Upset Stomach Remedies

Many natural supplements are helpful for digestion, others can help treat symptoms such as diarrhea & constipation, and modern research has identified bacteria that might be able to help you avoid getting an upset stomach in the first place.

Here, we take you through each of our digestive health remedies and explain what they do, how they do it, and when they might come in handy.

Natural Digestive Remedies

Activated Charcoal

Activated charcoal, the same material used in most air and water filters, is medically proven to reduce flatulence and is a popular remedy for digestive complaints such as indigestion, acid reflux, heartburn, and diarrhea.

Due to its innate negative electron charge and complex porous structure, activated charcoal moves through your body attracting positively-charged toxins and impurities (oxidants) and trapping them until they are expelled from your system, without having been absorbed.

These toxins and impurities, left unchecked, are what can make your body a negative environment where pathogens (harmful microorganisms) thrive, which in turn causes yet more toxins to be released, making matters even worse.

Many digestive issues, and indeed other health complaints such as skin rashes and inflammation, do not only occur when we are overrun by these foreign invaders but can get even worse as your immune system fights them off. This is due to the wave of toxins that are released by dead and dying bacteria, fungi, and other micro-organisms.

Charcoal is also nutritionally neutral, so it's super-safe and you can take as many capsules as required (within reason!). However, you should not take charcoal within 2 hours before or after taking any other supplements or medication, because it may well reduce their efficacy. Also, make sure you drink plenty of water with it to avoid dehydration and distribute it around your body.

VitaBright's 2004mg per serving medical-grade Activated Charcoal provides 250 easy-to-swallow capsules, with no binders or fillers.

Holiday Health Tip: The ultimate detox supplement; charcoal would be a strong addition to the natural remedy kit for many holidaymakers. Not least,  in addition to being a handy way to treat wind and diarrhea, it's also useful for clearing your system of toxins after illness, infection, or a heavy night out!

Magnesium Citrate

Magnesium Citrate is a highly absorbable form of this essential mineral, in which it is estimated up to 50% of people in the UK could be deficient, and is widely used to fortify a person's dietary intake to improve sleep, maintain energy levels & support healthy brain & muscle function.

However, when taken in high doses with lots of water on an empty stomach, it's also an outstanding natural laxative. Taken this way it will be absorbed very quickly, which relaxes your bowels and pulls water into your intestines, encouraging natural bowel movement.

Comparatively gentle compared to some very high-strength laxatives out there, but completely safe and highly effective in most cases; magnesium citrate is a clean, healthy way to treat constipation, soften stools and maintain regularity.

VitaBright’s 1480mg Magnesium Citrate provides a 4-month supply of 240 easy-to-swallow capsules, with no binders or fillers.

Holiday Health Tip: 2 common complaints about long plane journeys are not being able to sleep and feeling constipated. Magnesium Citrate can help with both, making it the right electrolyte to take on your flight.

Prebiotic & Probiotic Supplements

Prebiotic and probiotic supplements do not treat your digestive symptoms directly. They work by promoting the success of 'good' bacteria in your gut microbiome to displace 'bad' organisms which, left to their own devices, would continue to multiply and release more and more unwanted toxins into your system.

Probiotics refer to these 'good' bacterial strains which benefit your health. Each strain performs a slightly different role, but in most cases, they thrive on breaking down the fibres and sugars that we cannot digest ourselves, and more often than not this process releases natural chemicals that are beneficial to us, such as vitamins.

Prebiotics refer to the various natural fibres and complex sugars in foods that our bodies cannot digest without the assistance of probiotic bacteria. Introducing more of these substances to your diet will provide structure and fuel to boost the procreation of good bacteria in your gut, increasing the benefits. 

Combining probiotics with prebiotics makes them more effective, so any good supplement will hopefully contain both already, but it can never hurt to eat highly prebiotic foods such as fruit, vegetables & wholegrains with probiotic foods such as yogurt, miso, pickles & sauerkraut at the same time.

