Festival guide
Diwali without acidity: a guide for your stomach and liver
Diwali week brings boxes of mithai, bowls of namkeen, card parties, late dinners and, for many, more alcohol than usual. Every year, this is when gastroenterologists see a rise in acidity, bloating, loose motions from stale or adulterated sweets, gallstone attacks and pancreatitis. A few simple habits let you enjoy every day of the festival and still feel well.
In short
Never start the day with sweets on an empty stomach, keep to one or two pieces at a time, choose roasted over fried snacks, and finish dinner early. Buy khoya, paneer and mithai from trusted, licensed shops and refrigerate them. Avoid binge drinking, and if you have fatty liver, gallstones, past pancreatitis or diabetes, plan ahead.
Through the festival week
Dhanteras and before
Shopping and cleaning
- Sweets are bought in bulk and stored for days, so check where they come from
- Long days of cleaning and shopping lead to skipped meals and then heavy evening snacking
- Keep regular meals, and carry a fruit or roasted chana when out
Diwali night
Puja, feast and parties
- The biggest meal of the year, often late at night
- Sweets, fried snacks and alcohol together are the commonest trigger for acidity and pancreatitis
- Eat dinner by about 9 pm, and walk for 15 to 20 minutes afterwards
Govardhan to Bhai Dooj
Leftovers and more feasts
- Leftover sweets and namkeen are eaten for days
- Stale khoya and paneer cause food poisoning
- Share or give away extra boxes instead of finishing them
Common problems and what helps
Acidity and heartburn
Sweets on an empty stomach, fried snacks, late heavy dinners and alcohol all relax the valve at the top of the stomach.
What helps
- Eat a proper meal before sweets, not sweets instead of a meal
- One or two pieces of mithai at a time, after food
- Dinner by about 9 pm, and wait 2 to 3 hours before lying down
- Cut down tea, coffee and fizzy drinks through the week
- If you take acidity medicines regularly, keep taking them as prescribed
See a doctor if acidity does not settle within a few days, or comes with difficulty swallowing, vomiting or black stools. Chest pain with sweating or breathlessness is an emergency, not acidity.
Bloating and constipation
Lots of maida, fried food and sugar, little fibre and water, and less activity during the festival.
What helps
- Add salad, dal and a vegetable to every festive meal
- Drink water, chaas or nimbu paani through the day
- Choose fruit and roasted makhana or chana between meals
- A walk every day, even on Diwali
See a doctor if constipation lasts more than a week, or comes with blood in the stool or severe pain.
Loose motions and food poisoning
Usually from stale or adulterated khoya, paneer and milk sweets, or food left out for hours.
What helps
- ORS after every loose stool, and light food such as khichdi and curd rice
- Throw away sweets that smell sour, feel slimy or look mouldy
- Refrigerate milk sweets within 2 hours of buying
See a doctor the same day for blood in the stool, high fever, vomiting that stops you keeping fluids down, or very little urine.
After drinking
Binge drinking at parties strains the liver and can trigger acute pancreatitis or gastritis, especially with fatty food.
What helps
- Avoid binge drinking: four or more drinks in one sitting
- Eat before drinking, and alternate each drink with water
- Skip sugary mixers and fried snacks with drinks
- If you have any liver disease or past pancreatitis, do not drink at all
Severe upper belly pain spreading to the back, with vomiting, after a party is not 'just acidity': go to the emergency department.
Food safety this Diwali
Demand for khoya, paneer and sweets peaks during Diwali, and so does adulteration. A few checks protect your family.
Khoya, paneer and milk sweets
Buy from trusted shops, check that the box shows an FSSAI licence number and a 'best before' date, and be wary of unusually cheap khoya. At home, a few drops of iodine on a little khoya turning blue suggests added starch. Keep milk sweets in the fridge and eat them within 2 to 3 days.
Silver vark and colours
Real silver vark is fine in small amounts. Very bright, unnatural colours on sweets are best avoided.
Dry fruits and namkeen
Throw away nuts that look mouldy, discoloured or taste bitter, as mould can produce aflatoxin, a liver toxin. Packaged namkeen is very salty, which matters with high blood pressure, heart or liver disease.
