A Healf guide: Festival Season

Summer festivals are in full swing, and Glastonbury is just around the corner. Making your wellbeing a priority can feel like a chore but is incredibly worthwhile. 

We've shared our guides to keeping healthy over the summer and our Healf pre and post alcohol guide. However, we emphasise that like everything in wellbeing, there is no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to drinking alcohol in the right way. We define a healthy amount and cut-off number differently depending on our biological sex, age, health, and body composition. In addition, wellbeing experts have long disputed the link between alcohol and health. 

Although some studies promote the health benefits of alcohol such as red wine, others, as well as experts, claim that no amount of alcohol should be consumed.

Festivals are powerful experiences for the MIND. Embrace the power of music, human connection and time spent with friends but if you're looking at what to pack to feel on top of your game, here's how.

It’s so easy to dehydrate at festivals especially when dancing for hours to your favourite band or walking in the heat. Research shows that alcohol and caffeine consumption contribute to further dehydration. Not to mention the loss of water through sweating if you're dancing in the heat.

The solution is simple to keep sipping plenty of water throughout the day. Consider buying bottles of water at the venue or filling up a few bottles of your Healf water bottle with filtered and remineralised water to steer clear of poor quality water.

Replacing essential minerals lost through sweat with electrolytes helps to get the most out of the water you consume.

Healf Hack - take a small bag in your backpack filled with Electrolyte Sachets to add to your water throughout the day.

Simplicity is the best option when it comes to what you’re choosing what to drink. Afterall, at Healf we try to steer clear of a ‘cocktail’ of ingredients that we do not understand.

1.  Cocktails  – unfortunately these are filled with additional ingredients and sugars from flavourings, syrups and condiments. Simplicity is key & the bitter, the better! Drinks that are on the rocks’, spirits with soda water and hard seltzers (unsweetened) avoid this.

2.  Mixers  – if choosing a spirit-based drink, consider what you’re mixing your spirit with. ‘Pop soda's’ such as Coca Cola, Lemonade, Cranberry Juice and are high up on the sugar scale and can lead to a crash. Opting for ‘soda water’ and fresh lime (rather than lime cordial) is a much kinder choice.

3. Enjoying drinks WITH meals  - it is obvious that enjoying food with alcohol is preferable, especially now that we know the importance of protein for supporting our bodies with alcohol. Similarly, the subconscious act of eating whilst drinking will ultimately result in drinking slower & acknowledging/noticing when you don’t want or need another drink.

On the note of eating with your drinks, what should we opt for? Many alternative festivals have a wide array of healthy food options to choose from. For example, Glastonbury famously had the Thali Café with their tasty vegetable packed options last year.

• Opt for high protein options  - in our younger years, we were told that carbohydrates were the answer to 'soaking up the alcohol’, but sadly that’s not the case. 
• Alcohol  can cause glucose levels to drop to an unhealthy range which is worsened by drinking on an empty stomach. Hypoglycemia can cause dizziness, confusion, and fainting. It is imperative to know the signs of hypoglycemia and take action to prevent it. Similarly, opting for a high protein option before drinking will support the liver's natural detoxification process of alcohol, which requires essential amino acids from protein to detox appropriately.
• Take snacks - Protein Bars are incredible to add to your backpack to have throughout the day to keep you going. Whilst they're also great for keeping your   protein levels up where they need to be to fuel all that dancing and walking.
• Make the most of line-waiting time - Even if you practice yoga or meditation regularly, it's probably not top-of-mind right now. Downtime during festivals or bathroom breaks between acts is actually an ideal time to remain in tune with your body and be aware of hunger signals.

The fact you’re here says that you want to support your wellbeing through your fun weekend. Preparing your body ahead of time can be incredibly supportive, as well as having that ‘when I get home’ stack ready and waiting too.

Before the weekend:

• Consider your intention - what do you want out of the festival? To have fun and dance the night away with friends and family, to experience your favourite band? How do you feel about drinking and the food options available to you? If you’re someone who doesn’t want to drink, having responses in mind like “thank you. I’m done for the night” is more than fine. 

• Be prepared - some festivals will allow for you to take your own drinks in and if you’re opting for a mindful, sober session then  here are our favourite alternatives.  

Your Supplement Stack

• ZBiotics® Pre-Alcohol Probiotic - an alcohol-recovery probiotic that is patented and genetically engineered. Designed to replicate the natural liver process, but it is in your gut. By bioengineering probiotic bacteria to produce the same enzymes your liver already produces. That enzyme breaks down acetaldehyde – an unwanted byproduct of alcohol that forms in your gut when you drink.

• biOptimizers Magnesium Breakthrough  - unlike other magnesium forms on the market, this blend contains high levels of each magnesium type. Nourishing the nervous system, skeletal system and promoting recovery. Taken at the end of the night for optimal utilisation.

• Altrient Glutathione & Vitamin C  - these are handy as the sachets can be used and thrown in the bin, no supplement bottles required. Glutathione is the master antioxidant to tackle oxidative stress caused by alcohol, late nights and different dietary choices. Whilst Vitamin C is also an antioxidant, the liposomal form also supports immunity and helps in combating unwanted coughs and colds.

• Electrolytes  - as we touched on earlier, a good quality dose of minerals will work to rehydrate your body on a cellular level.

• Liver Support - your liver will want an additional hug too. Consider herbs such as  Milk Thistle , Dandelion or  NAC (N-acetyl cysteine)