Duodenal Switch patients usually notice significant dietary restriction in the early months after surgery, similar to gastric bypass patients. The duodenal switch diet will then adjust as the pouch matures.
After 9-12 months
The gastric sleeve stretches slightly and patients find it easier to tolerate somewhat larger meal volumes, with a fairly broad variety of foods. Patients are able to eat dense proteins and dense, fibrous vegetables. Steak and asparagus usually present no difficulty, and it is unusual for bread and pasta to get stuck. The higher the fat content of the food that is eaten, the more bowel movements they will have, as fat is not completely absorbed. Similarly, the more carbohydrate patients eat, the more bowel movements and gas they may have, as it is the undigested carbohydrate in the colon that is broken down by bacteria into gaseous by-products.
At One Year
After the process of “pouch maturation” is complete, most patients eat about 1/2 to 2/3 of the amount of food each meal that they ate before weight loss surgery. This modest restriction provides patients with the ability to eat fairly dense foods and allows patients to adjust to a high protein diet easily. Most patients are very good at listening to their bodies, and will naturally gravitate to a healthier diet, as it is the healthier, minimally processed diet, that results in fewer ill consequences in regards to bowel habits.
Supplements
It is necessary to take nutritional supplements after the operation. These usually include:
- Multivitamins
- Iron supplements
- Calcium with vitamin D
- ADEKs (fat-soluble vitamins)
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