If you have had a gastric bypass and wonder what to eat and what not to eat? Here is all you need to know.
Before starting with the main content, you must first understand what has happened to your gastrointestinal tract. A good portion of your stomach has been separated, and a small pouch is created using a smaller segment of your stomach. This leads to a decrease in the quantity of food you eat, and also the amount of ghrelin (a hormone that stimulates hunger) reduces; this makes you eat less food than usual. Eventually, you feel full in a small meal and consume very few calories. Therefore you lose a lot of weight at a perfect pace.
One must understand that every surgery comes with guidelines. So, a gastric bypass has strict rules, or the surgery can have severe complications. A Frisco gastric bypass specialist briefly explains all the guidelines, procedures, and how to prepare for the surgery.
What to eat and what not to eat after a gastric bypass:
- Solid food- After the surgery, the patient can only eat soft or liquid food as the passage between stomach and intestine is narrowed. Any solid food that is not entirely chewed can get stuck in the course and lead to complications.
- Nutritionless food- Food without nutritional value should be avoided entirely. The patient is already eating too little than the regular diet, and it is necessary to provide the body with all the required nutrition. If adequate nutrition is not achieved, the patient can feel dizzy, nauseous, or may faint.
- Vegetables and spices- Raw vegetables are hard to digest. Moreover, it is advised to peel vegetables and fruits before eating. Herbs are always difficult to digest; these should be added to the diet gradually.
- Avoid tea and coffee- It is recommended to avoid any beverage that contains caffeine. Caffeine is known to increase the secretions of acids in the stomach. This irritates the digestive tract.
- Alcohol consumption- Alcohol should be strictly avoided for the first six months after the surgery. If a patient wants to drink alcohol, they should prefer a low-calorie drink. Studies have shown that the patient metabolizes alcohol quickly and gets consumed promptly due to a smaller stomach. Moreover, patients take a longer time to get sober than usual.
If you have had a gastric bypass, your doctor must have informed you about what to eat and what to avoid. However, if you plan for gastric bypass surgery, you should keep all these things in mind.