“Fear of Bloating” in Las Vegas (Health Update)

This post, aptly titled, is about probably the biggest beauty dilemma I’ve faced during my vacation: bloating! It’s been awful. Foods that I could normally get away with — including anything dairy or higher in sodium — now cause me to bloat something terrible for the entire day. I think it has something to do with the lack of humidity out here, and my body feeling the lack of moisture. So what does it do? Retain water (pretty much clinging to it for dear life).

Fortunately I’ve found some ways to counteract bloating, and I wanted to share them with you.

• Chewing gum? Break the habit. It’s ironic that I rarely chew gum, but it’s one of the first things that I purchased out here. Did you know that chewing gum causes you to swallow more air? That air becomes trapped in your stomach temporarily, causing you to bloat. The pleasure I got from chomping on gum was not worth it!
• Drink more water. If your body thinks it’s low on water, it will hold on to it. I’ve been trying to remember to drink more water, especially since it’s so dry out here.
• Pay attention to the foods you eat. A primary antagonist for water retention is SALT. Sodium is in pretty much everything we eat that is not fresh or prepared without it. I’m trying to cut down on processed and fast food intake and drink water throughout the day, especially with my meals.If you, like me, have some intolerance of lactose or dairy products, it may be helpful to…
• Take an acidophilus supplement. I’ve been taking acidophilus for a couple months now and I’m pleased with how it works.  Poor digestion of dairy from foods can lead to bloating. Acidophilus helps to stimulate healthy bacterial growth in your digestive tract which helps regulate digestion. It can be found in foods like yogurt and kimchee, but for me it’s easier to take it in supplement form. Fortunately I brought some acidophilus along for my trip.
• Get your fill of B vitamins. A B-complex supplement will help process and metabolize the foods you eat, which can relieve water retention. You can find B-complex in drugstores; I usually stock up at CVS. Also, vitamin B-6 taken by itself relieves hormone-related bloating (B-6 has always been my secret weapon for PMS).
• Eat more slowly. I didn’t know eating slowly and taking time between bites keeps you from swallowing excess air, but I read that it does.

I feel sort of like a hypochondriac in that every little thing that’s “wrong” with me, I’m hopping on my laptop to do research on how to remedy the issue.

This was my face yesterday, then today. I’ve definitely lost some water retention, mostly by drinking lots of water.

Naturally I want to look my best, so bloating is no bueno! Hope these tips will help you, too.