'Tis the season for bloating. Starting with the onslaught of Halloween candy and ending -- hopefully -- with a New Year's celebration, many of us are about to eat, drink, party, indulge, and ditch our dutiful exercise routines. We'll be stuffed, stretched, filled to the brim, and -- yuck! -- bloated. I hate that.

On any given day, women are especially vulnerable to bloating, because gastrointestinal ills occur up to six times more often in women than in men, say the experts at Redbook magazine. Give us girls some holiday cheer, and the tummy troubles really ramp up. We can minimize the stress on our systems, though, by understanding why we bloat and how we can prevent those bothersome bulges. Check out these three thoughts.

• Holiday over-do in progress. Raise your hand if you over-do it at holiday meals. Many of us do, with hard-to-digest, rich, fatty foods -- gravy, stuffing, pie with whipped cream, even peppermint -- which cause indigestion. Redbook says you should ease your symptoms with an antacid such as Pepto-Bismol, Maalox, Tums, or Rolaids. I say head this stomach stuff off by avoiding the over-do. If you simply must indulge, make it small -- think you can succeed at the three-bite rule? Also, keep your body upright for a few hours after a feast, instead of curling up for a nap.
• More eggnog and hot cocoa, please. If your belly aches and bulges after these treats, it's probably because you can't tolerate lactose, the main sugar in dairy products. The trick for a settled stomach is to find your own lactose limit and respect it. You can also opt for lactose-reduced milk.
• Belly up to the bar. Besides the overload of calories you'll consume by knocking back too many cocktails this season, you'll likely be left with a bad hangover after an alcoholic indulgence. And maybe a scary condition called acute pancreatitis, caused by an excess of alcohol. One symptom is bloating -- others include pain in the upper abdomen that worsens and wraps around your back. See a doctor right away if this occurs. A better option than alcohol -- since we women don't tolerate alcohol as well as men -- is sparkling water. It's better for the diet overall.
  

Ready to rid this holiday season of all bellyaches? Try these five: Snack before you head out to a bash so you'll be less likely to chow down while there, commit to daily exercise to stimulate your system to digest food properly, stick to water as your beverage of choice whenever possible, and breathe -- close your eyes, inhale, exhale, and defuse the holiday madness that is about to surround you.