Lifestyle

Diet Progression After Bariatric Surgery

April 11th, 2019

Lifestyle

Many patients have heard that there's a diet progression after bariatric surgery (and possibly before). A lot of patients report being nervous about the liquid diet. But why is there a diet progression? Why do you have to follow different diets? Let's take a look at a brief description of the common diet progressions and why they're recommended. This is the one time we readily use the word "diet" as a diet is a short-term change to your eating pattern. The "diet" that is being recommended long-term; we typically prefer to call a healthy eating plan instead of using the word diet. The diet progression allows patients to move through different phases, eventually eating solid foods again. The amount of time in each stage may vary according to each surgeon or dietitian's recommendation as well as each individual patient. Be sure to follow the exact recommendations of your program. Some surgeons have their patients follow a special diet pre-operatively. This diet may include either a...

Can You Have Bariatric Multivitamins with Calcium?

April 25th, 2018

Lifestyle

With so many different types of multivitamins out there, it is hard to know what is the best product for you as a bariatric surgery patient and what your body can actually absorb. Unfortunately, not all companies (including many over-the-counter brands and some bariatric vitamin brands) follow the rules of how the body absorbs various nutrients. The multivitamins some of these companies create might include nutrients that cannot be absorbed when taken together or they might include nutrients that need to be provided within a certain ratio for optimal health and in order to prevent deficiencies. Specifically, one of the questions I get asked quite a bit is, "Should my multivitamin contain calcium?" Of course, the answer to this question is not a simple "yes" or "no" and a few questions must be asked before an answer can be provided. The first question that must be asked is, "does the multivitamin also contain iron?" If the multivitamin contains both...

Fiber After Bariatric Surgery

March 22nd, 2018

Lifestyle

Following a healthy eating plan high in fiber is a constant recommendation many of us hear frequently throughout the year. But why? And does this apply to a bariatric surgery patient? There are plenty of reasons to consume fiber as part of your healthy eating plan. Below are a few of the reasons to include fiber-rich foods as part of your healthy plan. When eating high fiber foods, they typically require more chewing. This helps you slow your pace of eating and gives your body time to realize how full you really are, by preventing overeating. Also, high fiber foods take longer to break down in the digestive system, which makes you feel full longer. High fiber foods may contain fewer calories for similar volumes of foods that are not high in fiber, which also assists in maintaining your weight. Soluble fiber, the kind found in beans, oats, flaxseed, and oat bran, may help lower total blood cholesterol levels by lowering low-density lipoprotein or cholesterol levels. Many bariatric surgery...

Iron Deficiency after Bariatric Surgery

May 6th, 2017

Lifestyle

Have you ever found yourself chewing cups of ice throughout the day? Many bariatric patients report this behavior after their bariatric surgery. While chewing ice does not necessarily mean you have low iron levels, it does warrant getting your iron levels checked. Iron is a key element in the metabolism of all living organisms and helps to make up hundreds of proteins and enzymes. Iron has many functions, but below are some of the key functions of iron. There are many symptoms related to iron deficiency including fatigue (low energy levels), increased heart rate (especially during physical activity session), heart palpitations (especially during a physical activity session), rapid breathing on exertion, decreased athletic and physical work capacity, the inability to maintain a normal body temperature, brittle and spoon-shaped nails, sores at the corners of the mouth, taste buds diminish (are not as sensitive), sore tongue, some forms of hair loss, pica (the eating of non-food substances,...