Post Surgery Bariatric Diet
Bariatric Diet After Gastric Bypass Surgery
After bariatric weight loss surgery it is crucial to follow specific eating guidelines set forth by your bariatric surgeon or dietician. This will ensure that you heal properly and obtain adequate nutrition. Weight loss surgery can help you reduce unhealthy weight and body fat as long as the post surgery diet prescribed by the bariatric surgeon or dietician is followed properly.
In order to lose weight successfully and keep it off, lifestyle changes must occur. Ideally, your diet should have changed prior to bariatric surgery to begin getting in the habit of eating more protein, eating less and eating healthy. Immediately following bariatric surgery, your eating habits will drastically change in ways that will have a major impact on your life. It will take about 9-12 weeks for you to slowly progress to eating solid foods.
After bariatric surgery, you will always have to use supplements to provide the vital vitamins and minerals, protein and other nutrients that you'll no longer be able to absorb in your modified stomach and intestine. You must also realize that, for the rest of your life, protein will be your top priority when making food choices. The minimum protein requirements are 50-70 grams of protein per day. Ideally, you will need to get your calories over 700 and your protein over 100 grams per day as quickly as possible. It's usually not possible to consume that much protein from foods alone during the first month after bariatric surgery. Most bariatric surgery patients use liquid protein supplements or a diet like Medibar Diet during the first few months after surgery, and many continue to use them as a convenient source of protein for the rest of their lives. Some of the more popular liquid protein supplements used after bariatric surgery include Medibar Diet portion-controlled shakes, fruit drinks, hot drinks, smoothies, soups, and puddings.
Post weight loss surgery diet guidelines will vary by surgeon. Every bariatric surgeon does not perform the exact same procedure; therefore, the prescribed bariatric diet guidelines will be different for each surgeon and each type of weight loss surgery. It is very important to strictly comply with your surgeon's or dietician's recommended diet guidelines.
Following are some generally accepted post bariatric surgery guidelines a weight loss patient may be required to follow:
Gastric Bypass Bariatric Diet:
After gastric bypass surgery, your newly created stomach pouch, which can only hold about 3 oz., is healing. It is essential to follow specific bariatric eating guidelines that will ensure that you properly heal, while obtaining adequate nutrition. In most cases, you will need to follow a gastric bypass or bariatric diet for approximately three months. Once the pouch has healed, you'll still need to keep your portion sizes small and calorie levels reduced, in order to continue your weight loss. Your gastric bypass diet, which your surgeon or dietitian will create for you, typically involves a five phase plan. You will advance gradually through the phases, depending on your tolerance. Keep in mind, every person is different and will progress through the phases of the post surgery bariatric diet at a different rate:
1. Clear liquid diet - For the first one to two weeks after gastric bypass surgery, your most important goal is to keep well hydrated. Your aim should be to drink 64 ounces of fluids per day. Immediately after gastric bypass surgery, you will need to sip only clear liquids that you can see through. Avoid using a straw and continue to sip slowly throughout the day, 1 to 2 ounces over 30 minutes.
2. Full liquid diet - Within a week of bariatric surgery, you can add full liquids to your diet. Full-liquids are basically fluids you cannot see through. Remember to try and get in at least 700 calories and 120 to 130 grams of protein per day.
3. Pureed diet - As you start substituting pureed foods in place of liquids; remember to keep your protein intake to at least 90-120 grams. Pureed foods are foods with a consistency of apple sauce. Pureed foods contain no pieces or chunks. Incorporate high protein, pureed foods into your diet. To pur?, place food into a blender or food processor and add some liquid broth, skim milk or low calorie gravy. Try using Medibar Diet bariatric protein soups and broths to add protein to meals. Puree until smooth. Continue to drink plenty of fluid, however do NOT eat and drink at the same time. It is suggested that you stop drinking fluids 20-30 minutes before you plan to eat. After eating, wait 20-30 minutes before drinking fluids again. Pureed foods are usually eaten for three to four weeks, allowing the opening in the stomach pouch to heal. Remember to continue taking your vitamin supplements.
4. Soft foods, regular diet - By five to six weeks after surgery, incorporate soft foods with more texture into your bariatric diet. Soft foods should be tender and easy to chew, such as ground or finely diced meats, canned or soft fruit, cooked vegetables, rice, and noodles. During this diet transition, you will eat many small meals a day and sip water in between. Perhaps starting with six small meals a day, you will then gradually progress to four meals. Meals should include protein rich foods, such as lean meat, yogurt and eggs. You will usually eat soft foods for about eight weeks before progressing to regular texture foods, as recommended by your surgeon of dietitian.
5. A lifetime of healthy eating - After two to three months, you'll typically progress to eating regular foods - in taking three small meals and three healthy snacks a day. Take it slow. Advance to regular foods when you are ready. Don't rush! Your diet will be based on your tolerance. Meals will focus on lean sources of protein, fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Your surgeon or dietician will usually prescribe a reduced calorie diet (1000-1200 calories per day) to continue your weight loss. Continue to limit your intake of high-sugar, high fat foods that are loaded with calories, but devoid of nutrients. You'll also need to continue to take vitamin and mineral supplements for life, to compensate for the nutrients that you're no longer able to absorb through the bypassed parts of your stomach and intestine.
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