protein shakes...are they a must????

Hello,i keep hearing on all the message boards that everyone is drinking protein shakes.My doctor never said anything about this.I was told to take my 2 multi vitamins with iron,b12 under the tongue,2 tums for calcum and im taking a hair and nail vitamin.Should i be worried about protien shakes too????I am 2 weeks post op(surgery was on oct 18)and any comments or sugestions to food right now would be a big help!!!Thanks for all the support of the message boards.Its a big help to read others success stories!!!

My doctor didn't recommend protein suppliments either, but I can tell you I lost ALOT of hair after surgery. It is supposed to help keep you from losing so much if any. Not to mention the overall health benefits. I have found the EAS protein powder you can get at Wal Mart is pretty good. The canned stuff you buy already mixed and ready to drink is way to thick for me and I personally can't drink it. But with the powder, I can put it in a blender with ice, skim milk and Folgers crystals to make a shake and I can control the consistancy. Believe me, as a woman it is a hard thing to feel like you are going bald! Luckily after almost 7 years post-op, most of it has grown back, but man was I scared there for awhile. Best of luck to you, and bottoms up with the protein shakes!

Catherine, it's all about what your doctor says you should do. Mine had us on supplements the second we got out of the hospital and then after about 3 weeks we were allowed to go to protein shakes. I am faithfully drinking two a day and get my protein first out of meals. I tolerate chicken, beans, cheese, milk, even beef without any problems. I'm lucky. I was slacking for a while on the shakes and was losing so much hair, I think probably 3/4 of what I had is gone. So I upped the protein two two shakes a day, religiously, and the hair loss has stopped. Now, some people start losing hair at three months out, I lost mine right away after surgery and it really didn't stop till I started pushing protein. I can not promise that it would do the same for you , since we are all different, but it's worth a shot if your doctor allows it?????? I 'm pretty picky on my protein, I can't stand any aftertaste, it gags me to no end, so I found only two so far that I can handle, Unjury ( at unjury.com ) and Matrix 5.0 ( do an internet search, you will find many places that highly discount Matrix 5 lbs bags, I got one at 28.00 the other day ! that's dirt cheap ! ) . So, ask your doc and see if he agrees with shakes. Take care and GOOD LUCK! Andrea RNY 6-23-04 334-244-140