During clear liquid days what about jus****er?

I am not understanding the clear liquids involved in the first few days after surgery.  Why would anyone eat sugar free jello (yuk) or any other fake food I am reading and hearing people talk about? What good do they do?  I can understand pure & real chicken or beef broth but not the artificial store bougth liquid sodium called chicken or beef broth.  Why wouldn't plain water and homemade chicken or beef broth be recommended & sufficient?  I just don't get the point of having weight loss surgery then putting fake foods into the body?  They are not nutritious nor do they help recover.  Maybe this could be explained.  I am going to make some of my own bouillon using very little salt. I want to drink that and plain water and not have any of that other poinsonous crap.   I want to be healthy and with only a small stomache after banding I don't want to put anything in it that isn't going to benefit me and my healthy new beginning.   I wouldn't eat sugar free jello (or any kind of jello for that matter) for any reason so I just can't understand the rationale in prescribing this sort of garbage to someone for their first few days aftter surgery as a beginning to their path to normal weight life.

Other than the tedium of plain water, broth is fine (homemade is good, but there are some healthy ones on the shelf as well).  Bouillon is usually not suggested because it has so much sugar.  Sugar free jello actually has some protein in it.  My surgeon is a stickler about eating healthy, but still recommended these for me.

I wouldn't eat sugar free jello even if I lived in Utah the jello capitol of the world. 

I don't put sugar in my bouillon or consomme so why would that be not suggested?  I am getting seriously concerned about the credibility of the process. No wonder people's hair falls out if they eat crap like this.  Is this what the wls and lap band surgery is about?  *I may have made the wrong choice in thinking wls and banding was a good idea.  From what i am understanding from reading around here is that peeps are losing weight mostly because they are basically fasting on sugar free nutrient free fake foods like jello, sfpops, and protein bars and shakes.  I am disillusioned.

We have the same surgeon and therefor the same NUTS.  I think you might want to address your questions to them.  My understanding is the first few weeks are simply time to allow the pouch to heal without much emphasis on anything more than maintaining hydration.  The use of foods you view as non-healthy are offered just as a break from the tedium.  You may be one tha****er is sufficient for.  I know I am 3 weeks out, have lost 16 pounds, feel great, haven't lost hair one (although it is early for that) and trust my surgeon and her staff.  If you are questioning the validity of the process, this is the time to do so.  I wish you the best.

I agree with quiltz. You should talk to Dr. Blackstone if you have these concerns. She is very serious about you making healthy choices post surgery. She dosen't want you drinking anything with artificial sugars in it. The only reason you can have sugar free jello is that it has some protein in it and it can help with nausea and low blood sugar. If you suffer with nausea and low blood sugar you might find your willing to put those things in your body to relieve yourself of the sickness. Then again you could be one of the fortunate ones that doesn't have any sickness. You are lapband I'm not sure if that is easier on your stomach then the RNY.  I couldn't stand the taste of the jello but I forced a few table spoons down each down just to help with the nausea the first few weeks. Your questions are absolutely valid. More importantly I think you need to seriously ask yourself what you are putting in your body right now. And are you able to stop putting in your body without the surgery? I thought the same thing when I had the surgery. I wasn't going to eat anything bad after I had this surgery. i wasn't going to eat anything artificial. I was going to be a complete health nut. Well that wasn't realistic. However, compared to what  I was putting in my body presurgery I have made dramatic improvements. Yes my hair fell out, but it is growing back. My skin has improved. My coloring has improved. I breath better. I feel better. I look better. I have more energy. I am more healthy. Yes I still eat fat, and sugar, and things that are not good for me. But I eat them in moderation. I eat them occasionally. I don't eat fast food every day. Prior to surgery I don't think I had eaten a vegetable in years. Now I eat them every day. And I take vitamins every day (which lets face it, we should have been doing anyways). I could go on and on. Point I am trying to make is...... You need to decide for You what is healthier... what you are doing now, or some sugar free jello.

