If your gut still feels a little off after Christmas, it’s not in your head – with all the festive eating, drinking and celebrations, your microbiome likely took a sudden detour. And while the holidays may feel like a distant memory, without the right support, your digestion can still be catching up weeks later.
Our holiday routine is often drastically different from everyday life; more sugar, more saturated fat, more alcohol, fewer vegetables, fewer whole grains, less sleep, less exercise, and meals eaten later and larger than usual. From the gut’s perspective, this is a killer combination. The microbiome is far more reactive than you may realise; shifts in diet and lifestyle can cause an immediate change in our gut bacteria, and cause a shift towards microbes that thrive on quick energy sources like sugar and fat, often at the expense of fibre loving, anti-inflammatory bacteria that help keep digestion smooth and resilient. These same bacteria also tend to promote inflammation, further compounding the issue. All of these signals influence how fast food moves through the digestive tract, how well nutrients are broken down, and how tightly the gut barrier holds together.
The result isn’t permanent damage, but it is highly disruptive, and unless you took proactive steps to get back into balance, it’s not uncommon to be feeling the effects weeks or even months later.
Here’s what might be happening inside your gut – and how to fix it.
Fibre Intake Drops:
During the holidays, many of us swap veggies and whole grains for rich, refined foods. This can mean less fibre reaching the large intestine, where beneficial microbes ferment it into short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) like butyrate, key compounds that nourish colon cells, support the gut lining, and help regulate inflammation. When fibre drops, SCFA production does too, which can weaken gut health and slow digestive efficiency. (1)
What to do:
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Focus on high fibre foods (like beans, legumes, vegetables, nuts and seeds). If you need a boost or are having a hard time digesting high fibre foods, try Essential Fibre+ for a month to build your tolerance back up and give your microbes some love.
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Ultra-processed foods tend to be low in fermentable fibre and high in emulsifiers and additives that can disrupt the gut lining and microbial balance.
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Re-centre meals around whole or minimally processed foods allows beneficial bacteria to regain ground.
Gut Barrier Gets Temporarily “Leakier”
Rich, high-fat foods and alcohol, both staples over the holidays, can reduce the integrity of the gut’s epithelial tight junctions (the “seals” between cells). When these seals loosen, bacteria, food particles and toxins can slip through into circulation, triggering mild immune activation and inflammation often perceived as bloating or discomfort. (2)
What to do:
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Give your gut a break from deep fried foods and alcohol. Try bone broth, natural fermented foods, and functional herbs like ginger and turmeric.
Digestive Enzymes Get Overwhelmed:
Big, heavy festive meals demand more bile and pancreatic enzymes to break down fats and proteins. Although the body can ramp up secretion, this system isn’t designed for constant overload. When enzyme capacity hits its limit, digestion slows, contributing to reflux, delayed stomach emptying, and that characteristic “brick” feeling after a big meal. (3)
What to do:
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Add 1-2 tbsp of of raw apple cider vinegar before your main meals.
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If you need stronger support, try Digest + Debloat, for a dose of digestive bitters and herbs that stimulate enzymes, reduce feelings of bloat, and calm the gut.
Motility Slows Down:
Gut motility, the rhythmic movement that pushes food through the digestive tract, is tightly regulated by the enteric nervous system and influenced by stress, hydration, sleep, and routine. Holiday disruptions (late nights, stress, dehydration) can confuse this system, slowing transit through the intestines and leading to constipation or irregular bowel movements. (4)
What to do:
Give your body time to stimulate its own rhythm; the migrating motor complex (MMC) needs a few hours without food to do its thing, so leave 4 hours between main meals and try extending your overnight eating window. Increasing fibre (and water) can also help.
Alcohol Influences Gut Bacteria and Inflammation:
Even short-term increases in alcohol intake can disrupt microbial diversity, favouring less beneficial species and irritating the gut lining. Alcohol and its metabolites can directly damage epithelial cells and promote inflammatory responses, contributing to a more inflammatory gut environment. (5)
What to try:
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Foods like yoghurt, kefir, sauerkraut, kimchi, and miso introduce live microbes and, just as importantly, help shift the existing gut ecosystem toward a more balanced state. These foods can increase microbial richness and support anti-inflammatory pathways, which you can focus on while you take a break from alcohol.
