How do you manage the festive season on an elimination diet?

Managing the festive season can be hard when you have food intolerances or any sort of restricted diet, including a Low FODMAPs diet, Low Chemical Elimination Diet, Low Disaccharide Diet, Low Histamine etc.

The whole 'season' is about food, food, food - work Christmas parties, catchup drinks with friends, and big Christmas dinners with family. How do you navigate all of this when you are following a restricted diet? How can you still enjoy yourself when everyone else is gorging themselves?

Honestly there is no simple solution that works for everyone, it depends what stage of your journey you are at - for example if you have already completed your food challenges so you know what foods you need to be most careful of you may have a different approach to someone who is at the first steps of trying to just feel a bit better and reduce their symptoms.

If you're feeling overwhelmed by it all, please reach out, I'd love to help you manage the festive season with confidence.

I have been discussing this with many of my clients over the past couple of weeks and a few patterns are emerging. Remember not all of these are going to be right for you, so pick and choose the strategies that fit best to your current situation

1. Most people want to strike a balance between having a little bit of extra freedom with their dietary restrictions vs throwing everything out the window and starting back at square one with their symptoms. You need to find your line of how far you want to push vs how much symptoms you're willing to put up with

2. If you've completed at least some of your challenges you may have an idea of some foods / food groups that you need to be more careful with vs those that you can push the boundaries with

3. Take into consideration how long it takes for your symptoms to settle, for example if it takes you 24hours to reduce your symptoms after eating some extra foods you may be more willing to push the boundaries than someone who takes a week to feel comfortable again

4. But remember don't push the boundaries to foods that are going to trigger your immune system to cause damage eg if you have Coeliac Disease or a nut allergy

5. Try to relax and have fun - many people have a higher threshold (ie can tolerate more) when they are relaxed and having fun. We call this the 'holiday effect' as we often see this occurring when you go on holidays

6. Where possible take a meal or snack plate that you know you can comfortably manage so you don't go hungry.

7. Make a version of your favourite festive foods that is suitable for your dietary restrictions

8. Avoid getting overhungry - we tend to overeat and make less sensible decisions about what to eat when we are very hungry. Eat before you go or make sure you have some snacks suitable for your dietary restrictions so you are not tempted to overeat on something that you will regret later

9. Likewise drink plenty of fluids that wont trigger symptoms for you. Let's face it, the weather can be pretty intense during out Silly Season so it is so easy to dehydrate! Your body often struggles more when you're dehydrated (so you get more / worse symptoms). But also, we often mistake thirst for hunger, so when you're dehydrated you are more likely to overindulge (and pay for it later)

10. Focus on the socialising rather than the food - enjoy the company of friends and family

11. Shift the focus to non-food activities. Food is often a big focus of our Festive season, but think about what other ways you can spend quality time with family and friends too. Whether is is a game of backyard cricket, Monopoly, Charades or sitting down together to watch a Christmas movie there are so many ways to have fun and create memories that don't involve food

12. You may get questions about why you are choosing to eat differently, so be prepared with a response so this doesn't fluster or upset you. But don't feel you need to share your full medical history. Keep your response short & to the point "I'm trying out a new eating plan for health reasons" or "I'm avoiding certain foods to help my body heal" or make it a little quirky to give your friends a smile “I’m basically doing a ‘food cleanse’—it’s like a spa day for my stomach, no stress, no drama, just relaxation”

13. It's OK to say no. I know some home chefs can be very persuasive, so it is not always an easy task! Remember that some people share their love by cooking for others, and this sometimes means that they get offended if you don't eat their food. But is it worth making yourself sick or uncomfortable so that someone else doesn't get upset? Some strategies that help with this are

    Speak to the chef ahead of time (at a less emotionally-charged time) and let them know that even though you may love their cooking you wont be able to partake this year as you need to look after yourself. You will likely still need to remind them on the day, but it wont be a surprise for them

    If they are stubborn, I give you permission to blame me! Some people need to hear it from a professional

14. Keep in mind 'first aid kit' strategies that may help to reduce your symptoms if you need it. For example 'Iberogast' is a lovely herbal formula that can help calm your gut when it is upset (unless you are on a low chemical diet)

15. If FODMAPs are a major diet trigger for you, try FODZYME (purchase with this link for a 15% discount) or Quatrase 10000 capsules (connect with me to access with 10% discount) before your meals which helps to digest FODMAPs to reduce fermentation in your Large Intestine so reduces gut symptoms with these foods. However note that it will not reduce any SIBO symptoms if this is an issue for you

16. Take some deep breaths before, during or after a meal to help wind down your nervous system which may help to reduce some of your symptoms

17. Yoga, meditation and any gentle exercise can also be helpful to wind down your nervous system and may help reduce your symptoms

18. Listen to your body. You may find that your body gives you some early warning signals to slow down on foods that upset you

19. You may find that you need to remind yourself why you are following a restrictive diet in the first place, and weigh up how important that is for you today (and for the days that you might experience symptoms after)

20. And don't forget in most situations these dietary restrictions are temporary part of your journey to help you feel better. By this time next year you will likely be a lot further in your journey and will be able to tolerate more foods without symptoms.

I hope you have a relaxing and enjoyable festive season (even if it looks a little different to usual this year).

All the best

Liz