Good Meal Plan post op.. What should you eat?

[ZAP]

I'm a big believer in eating the right food to correct and help our bodies.  I'm assuming you should eat a lot of protein and water to heal the tissue damage from surgery?   
Can some one post (doc) what we should eat a lot of and what foods (alcohol?) we should stay away from?

I had a entire article on how some foods, promote inflammation, slow down healing etc.   Maybe some of you can fill us in on this?

Thanks

[jjmclain]

Make sure  you get enough iron because the surgery, due to blood loss, can leave you feeling light-headed and weak at times. I was put on iron for a month.

[Tin Soldier]

I was thinking more about the intial recovery from surgery and all the meds and I was going to say yogurt, yogurt, and more yogurt.  Although when it comes to longer term healing of soft-tissue and bone, I don't really know.  I'm not sure if surgeons say much about that.  I like the idea of lots of protein for rebuilding muscle and other tissue.  For bone, I would think Ca would be good.  Leafy greens?  I know you tend to get more beneficial Ca out of leafy greens as opposed to supplements, but I don't know how that all correlates.  Plus you also get the Fe.  Interesting topic, and I'm curious to hear other's thoughts.

[curt]

Dr. Gross advises calcium and Vitamin D, so those veggies, dairly etc., yogurt should be excellent choices.   Curt

[Pat Walter]

Hi

I don't have a diet, but the things that do help are protein, fruits and veggies along with your stool softner and lots of water.  Some people lose blood, so iron might help.  Most people don't lose a lot of blood unless they are bi-lateral.

One thing to remember is that we not only have a physical problem to heal, but also an emotional problem too.  So sometimes, it is just eat what you feel like.  Some people have nausea, others tummy problems from bowl problems, night sweats, etc.  So it sometimes comes down to - what taste good?

If you find a good diet, I am sure others will appreciate seeing it.

Pat

[Anniee]

I think Pat hit the nail on the head here - post surgery, I just ate what I felt would taste good to me at the time.  I am usually very diet conscious, and eat mainly lean meats, low fat dairy, vegetables, fruits and whole grains, but many of these things just did not appeal to me for quite a few weeks after the surgery.  Don't know if this was emotional (I did not have any tummy problems) or a result of the various drugs given during surgery and the ones I had to take for several weeks afterwards.  Anyway, I ate things I never touch normally, like potato chips, french (white) bread and ice cream. Also pounds of grapes.  They tasted good too! :)  Fortunately, I could not pig out enough to gain weight.

Once I got back to feeling more normal, I went back to my regular diet, but tried to make an extra effort to eat lots of leafy greens for the vitamin K, which helps your bones.  Also, I do like a good glass of red wine, which I went back to having with my dinner after I had been off the narcotics for a few days.  Before that, wine did not appeal to me or agree with me.  In addition, I do follow Dr. Gross's recommendations and take a calcium supplement with vitamin D, and a multi-vitamin.

I would say that if you feel like eating a super healthy diet (which I think would consist of lean meats, vegetables, fruits and whole grains) right after surgery, that would probably be optimal for healing.  However, in my case, I seem to have healed just fine in spite of eating some junk foods for the first few weeks.

[mslendzion]

What about diet changes pre surgery?  I heard that you should cut out nitrates.

[ZAP]

I was thinking more about the intial recovery from surgery and all the meds and I was going to say yogurt, yogurt, and more yogurt.  Although when it comes to longer term healing of soft-tissue and bone, I don't really know.  I'm not sure if surgeons say much about that.  I like the idea of lots of protein for rebuilding muscle and other tissue.  For bone, I would think Ca would be good.  Leafy greens?  I know you tend to get more beneficial Ca out of leafy greens as opposed to supplements, but I don't know how that all correlates.  Plus you also get the Fe.  Interesting topic, and I'm curious to hear other's thoughts.

Sorry for my ignorant s, but whats good about yogurt? 

[Anniee]

I assume that recommendation is based on the calcium and protein content in yogurt.

Dr. Gross recommends a healthy, balanced diet like South Beach, plus 2000 mg of calcium, 1000 mg of vitamin D, and vitamin K (cannot remember the dosage for that).  The recommendation is to get the calcium, and vitamins D and K from food, but I think that would be difficult, at least for me, unless my whole diet consisted of dairy products and kale!  So I take supplements to make sure I get the recommended amounts. 

[Cantab]

If your Dr has presribed Coumadin vitamin K may not be a good idea.  My visiting nurse told me that I should avoid foods high in vitamin K because that is what coumadin does, block viatmin k.   from the coumadin web site

Eat a normal, healthy diet with the same amount of foods that contain vitamin K; ask your doctor or pharmacist for a list of foods that contain vitamin K. Be sure to talk to your doctor before you make any changes in your diet or try to gain or lose weight. Do not eat large amounts of leafy, green vegetables or certain vegetable oils, such as soybean or canola, that contain large amounts of vitamin K. Avoid juice or products that contain cranberries. Ask your doctor about eating licorice while taking warfarin

So many things to think about,  I eat yogurt for breakfast but add protein powder, wheat germ and flax seed.  I also have a banana for the added potassium, heard that this helps with muscle cramping

[hipnhop]

I think protein shakes are great. Protein builds muscle. After surgery we experience some muscle loss so I think it's a good idea. Just don't use too much Vanilla Ice Cream