WYOMISSING, Pa. — The tenth annual Guts & Glory Digestive and Wellness Expo will be held on Saturday, Sept. 23, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Penn State Berks. The expo was founded by the nonprofit organization My Gut Instinct and is sponsored by Penn State Berks, Penn State Health St. Joseph Medical Center, Penn State Health and Highmark.
Guts & Glory is a free, large-scale, celebration of health and wellness for community members of all ages. More than 100 vendors will be in attendance, spanning all dimensions of health and wellness to engage attendees with interactive demonstrations. The event includes a farmer's market, educational booths, fresh locally sourced food made by local chefs, fitness zones, yoga, massage, and wellness experts, just to name a few of the attractions. It will also include a 20-foot "MEGA Colon" exhibit, which provides visitors with an interactive, educational experience of stepping through a large-scale model of the human colon that highlights common health conditions. In addition, special commemorative 10th anniversary "Guts & Glory" t-shirts will be for sale.
The mission of the event is to celebrate the spirit of health and wellness and to encourage visitors to find inspiration and to take an active role in their own well-being. This event is designed to educate those who are curious about health and wellness, elevate the understanding of the health conscious, and raise community awareness of the importance of digestive health and overall wellness through the free exchange of information and resources.
“We aim to provide people with health knowledge and empower them to take action to live healthier lives and become beautiful from the inside, out, because we believe beauty starts on the inside,” said expo founder Dr. Aparna Mele. “We also want to show the community that eating and living healthy is not only easy to do, but it can also be fun and delicious too.”
Mele is a board-certified gastroenterologist with U.S. Digestive Health, based in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania. She came to the field of medicine with extensive experience in international relief work overseas and is actively involved in local philanthropic work directed towards patient education and promotion of societal health.
The Guts & Glory Digestive and Wellness Expo has enjoyed extensive media coverage and public accolades for its health movement in the community. Numerous community sponsors and volunteers make the event possible.
Currently, the expo is filled to capacity with vendors. Those interested in becoming vendors should send an email to info@mygutinctinct.org to request participation and to determine if space is available. Event-day volunteers can register on-line on the My Gut Instinct website. For additional information, as well as healthy recipes and inspiration, visit @mygutinstinct and on Facebook and @gutsyandmini on Instagram. Media can contact Mele for more information at 610-374-4401 ext. 1003, or via email at info@mygutinstinct.org.
About My Gut Instinct Inc.
The mission of My Gut Instinct, a non-profit organization, is to collaboratively inspire and empower the community to embrace health, and to eat and live better for longevity. The organization aims to increase awareness of preventable diseases that impact community health. Their focus is on preventing these avoidable diseases through motivating the community to make healthy choices, promoting cancer screenings, and raising awareness for various health concerns.