Although please be warned, whilst the vast majority experience no side effects, for some people this rebalancing process can cause some minor upset the first time you take a new probiotic. These, often quite windy, effects are very short-lived and could be considered a positive sign that the probiotics are making beneficial changes to your microbiome, but it can take a couple of days to adapt.

For a more gentle introduction, you can take a half-dose for the first couple of times, then increase to the full dosage from there. Also, whilst taking it with water on an empty stomach may boost the speed of absorption, taking it with a meal will reduce the likelihood of any such side effects.

Of course, there's always a small chance that any particular food or substance won't agree with any individual and probiotics are no different, so if symptoms persist for more than a couple of weeks with no sign of improvement, then of course desist and try something different.

Multi-strain Probiotic Bio Cultures

Taken daily, multi-strain probiotics will help your digestive system to stay more robust and adaptable, increasing nutrient absorption and vastly improving how well you break-down and digest certain foods such as lactose, gluten, and other common digestive irritants. 

Delivering a potent dose of as many different research-backed strains as possible, multi-strain probiotics are widely recommended for reducing symptoms from chronic digestive complaints such as IBS & colitis, and for restoring microbial balance after antibiotic courses.

VitaBright's Advanced Bio-Cultures Probiotic Complex provides 60 easy-to-swallow, vegan, capsules, delivering 45 billion CFU per 2 capsules serving and expertly formulated to deliver 17 research-backed probiotic strains alive, intact, and fortified with the prebiotic inulin to boost effectiveness.

Holiday Health Tip: Many of the digestive problems suffered whilst on holiday are due to your microbiome having to adapt to all the new substances and un-before-seen microbes it encounters. An established regime with a good multi-strain probiotic can help to make your system more robust to these changes.

Apple Cider Vinegar Probiotic

Apple Cider Vinegar is highly nutritious and contains polyphenols and acetic acid, which studies indicate can lower triglyceride levels and may promote fat loss and flatten blood-sugar spikes, reducing the risk of type 2 diabetes.

We've fortified this formula with sought-after probiotic bacterial strains: Lactobacillus Acidophilus and Bifidobacterium Bifidum - two of the most heavily researched strains available with proven benefits for rebalancing the gut microbiome.

We've also included the prebiotic inulin to help these friendly bacteria, and those already present in your gut, to procreate more rapidly and prosper for longer - increasing benefits to metabolism, digestion, and general wellbeing.

VitaBright's ACV complex is scientifically formulated to deliver a potent 1000mg of Apple Cider Vinegar alongside complimentary stomach-settling nutrients to support digestion, help balance blood sugar levels & improve fat-burning metabolism. Each bottle provides a 3-month supply of 180 easy-to-swallow, vegan capsules.

Holiday Health Tip: If you like to binge out on carb-heavy meals once in a while on holiday, and most of us do, then you might want to pack some apple cider vinegar capsules - taking ACV a short while before a high-carb meal will help to flatten off the resulting blood sugar spike and reduce the negative impact on your health. There you go, what a good excuse!

Cranberry Probiotic

Studies indicate that a 50/50 blend of probiotic strains Lactobacillus Rhamnosus & Lactobacillus Reuteri stands out as the most effective known probiotic formula for fighting urinary tract infections and improving vaginal flora. This is because they help balance your internal microbiome and actively attack E. Coli - the bacteria responsible for over 85% of UTIs.

VitaBright's Cranberry Probiotic Complex combines a super strength 35,000mg dose of concentrated cranberry with a potent 250% NRV of vitamin C and is enhanced with a powerful 5 billion CFU blend of advanced probiotics. Each bottle provides a 75-day supply of 150 easy-to-swallow, vegan-friendly capsules.

Holiday Health Tip: Nobody wants a UTI when they are away on holiday, however, these probiotic strains have also been proven to hugely benefit digestive health. Cranberry is also a potent antioxidant and prebiotic in itself, making this the ideal choice if your holiday eating habits do not feature much fruit & veg, whether you're worried about UTIs or not...