If the stress of the holidays wreaked havoc on your gut, you’re not alone — 76% of Americans experience gastrointestinal distress during the holiday season, according to a recent national survey from Oshi Health and YouGov.

Digestive problems can be triggered not only by holiday overeating, but also by stress. Financial worries, disrupted routines, fatigue and interpersonal dynamics rank as some of the top causes.

“I see an uptick in psychiatry-related GI issues during the holiday season,” Dr. Claire Brandon, a gastrointestinal psychiatrist based in New York City, told Fox News Digital. “When you are undergoing stress, your body produces more corticotropin-releasing hormones, which sets off a cascade of the inflammatory system.”

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Stress hormones can act directly on the gut, leading to more digestive distress and pushing the body out of “rest-and-digest mode,” Brandon said.

“Stress activates the sympathetic — fight, flight, freeze — nervous system, which slows digestion,” added Dr. David Clarke, an Oregon-based gastroenterologist and president of the Association for the Treatment of Neuroplastic Symptoms. “That can lead to bloating, cramps, nausea and sometimes abdominal pain.”

The good news, doctors say, is that a few simple, realistic steps can help reset the digestive system after the holidays.

No. 1: Reset your sleep

Sleep plays a major role in gut health. Research shows that insufficient or disrupted sleep can change the composition and function of the gut microbiome, potentially affecting metabolic and immune factors that influence overall health.

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“When I travel and get derailed, my main focus is to reset my sleep,” Brandon said. She recommends reestablishing wind-down routines like deep breathing and progressive muscle relaxation.

No. 2: Eat balanced, fiber-rich meals

Fiber helps keep digestion moving and supports healthy gut bacteria, which can aid post-holiday recovery, experts say.

“The usual principles for supporting digestion apply here,” said Clarke. “Consuming a balanced diet emphasizing fruits, vegetables, whole grains and legumes; avoiding highly processed foods; and moderating alcohol will keep your gut microbiome happy.”

No. 3: Stay hydrated

Staying hydrated will also aid digestion, Clarke said, noting that light-colored urine is a good indicator of hydration.

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Traveling can be particularly tough on the gut, experts say, especially during flights where low cabin humidity causes the body to pull water from the bowels, leading to constipation. 

Drinking water before, during, and after flights — and limiting alcohol and caffeine — can help counteract dehydration-related digestive slowdowns. Experts also recommend sipping water consistently throughout the day.

No. 4: Resume regular movement

Both doctors agreed that exercise supports digestion and stress regulation, which are both key to gut recovery. 

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“Going on walks can be enough to help with this, but if you have space to do more, including some gentle stretching, that can be a huge help,” Brandon advised.

No. 5: Reduce stress gradually

Stress management plays a critical role in gut health, and experts say that small, consistent habits can help ease gastrointestinal symptoms.

Brandon recommends calming the nervous system with breathing or grounding exercises and slowing down at meals. 

“If you’re constantly running on fumes, on a layover in the airport, eating high sugar and doing things off your routine, expect a few disruptions with your gut,” she said. “Reframe it as something that you can reset when you get home.”

No. 6: Skip cleanses and detoxes

Clarke says that detoxes and cleanses are not necessary and can actually be harmful. Instead, he recommends sticking to the basics — including hydration, balanced meals, regular sleep and movement.

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Doctors say the gut is designed to recover on its own in response to consistently healthy practices rather than extreme resets.

While short-lived symptoms can improve within hours and are usually temporary, experts say lingering or worsening issues shouldn’t be ignored.

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“If you are back home and struggling to feel your usual baseline while back on your routine, it’s probably worth checking in with your physician,” Brandon advised.

Regular exercise may do more than strengthen the heart. It could also reprogram the nerves that control how the heart beats, new research has found.

The discovery could eventually help doctors better treat common conditions such as irregular heart rhythms, chest pain, angina and stress-related “broken-heart” syndrome, according to scientists at the University of Bristol in the U.K.

The study, which looked at lab rats trained over 10 weeks, found that moderate exercise does not affect the heart’s nerve control system evenly. Instead, it produces distinct and opposing changes on the left and right sides of the body. a split researchers say has gone largely unnoticed until now.

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“The discovery points to a previously hidden left–right pattern in the body’s ‘autopilot’ system that helps run the heart,” Dr. Augusto Coppi, the study’s lead author and a senior lecturer in veterinary anatomy at the University of Bristol, said in a statement.

“This could help explain why some treatments work better on one side than the other and, in the future, help doctors target therapies more precisely and effectively,” Coppi added.

After 10 weeks of aerobic exercise, the researchers examined the animals’ heart control nerves and found left–right differences that did not appear in inactive rats, according to the research published in the journal Autonomic Neuroscience in September.

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On the right side, the nerve hub that sends “go faster” signals to the heart developed many more nerve cells, suggesting increased wiring. On the left side, however, the number of nerve cells did not rise as much. Instead, the existing cells grew significantly larger, indicating a different kind of adaptation.

The findings show that exercise reshapes the heart’s nerve control system in a side-specific way rather than affecting both sides equally, the researchers said. Understanding that process could help doctors better target treatments, especially for patients who cannot exercise or whose symptoms persist despite lifestyle changes.

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Researchers compared the nerve clusters, known as the stellate ganglia, to a “dimmer switch” that fine-tunes how strongly the heart is stimulated. That fine-tuning is important because overstimulation of these nerves is linked to chest pain and dangerous heart rhythm problems.

The findings are early stage and based on animal research, however. So, they do not prove the same effects in people. More studies are needed before they could affect patient care.

Researchers say future studies will explore whether similar left–right nerve changes occur in people and whether they could help explain why some heart treatments work better on one side than the other, potentially paving the way for more precise, personalized care for angina and heart rhythm disorders.

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The study was conducted in collaboration with researchers from University College London, the University of São Paulo and the Federal University of São Paulo in Brazil.

The findings add to growing evidence that regular, moderate exercise benefits the heart in ways scientists are beginning to understand better.

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Fox News Digital has reached out to the study authors for comment.

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