Leftovers
Cooked food left at room temperature for more than 2 hours can grow germs. Refrigerate promptly and reheat until steaming hot.
Get help straight away if you have
- Severe upper belly pain spreading to the back, with vomiting
- Vomiting blood, or black, tar-like stools
- Vomiting that does not stop, or passing very little urine
- Chest pain with sweating or breathlessness
- Yellow eyes, or confusion and sleepiness in someone with liver disease
- Severe pain under the right ribs after a heavy meal, with fever
Call 112 or go to the nearest emergency department. Do not try to manage these at home with antacids.
Who should plan ahead
Most people can enjoy the festival with a little care. Some conditions need extra attention during Diwali week.
Diabetes
Sugar can rise sharply over several days of sweets and late meals. Keep sweets to a small piece after a meal, choose dry-fruit or less-sugar options, check your sugar more often, and do not skip your medicines. 'Sugar-free' sweets still contain fat and calories, and some cause gas or loose motions.
Fatty liver and other liver disease
Avoid alcohol completely. With cirrhosis, keep salt low, which means very little namkeen and packaged snacks, and keep to small, regular meals.
Gallstones
Large, fatty meals are the commonest trigger for gallstone pain. Keep festive meals moderate and avoid heavy fried food late at night.
Past pancreatitis
Alcohol and very fatty meals can bring on another attack. Avoid alcohol completely, and choose lighter festive food.
Acidity, IBS and older adults
Smaller portions, early dinners and regular meal times help. Older adults should keep up fluids, as dehydration and constipation are common during busy festival days.
What to eat this Diwali
Festive food can still be balanced: enjoy the sweets you love most, in small amounts, alongside normal meals.
Eat more
- Your favourite sweet, one or two small pieces, after a meal
- Roasted makhana, chana and a small handful of nuts instead of fried namkeen
- Dry-fruit, fruit-based or home-made sweets with less sugar
- Salad, dal and a vegetable with every festive meal
- Water, chaas, nimbu paani and green tea
Cut down
- Sweets on an empty stomach
- Deep-fried snacks again and again through the day
- Alcohol, sugary mixers and colas
- Late, heavy dinners
- Packaged namkeen and chips
Good to know
- Use a small plate at parties and take one round of food, not three
- A 15 to 20 minute walk after the main meal helps digestion and sugar
- Gift dry fruits, fruit baskets or plants instead of more sweets
- Share leftover sweets instead of finishing them over a week
A simple Diwali day
- Morning
- Water first, then a fruit or a few soaked almonds with your tea
- Breakfast
- Poha, upma, besan chilla or a stuffed roti with curd
- Lunch
- A normal home meal: roti or rice, dal, a vegetable and salad
- Evening puja
- One or two pieces of prasad or mithai, after a light snack such as fruit or chana
- Dinner
- The festive meal by about 9 pm: fill half the plate with vegetables and salad first
- Night
- A short walk, and no lying down for 2 to 3 hours after dinner
After Diwali: reset your gut
After a week of rich food, go back to simple home meals for a few days: dal, roti or rice, vegetables, curd and fruit, with plenty of water and a daily walk.
Do not 'detox' with juices, laxatives or fasting. The liver and gut recover on their own with normal, balanced food.
If acidity, bloating, pain or a change in bowel habit continues for more than two weeks after the festival, or if you have any warning sign, get checked.
Common questions
Can people with diabetes eat sweets on Diwali?
A small piece after a meal is usually fine for people whose diabetes is well controlled. Check sugar more often, keep up your medicines, and avoid sweets on an empty stomach.
Can I drink alcohol if I have fatty liver?
It is best not to. Alcohol and fatty liver together speed up liver damage. Choose non-alcoholic drinks such as nimbu paani or coconut water at parties.
What should I take for acidity after a heavy meal?
An antacid occasionally is fine. Needing it often is a sign to change meal habits or see a doctor, rather than taking more tablets.
Are sugar-free sweets healthier?
They have less sugar but often as much fat and as many calories. Some sweeteners, such as sorbitol and maltitol, cause gas and loose motions in large amounts.