Reducing the size of the stomach through surgery changes your digestive tract. It makes your stomach tiny compared what it used to be. That means your digestive processes will be permanently altered. You must make adjustments in what you eat, how much you eat, and even how you eat.
These adjustments are necessary to make sure you don’t suffer from Dumping Syndrome, which happens when food passes into your small intestines too quickly. This has unpleasant side effects that can give you diarrhea, vomiting, dizziness, and sweating. Eating properly after stomach reduction surgery is also important in order for you to receive proper nutrition and not suffer from any deficiencies.
For the first couple of days after your stomach reduction surgery, you will not be allowed to take any food at all. This allows your stomach to heal and rest. You will begin to take in liquids on the third day. This includes semi-solids like creamed soups, but they must be eaten at room temperature. You will consume only liquids for another two days.
For the next three to four weeks, you will eat a pureed diet that consists of foods that are liquid or have been processed into a consistency of a thick liquid. After that, you are ready to advance to soft foods for a period of eight weeks. This includes foods that are tender like cooked vegetables and ground meat.
This progression from liquids through soft foods takes around twelve weeks. During this time, you must eat many small meals each day. In the beginning, you may need six meals a day, and then as you can eat more, decrease gradually to where you are eating three meals daily. You will be provided with a diet plan to follow to ensure that you get plenty of protein from sources like eggs, cheese, meat, and yogurt. You should be ready to return to eating solid foods three months after your stomach reduction surgery.
Stomach reduction surgery reduces the size of your stomach so that it holds approximately one ounce of food. By the time you are ready to resume eating solid foods, you should be able to hold up to 1 1/2 cups of food at a time. However, you must not eat to the point of feeling full. Stop after you have eaten the amount prescribed for you or you may not lose as much weight, and you may suffer the consequences of pain and vomiting.
Stomach pain and vomiting can be triggered by eating foods that are high in fat and sugar. To avoid this reaction, eat and drink slowly, do not drink liquids with your meals, and avoid junk food that is loaded with fat and sugar like ice cream, candy, and soda.
Chew your foods thoroughly, until they are of a pureed consistency. If you have a tough piece of food, spit it out rather than swallow it. Stomach reduction surgery leaves you with a very narrow opening in your stomach that may become blocked with large chunks of food. When this happens, you may experience pain and vomiting.
Some foods may cause adverse reactions after you have had stomach reduction surgery. These include but are not limited to bread, pasta, milk, soft drinks, meat, and raw vegetables. Discomfort can be in the form of stomach pain and nausea. Avoid foods that cause reactions. You may be able to add them back into your diet later.
Since your eating patterns change, and the amount you eat is reduced, you should take vitamins and minerals in the form of supplements. Even if you eat a healthy diet, you may experience deficiencies because your body is not able to absorb as many nutrients from your food after stomach reduction surgery. You doctor or dietician will advise you on the type of supplements needed, but they generally include a multivitamin, calcium, B12, multimineral, and vitamin D.
Your diet will change radically after you have stomach reduction surgery but the payoff will be worth it when you see the pounds fall away. Your new way of eating, due to surgery, will result in a rapid weight loss that would be nearly impossible to achieve through dieting alone.
Tags: Dumping Syndrome