We could not be more excited about the return of festivals this year. But not all of us are looking forward to the possible sunburn, dehydration headaches, insect bites and….festival loos. We’ve quizzed our teams’ most experienced festival goers and combined some supplements and tips to come up with The Healthy Festival Toolkit. Hopefully this will go some way towards keeping you or any teenagers going for the first time feeling great and enjoying the best of this year’s festival season without any health issues.
The first item to pack is a reusable water bottle. Ideally a brightly coloured stainless steel one like one of our free Zooki bottles, which will be easy to find on the tent floor. Dehydration is the most common festival health issue and easily avoided if you make sure you refill the bottle at least 2 or 3 times a day. Both alcohol and caffeine are dehydrating, so keeping your water levels up is a must, in between those other drinks. First signs of dehydration are tiredness and headaches, so maybe set yourself some text reminders to drink water if you know you’ll forget otherwise.
We do know that some people avoid drinking water when they’re at a festival because they also want to avoid trips to the public toilets. Looking after your immune system in a packed public place is obviously important. Your secret weapon here is our 1,000mg sachets of vitamin C. Vitamin C is water soluble and has a relatively short lifespan once it’s inside the bloodstream. But while it’s there, it’s a powerhouse for both your energy levels and immunity. Either dissolve one in your water bottle every time you refill it; or pop a couple of pouches in your pocket and take one a few times a day. And if we haven’t yet convinced you how much you need vitamin C with you, it can also speed up that morning after recovery with its detoxifying liver support.
Even though you’ll hopefully be enjoying some sunshine while you’re outside, keeping your vitamin D levels topped up is another way to support your immune system. Our 3,000IU daily vitamin D sachet with added vitamin K is a great maintenance dose and like the vitamin C, can either be dissolved in water or enjoyed neat.
While we’re talking about sunshine, there’s always the danger that there might actually be too much.. Guarding against sunburn and using sunscreen daily is essential, but supporting your skin with daily collagen and vitamin C sachets can give you some internal protection against longer term sun damage.
Finally, we know the food and hygiene aren't always ideal at festivals, so taking one of our handy Gut Biome probiotic dispensers with you can give the friendly bacteria in your gut the extra firepower they need to help ward off any bugs or potential pathogens. You only take 1ml a day to top up 3 of the most important Lacto and Bifido strains that live naturally in our systems. As 70% of our immune system lives in the gut, it’s an easy way to support your health while you concentrate on having a great time.
