The Diets to Live With after Obesity Surgery
People who have undergone obesity surgery usually see a very big percentage of weight loss. However, undergoing obesity surgery does not mean that you will be forever slim; in order to keep the weight off for the long term, the surgeon will be giving you instructions on how you should live your life in terms of eating habits, the diets to stick to, etc. What are the usual eating habits and diets that are recommended after your weight loss surgery?
Remember that most of the obesity surgery procedures have the effects of food amount restriction and mal-absorption which then means that your way of eating and the amount of food that you eat would have to change after your obesity surgery. The pouch attached to the upper part of your stomach as a result of the obesity surgery is tiny in size, while parts of your small intestine are actually bypassed. This means that strict dieting is a must if you really want to promote a ‘lifetime of weight loss.’
Your surgeon or a certified dietitian will give you instructions on the type of diet you should have, the amount of food you would have to intake regularly, etc. This strict diet is usually called the gastric bypass diet which aims not only to promote weight reduction, but also to keep the patient healthy. Following the recommended diet after undergoing obesity surgery also ensures that the healing process would be quicker and stress is reduced.
Here are the usual phases of the gastric bypass diet:
Liquid Phase — this diet phase that the patient has to go through after having obesity surgery consists of both fluid and food that are at room temperature and are liquid in form containing water e.g. milk, cooked oatmeal, juice, etc. This phase usually lasts for 1-2 days.
Pureed Phase — this contains food that have a pasty or thick liquid consistency and are not composed of any chunks or pieces of solid food. The surgeon usually advises the patient to go on a pureed diet for more than two weeks up to a month after the obesity surgery.
Soft food Phase — patients who have undergone obesity surgery have to go through this diet phase that consists of easy to chew food like fresh fruit, cooked veggies, etc. This phase usually lasts for two months before patients are allowed to eat regular foods.
The fact that there have been revisions made to your digestive system after the obesity surgery means that there are also significant changes to be made to your meal and drink. To make sure that you are still getting the nutrients that you need despite of the change in your diet, try eating small amount of foods and also eat and drink at a much slower phase than your phase prior to the obesity surgery. Remember that a successful obesity surgery also requires living with the necessary diets given by your surgeon or dietician.
