Summer Holiday essentials from a Functional Medicine Practitioner
Travelling abroad prepared can often help us continue to nourish our guts and minds! Here are a few tips including things we like to pack for travelling abroad or if having a staycation.
What to pack in your bag?
We always pack in our suitcase snacks such as, high fibre (The Nutty One from Nourish) or collagen bars, coconut bites, dark chocolate, little bags of tree nuts and some energy protein balls we make at home. For on the plane some vegetable sticks (if in the car then pots of hummus are great for dipping too) and pots of organic berries with dark chocolate.
Water is an essential!
Stocking up on water at the airport is essential as we often dehydrate on flights, getting your bottles filled up or buying bottles of clean pure spring water and staying hydrated on your flight can make a big difference to how you feel when travelling. The same in the car, staying hydrated can ensure we feel better as well as avoid mindlessly snacking the whole trip. We often take a small bottle (less than 100ml if flying) of apple cider vinegar with us to pop into a bottle/glass of sparkling water, this also can help balance blood sugars if you do make a higher carb/sugar choice.
What is easy and delicious snacks to buy while travelling?
Whilst travelling on holiday easy things to grab are dark chocolate (we always go min 70% but usually much higher), fresh berries and packets of nuts. Cucumbers are a great hydrating snack to have on the go, sometimes having this and a jar of nut butter is a perfect combo for a snack on the go (certainly one we do a lot!)
Favourite Nourish snacks?
My favourite Nourish snacks to have onboard flights or in the car include – Cacao Coconut Cookies, Cacao Coconut Bites and The Nutty One. Our kids love having a bag of oat cookies and some flapjack to hand for in the car, or to have with a drink whilst on flight.
What about supplements?
I usually always bring a probiotic for everyone to have whilst away. Look for one with Saccharomyces boulardii in it and a high CFU count. My favourites brands are Ancient Nutrition (the Ultimate Probiotic) and Nutri advanced for these. This year I am also taking Naked Biotics with me too for everyone. Usually, I take a collagen powder drink, usually one from Ancient and Brave or Ancient Nutrition. And I will always take Omega 3 and Magnesium glycinate with me too!
Sun Care for skin?
Yes, I do take some sun cream, my usual one is the brand Green People , or Evolve, and we only apply if in the sun for very long periods of time (and depending on the location as to the ozone layer). Zinc oxide is also fantastic at using as a barrier against the damaging rays of the sun when it is at the hottest/intense parts of the day, HERE is a great article to read further. There are a number of very toxic sunscreens, so it is really important to check before you purchase – a great site to look at is EWG.org. Remember you cannot get/make Vitamin D either if you sunblock up first thing in the morning and repeatedly through the day!
Why preplan?
Having snacks to hand makes it a lot easier to have something delicious to eat without compromising how you feel (and your blood sugars!). Staying hydrated means we feel well and looking after our gut usually helps avoid any dicey stomachs!
