Tips to Stay Healthy When Traveling

It seems the only time we ever eat fast food is when we travel, and it is simply the result of poor planning on our part. Traveling can be a stressful event for the body and mind so it's important we not neglect wise nutritional habits. Doing so can put you in jeopardy of getting sick. There was a time years ago when getting a really bad cold just seemed to be a part of the "home for the holidays" winter trip. We hated being under the weather and chalked it up to other travelers on the plane combined with the dramatic temperature change. Sure, those things are a real part of why we got sick, however, upon closer scrutiny, we came to realize that we changed our eating choices while traveling. We were hurting our body's natural defenses by bombarding my system with loads of "comfort" foods. Cookies, pies, potato chips, and fast food just to name a few indulgences. Once we learned about the effect sugar has on our immune system, we opted to experiment on our next several trips. The results were amazing. We minimized our consumption of sugar and fast food and kept our stress level lower. We came and went without so much as a sniffle. This made us much more inclined to travel as we knew we'd come home feeling good. We continue this practice today and we have become pretty adept at planning what we will eat while traveling. It all begins with your carry on. We always throw several snack bars in there along with some ziplock bags of raw nuts. Here are a few "must haves" for your carry on:

• Low sugar snack bars (NuGo Free or KIND)

• Raw nuts (Unsalted Almonds or Cashews)

• Organic fruit

• Nitrate free turkey jerkey or turkey sticks (Tom Tom's - Wellshire Farms)

• Xylitol mints and gum (Xyloburst or SPRY)

• Large bottle of water

Of course these won't completely satisfy your hunger, however, they can hold you over on the plane and getting through the airport. Most importantly, they'll keep you from becoming famished which will lead to poor decision making regarding food. We wish you safe and healthy travels!!

#healthytravel #travelsnacks