List of Foods Never to Eat After Gastric Bypass Surgery: Reducing the Risk of Complications By Altering Your Diet
Gastric bypass is an operation for the treatment of morbid obesity. It generally results in a smaller stomach, with the person feeling full quickly, thus reducing the food and calories consumed in the process. This eventually leads to a greater weight loss. After a gastric bypass, there are certain foods that a person has to avoid. Here is a list of the foods never to eat after gastric bypass surgery.
Sugary Foods
Sugary foods belong to the list of foods to avoid after gastric bypass. These include cookies, sodas, ice creams, milkshakes, sweetened juices, and most sweet desserts. A gastric bypass diet should be low in sweets and sugar for three reasons. First, sugary foods have lots of fats and calories that even when taken in small amounts, can make weight loss difficult. Second, eating sugary foods can lead to a chemical reaction, especially after the person undergoes gastric bypass, called dumping. Lastly, sweet and sugary foods lack the vitamins and minerals required by the body for building muscles and eliminating body fat.
Fatty Foods
Fatty foods can be difficult to digest after a gastric bypass. Too much fatty food can delay the emptying of the stomach and result in gastric reflux. Fatty foods can also cause nausea, diarrhea, and stomach discomfort. The rule is to keep fat intake to not more than 35 grams per day. It is also recommended to avoid foods such as:
- Sodas
- Butter
- Cream cheese
- Mayonnaise
- Avocadoes
- Nuts
- Olives
- Potato salad
- Peanut butter
- Margarine
- Snack crackers
- Sausage
- Fried food
- Doughnuts
- Potato chip
- Oily foods like gravy and butter.
Fiber
Foods rich in fiber, such as beans and raw vegetables, are also a no-no for a person who has undergone a gastric bypass. This is because there is limited space in the stomach to store bulky foods, and the amount of gastric acid for digesting the food is also minimal. Thus, there is a risk the fiber can get stuck in the stomach, or impede the opening of the small intestine.
What To Eat
If there are certain foods to avoid after gastric bypass surgery, there are also foods that should be eaten by those individuals. These are foods rich in protein, vitamins, and minerals. Protein is required by the body for building new tissues.
After a gastric bypass, it is important for the body to have adequate amounts of protein so wounds heal properly and quickly. Foods rich in protein for those who have undergone gastric bypass are chicken and turkey without the skin, lean red pork, fish, eggs, and cottage cheese. These foods are also low in fat. Likewise, vitamins and minerals are required by the body after a gastric bypass. Some of the nutrients needed by the body include vitamin B-12, iron, calcium, and folate.
Through a gastric bypass, the risk for heart disease and diabetes, are generally decreased. Many patients often lose weight after the procedure, and are able to maintain that weight loss by avoiding the foods never to eat after gastric bypass.
References
WebMD: Gastric Bypass
Jackson Siegelbaum Gastroenterology: Gastric Bypass Diet
