If you are among the thousands of Americans who are considering LAP-BAND surgery as a means of reaching your weight-loss goals, you need to make a lifetime commitment to change: Change in your eating behaviors and change in your nutritional habits. Surgery alone will not shed your excess pounds, but rather proper eating habits combined with the surgery are key to your success.
Importance of Proper Nutrition
When you first undergo the LAP-BAND procedure and it has created your smaller stomach, or pouch, you will advance slowly through various stages of a post-op diet. This diet is meant to ensure you receive the nourishment you need, you heal properly, and that you avoid any unnecessary complications. The first stage has you on a liquid diet; the second moves you up to pureed foods; the third adds soft, or ground foods; and finally you graduate to solids. Your doctor will monitor your healing through these stages, which last between four and eight weeks, depending on the individual.
Eating a Balanced Diet
Once you have begun eating solid foods, it is important to eat nutritious foods. The surgery minimized the size of your stomach, which means it now can hold only about 1/4 cup of food at each meal. Because the quantity of food you can hold is reduced, it is vital that the foods you do consume have a high nutritional value. Choosing items from each of the four food groups will provide you with the correct amount of vitamins and minerals your body needs each day.
Dairy Group
Foods in the dairy group are high in protein--this is essential for proper healing of your wound, as well as the reproduction of body cells. Choices include plain yogurt, custard, cheese and skim milk. You should consume two servings from this group every day.
Fruits and Vegetables
Fruits and vegetables contain the vitamins and minerals your body needs to regulate its normal processes, such as bowel movements; to boost your immunity to infection; and to help prevent against nutritional deficiencies. You should eat fresh fruits or vegetables that have been cooked, or you can drink fruit or vegetable juice. The recommended amount of servings each day is three.
Meat
Not only is meat high in protein, it is also high in iron, a mineral your body needs to prevent you from becoming anemic. Your choices in this group include lean meat, poultry, fish, liverwurst, eggs and cottage cheese. You should consume three servings of meat per day.
Grains
Grains provide the right amount of iron and B vitamins your body requires to resist infection and prevent nutritional deficiencies. You can achieve the recommended number of servings each day, which is two, by eating foods such as oatmeal, saltine crackers, and rice noodles or macaroni.
Liquids
Liquids are an important part of your diet, and the recommended amount is four to six glasses per day. Sip them slowly to prevent overfilling your pouch, and drink them 30 to 45 minutes before or after a meal. Drinking with a meal or immediately after can push the food through your pouch too quickly, leaving you feeling hungry too soon. Be sure not to drink high-calorie beverages, as your system will absorb these, which may actually result in weight gain instead of loss. You should also avoid drinking high-carbonated beverages; these can cause your pouch to swell, resulting in pain and discomfort.
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