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Sorry to say, but when your gut isn’t happy, alcohol is the last thing it needs. Try pressing pause and swapp for raw kombucha (which doubles as your dose of fermented foods) while you work on the other tips to help bring your gut back into balance.
Sugar Spikes Feed Gas-Producing Microbes:
Holiday desserts and sweet treats deliver bursts of simple sugars that get rapidly fermented by certain gut bacteria. This can fuel rapid gas production, leading to uncomfortable bloating and pressure especially in people sensitive to fermentable carbohydrates (like FODMAPs). While some fermentation is healthy, excessive simple sugars skew the process toward gas rather than beneficial SCFA production. (6)
What to try:
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The more sugar we eat, the more our microbes want, so try swearing off added sugar for a few weeks and replacing it with whole food versions that have less of an impact.
How to get your gut back into balance:
The best results always come from a complimentary approach using dietary changes and supplementation, so focus on the key takeaways (fibre, whole foods, ferments, and meal timing). If you need an overhaul, this is our favourite protocol for microbial balance and gut harmony.
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G.I Cleanse - 2 caps with breakfast - this helps to balance the good and bad bacteria.
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Biome Restore - 1 cap at bedtime - live bacteria to encourage the good bacteria to thrive, with a good dose of Lion’s Mane to support the gut-brain axis.
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Essential Fibre+ - 1 serving in 500ml of water first thing – this provides 7g of low FODMAP fibre to support regularity + digestive comfort
If you want to do a deep dive into your gut health, please book a complimentary consultation with our Head Of Nutrition. Book here
SHOP OUR GUT HEALTH COLLECTION
References
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Binienda, A.; Twardowska, A.; Makaro, A.; Salaga, M. Dietary Carbohydrates and Lipids in the Pathogenesis of Leaky Gut Syndrome: An Overview. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2020, 21, 8368. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms21218368
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Purohit V, Bode JC, Bode C, Brenner DA, Choudhry MA, Hamilton F, Kang YJ, Keshavarzian A, Rao R, Sartor RB, Swanson C, Turner JR. Alcohol, intestinal bacterial growth, intestinal permeability to endotoxin, and medical consequences: summary of a symposium. Alcohol. 2008 Aug;42(5):349-61. doi: 10.1016/j.alcohol.2008.03.131. Epub 2008 May 27. PMID: 18504085; PMCID: PMC2614138.
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Cagampang, F. R., & Bruce, K. D. (2012). The role of the circadian clock system in nutrition and metabolism. British Journal of Nutrition, 108(3), 339–352.
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Li J, Yu K, Sui X, Deng H, Leng Y and Liu T (2025) Gut jet lag: how circadian rhythm disruption undermines the Chrono-Microbiota-Motility axis and induces functional constipation. Front. Nutr. 12:1678482. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2025.1678482
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Bishehsari F, Magno E, Swanson G, Desai V, Voigt RM, Forsyth CB, Keshavarzian A. Alcohol and Gut-Derived Inflammation. Alcohol Res. 2017;38(2):163-171. doi: 10.35946/arcr.v38.2.02. PMID: 28988571; PMCID: PMC5513683.
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Savvidis, C.; Maggio, V.; Rizzo, M.; Zabuliene, L.; Ilias, I. The Gut Microbiota Axis in Social Jetlag: A Novel Framework for Metabolic Dysfunction and Chronotherapeutic Innovation. Medicina 2025, 61, 1630. https://doi.org/10.3390/medicina61091630
Disclaimer: The information presented in this article is for educational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose, prevent, or treat any medical or psychological conditions. The information is not intended as medical advice, nor should it replace the advice from a doctor or qualified healthcare professional. Please do not stop, adjust, or modify your dose of any prescribed medications without the direct supervision of your healthcare practitioner.
