5 foods gastric bypass patients should not eat!!

Artile geared towards band patients, but it works well for all of us as well!!!)


Watching what you eat is important for anyone who wants to lose weight, but those with adjustable gastric bands need to be even more careful. These are five food categories that band patients should steer clear of:

Ice Cream

This tasty frozen dessert is high in fat and calories and should be a rare treat for anyone. However, for a gastric band patient, even an occasional serving of ice cream can have an adverse impact on weight loss. The average patient should consume about 1000-1200 calories per day. A half-cup serving of ice cream typically contains 275 calories and 15 grams of fat, but do you think the band will stop you at a half-cup? Think again. Ice cream passes through the band very easily, allowing you to eat well over half a cup at one sitting, which could mean up to 1000 calories or more. Let’s not forget about the enormous amount of heart-clogging saturated fat, either. So don’t fall victim to the ice cream temptation.

White Bread (Flour)

This can encompass a whole spectrum of foods, all of which are weight loss killers. Some of them do not pass through the band easily (doughy bread) and some pass through the band too easily (crackers, cookies). Consuming a highly processed white flour product is a complete waste of valuable “pouch space" for a gastric band patient. White flour is a whole grain stripped of its essential components, the germ and the bran (fiber), leaving only the endosperm. It is then “enriched" with vitamins and minerals because the endosperm is so nutritionally empty. White flour is also often treated with potentially unhealthy chemicals that whiten and mature the flour.

Many patients avoid white breads, pastas and rice because they can be painful when passing through the band. Most bariatric surgeons recommend avoiding white flour completely for at least the first year after surgery.

Creamy (High-Fat) Soups

Soups made with heavy cream should be avoided completely. These are extremely high in fat and calories and go through the band easily, which allows the patient to eat more of them at one time. Broth-based soups, especially chunkier soups full of beans and lentils, are acceptable as long as they provide a feeling of satisfaction for a few hours. So, if you see heavy cream as an ingredient in the soup you are about to eat, put the ladle down and choose a lighter meal.

Tough, Chewy Red Meat

Red meat can be a healthy addition to anyone’s diet. Unfortunately, most red meat is very hard to digest and does not pass easily through the band. The leaner red meats will have the word “round" or “loin" in their names, such as beef tenderloin or ground round. Less expensive red meats require a lot of chewing and still may not pass through the band once they are swallowed. Most patients choose to avoid chewy meat due to this.

A pound of beef tenderloin can cost $18 per pound, but most bariatric patients can only consume two ounces per sitting, which works out to $3 per serving.

High-Calorie Liquids

There are very rare cir****tances when a bariatric patient should consume a high-calorie beverage. Most of the time, these are completely useless and can hurt weight loss. Sports drinks and vitamin-enhanced beverages are usually high in sugar and calories and should only be consumed in extreme cases, such as after intense exercise. Simple, plain water is always the best choice.

Artificially sweetened drinks can increase appetite, resulting in a higher consumption of food, not to mention the questionable effects that artificial sweeteners have on our bodies. High-protein beverages such as skim milk or protein shakes can be counted by themselves as a meal or snack.

So what should you eat? A basic diet high in lean proteins (fish, chicken, low-fat dairy, beans), fruits, vegetables and whole grains should be the emphasis for good weight loss and overall health.

All very good advice....and things at least Barix preaches....however..most of this article was focused on the "gastric band" which is procedures such as lap band...granted...some pouches have problems with the tougher meats and doughy breads as well.

And as far as high fat high sugar items...for those that dump....it's a no brainer.

Thanks, Mary - always good to have a reminder in black and white!

Pam

Good post - even tho I'm an RNY patient I can't eat most of those things anyway, but a reminder is always a good thing. The one thing I probably do get more of then I should is the white flour in things like crackers and such, so I'm really concentrating on getting whole wheat products. I stay away from bread and heavy pasta - hurts my pouchie. And we all know sugar hates me now - that's a good thing!

Great reminder! Thanks Mary! I must say that I do eat red meat but I chew it really really well and it has always been my "safe" food, something that I have never had a problem eating. I don't really do ice cream - if I do it is sugar free and low fat, most of the time home made with soy milk. White four things are my weakness. I am doing better avoiding them now  - but it is a constant struggle!

I crave ice cream, but I've made Norm promise to limit me to only have it once a month.    It's working so far, but it's certainly a trigger food for me,     How do you make your homemade????

I see your wedding banner. LOL So where`s the reception and what`s on the menu?

Thanks for the post.  This is a great reminder for all of us.  One of the things I consider as part of the High Calorie Drinks is alcohol.

I was amazed at how much  some gastric bypass folks drink (alcohol).  Further - knowing how the  alcohol effect is exaggerated by 100 fold due to our new mechanics - yet some are still drinking to excess (from time to time) and to the point of not remembering their actions.

I'm not suggesting that we stop living or that the 'occasional' drink is a bad thing, but limits should be observed.

For me personally - its a head thing.  Presurgery I would drink on weekends (not every weekend  - but 2 weekends a month).  Post Surgery (13 months and counting) I have had a total of 2 drinks  - and both times I beat myself up so badly over the empty calories that I talked myself right out of asking for a second round.

I don't so much crave the other things.  Thanks again Mary for the post.

Kim Z

 Thanks for the helpful info, especially as it impact RNY folks.