9780062392978&amp;st=AFF&amp;2sid=HarperCollins%20Publishers%20LLC_7252169_NA&amp;sourceId=AFFHarperCollins%20Publishers%20LLC#\/\">A Healthy You<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Pace your meals<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>How much and how fast you eat makes a significant difference to your body and its ability to properly digest food. When you go to sit down at the table to begin your meal, remember to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Take small bites, take your time, and turn down a second helping<\/li><li>Slow down and savour your meal<\/li><li>Give your body a break before enjoying dessert<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Embrace equally delicious substitutes<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So I\u2019m not asking you to skip dessert entirely \u2013 after the year we\u2019ve all had, no one would expect anyone to do that. But I would challenge you to think about substitutes that are as delicious as our favourite desserts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Try a light angel food cake instead of a heavy chocolate cake<\/li><li>Whip up a simple yogurt parfait with fresh fruit and a few favourite add-ons like coconut or honey<\/li><li>Serve a simple cheese and fruit platter \u2013 consider low fat cheese options like goat cheese<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Straighten up and go for a gentle walk<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It takes hours to digest your food and the worst thing you can do immediately after eating is to sit down or engage in vigorous exercise. I know we all want to relax after enjoying a delicious meal, but save that until after your stomach has had a chance to do its job.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Stand up and get a head start on cleaning the dishes<\/li><li>Go for a slow, gentle walk, which will aid in digestion<\/li><li>Take your family out to see the lights and decorations in your neighbourhood<\/li><li>Consider playing a game like Headbanz or Heads Up but instead of playing it sitting down, get everyone standing up<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Remember, a healthy lifestyle is all about balance. It\u2019s okay to treat yourself with a favourite holiday chocolate or drink \u2013 but eating the whole box, or drinking the whole bottle will have consequences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>This holiday season I\u2019d love to be flooded with your recipe ideas for \u201ctreats\u201d with a healthy twist. Send me your favourite recipes, tricks and pictures of food that makes you feel good in your body and soul!<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This holiday season, whether you\u2019re ordering in or whipping up a meal in your home, plan ahead so that you don\u2019t have to feel the burn.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":129268,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"Heartburn and the Holidays","_seopress_titles_desc":"This holiday season, whether you\u2019re ordering in or whipping up a meal in your home, plan ahead so that you don\u2019t have to feel the burn.","_seopress_robots_index":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[147,24,12,254,255,257,256,14,252,253,21],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/carolalt.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/129266"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/carolalt.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/carolalt.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carolalt.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carolalt.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=129266"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/carolalt.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/129266\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":140269,"href":"https:\/\/carolalt.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/129266\/revisions\/140269"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carolalt.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/129268"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/carolalt.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=129266"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carolalt.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=129266"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carolalt.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=129266"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}