Christmas is a time that we get to celebrate with family and loved ones. During this time of the year, it’s common for there to be lots of feasting and visiting family and friends which can be difficult with festive food intolerances.
When celebrating the Christmas period, it can be difficult to manage when you have festive food intolerances, especially if you’re unaware of them and so are your loved ones. Food intolerance, even though not life-threatening, can diminish the quality of one’s life.
If you’re used to feeling sick and nauseous after every Christmas dinner, it’s time you got to the bottom of the issue by knowing your festive food intolerances. The only way to discover your intolerance is by taking an Intolerance Test. It will also be in your best interest to discern the symptoms of food intolerance.
Common intolerance symptoms
Festive food intolerance can cause gastrointestinal issues that vary from one individual to the next. These GI symptoms can also vary depending on how much the trigger was consumed. Unlike allergies, food intolerance symptoms can be more severe the more you eat the food that causing you issues.
These symptoms include:
- Diarrhea
- Stomach cramps
- Gas
- Nausea and vomiting
- Bloating
It can be tricky noticing these symptoms, especially if you’re used to overeating during this time of the year; then, you might need clarification on whether you’re suffering from food intolerance symptoms. However, a simple Intolerance Test will let you know, especially if you get those same symptoms every day you consume a specific group of foods.
You can manage the holidays in many ways when you have food intolerances.
Host
When you choose to be the holiday host, you can control what f]goes into your meals and avoid getting intolerance symptoms. Even if you’re getting help from someone else, you can let them know which independents they shouldn’t include in the foods you’re preparing.
Sometimes, when you’re not hosting, it can get difficult asking about ingredients in every single food, especially if you’re tired of being told to eat what’s served. However, when hosting, you know what you’re making and what foods you’ll make for others and not indulge in because you are intolerant.
When hosting, you can easily prepare and cook different meals while adhering to cross-contamination, especially if you’re highly sensitive to certain foods.
Meal prep
During the festive season, there tend to be many dinners that you need to attend, either with family, work, or friends. When you have a food intolerance, that can be a big issue. In dinners where you must come with some food, ensure you prepare something that doesn’t cause your food intolerance and only eat what you made. This way, you avoid the risks of intolerance symptoms.
Also, meal prepping at home ensures you can attend these events, not eat, and still have something to eat at home that you can have at the end of the night. This also prevents you from eating junk food during this period due to a lack of options.
Having food, you can eat at home without getting symptoms also gives you something to look forward to and prevents you from eating what’s available at Christmas dinners. It can be easy to give in to eating what others are eating even though you know you’ll regret it later when you don’t have cooked meals at home waiting for you.
Be creative
You can still indulge in holiday favorites while keeping your intolerance in check. It’s best to buy in the vegan section if you have a dairy intolerance. If you’re gluten-free, you’ll find a nearby bakery that creates gluten-free recipes. When you look for these options when eating out or shopping, you can still indulge in your holiday favorites without further causing uncomfortable symptoms.
If you cook at home during the holidays, you can find many recipes online that match your festive food intolerances. You can use these to make delicious recipes you’d like to try out. Doing so will surprise you and your loved ones as you’ll come up with the most delicious dishes.
Focus on minimally processed foods.
It doesn’t matter whether you’re cooking at home or eating at a friend’s; it is the best way to stick to minimally processed foods. For example, instead of eating a casserole with many ingredients, whey only picks foods with minimal ingredients that are mostly fresh. Doing so can help you trace ingredients and prevent accidentally ingesting intolerant foods.
Eating elsewhere, you’ll be safe picking roasted veggies, fruit salads, and plain grains like rice. These are foods whose ingredients are easily traceable compared to other complex recipes. Pick a balanced meal while ensuring you know its ingredients, as they’re minimally cooked with very minimal ingredients.
Communicate
You shouldn’t be afraid to tell others you have a specific intolerance. Speaking up helps your loved ones prepare foods that are good for you and can’t cause you intolerance symptoms. You can also help explain to them about cross-contamination so they can avoid it when making your meals.
Loved ones would like to see you eat too at gatherings, and they would be more than happy to help you get food to eat too. If you feel they can’t do it sufficiently, you can offer to help them make the meal and ensure you create your meal.
Know your limits
If you can tolerate a specific food to a certain level, you must stick to that quantity and ensure you don’t get tempted to overindulge. Eating too many of those foods can often cause uncomfortable symptoms you want to avoid, especially during the festive season.
Final thoughts
Surviving Christmas with festive food intolerances can be a little hard, and these tips will help you better manage your festive season. The first step includes you are getting an Intolerance Test. This test will help you be aware of foods you must avoid, and you can easily manage your diet from there.