I eat way too much for my activity level. Mostly I eat healthy weighed and measured meals but I am hungry all the time so sometimes I eat a huge steak and 4 or 5 pieces of fruit. Then when I have ice cream I eat way too much of it. I ve only had ice cream twice this summer but lets put it this way, I could have eaten those portions over a month and considered them normal portions. I am way out of wack when it comes to portions unless I weigh and measure. But the hunger when I do that is overwhleming my efforts therefore I opted to go for wls lap band.

I eat a lot of veggies.  So one of my concerns is will I be able to eat plenty to stay vivascious (sic)and energized?  I see there has been lots of success on this site but there are not very many participants that are on here after goal so I haven't heard any long term after weight loss hope on the site and I am looking for all the hope I can muster.

I have really thin fine hair that was really thinning out until I got on thyroid meds becuase of a hypo tyroid.  Now it is back to some thickness but really if I lose any hair my scalp will really show a lot and I am afraid of that.

I am not a fast food junkie or a potato chip muncher. I have never bought food at the movies. Mostly I just eat very large portions of food to quell that incessant hunger in my stomach. It isn't head hunger either. I have a lot of hope that the band will serve me well. I just don't want any surprises.  Luckily I am not a milk shake person because I hear that milk shakes are the downfall of the lap band tool.

I guess if the sugar free jello is to ameliorate nausea then I understand it.  I just don't want to replace poor eating habits with fake eating habits if you get my drift. 

I understand your concern about the hair. I was on medication prior to my surgery that made my hair fall out (not all of it), but some of it. So I was worried about losing more of it. luckily I had a lot of hair to begin with. I did lose a lot of hair. Then again I had a lot of malnutrician (not sure how to spell that word) as I had a stricture for 4 months and threw up almost daily. I don't think lapband has the same malnutrician problems as the RNY does but I could be wrong. Have you talked to Dr. Blackstone as to how the thyroid is going to affect your hunger after surgery? It is my understanding that makes you gain weight correct?  Most that I know that gain weight after surgery (long term) are the ones that don't deal with the issues that they gained the weight in the first place. The surgery isn't a permanent fix. It is just a tool to help you lose the weight. We still have to do the work both physically, and for most of us most importantly mentally. Many don't do that mental work and they either gain the weight back or they pick up another bad habit. I heard it was like 30% of woman who didn't gain weight back became addicted to something else, like gambling, sex, alcohol. Sad. It is a long process, and the surgery isn't a quick fix. As far as medical conditions that make you gain weight that is a topic I haven't read to much about here. It would be great for you to share more of your story with us. I know you are looking for hope. Hopefully the surgery can be the answer for you. I know how frustrating it is to have a medical problem. Hopefully this can be your resolution. I absolutely understand what you mean by not wanting to replace poor eating habits with fake eating.

Yep the jello is due to protein and low blood sugar -  its just a choice you have while you heal, Dr Blackstone, Randy, Cassie  or anyone else is not going to make you eat it , You can do Isopure  and other stuff to stay hydrated  and  keep protein levels up !   YOU WILL HAVE CHOICE's I would suggest reading your binder carefully and write down any questions you may have, Remember  after surgery  your taste buds may change. Mine did , Dr Blackstone and all the local Dr  promote eating healty nutritious foods, You not going to be eating in bulk any longer- so you do want good quality foods, Plus when you follow the eating rules - you will fill up so much faster. Its a great tool that yoru going to receive..   Best of Luck !! Jeanna  RNY 7-07 down  139 since surgery  

I attend a 12 step program that addresses food addiction.  I think that attendance will be a good compliment to the band which I view as a tool just like making a food plan, exercise and a strong component of fun in my life. 

I take meds for my thyroid. I know this had a lot to do with my weight gain as the gain is in the past 4 years only. Prior to that I was always normal weight but couple the hypo thyroid with menapause and that is a perfect set up for weight gain. Once the weight started coming on my metabolism changed and I started craving sweets which I had never eaten in my life.  Then I went on optifast and after the optifast diet for 6 months or so I packed on 75 lbs so now I am approx at 100 overweight.  It is like lugging around two of me since my normal weight my entire adult life has been 130.  I must say this has been a real trial for me.  I just can't stand the physicality and immobility associated with obesity. It has really cramped my lifestyle and practically ruined my life.

I think it has more to do with giving some sort of variety in the early stages so that people do not go over a ledge with having the same 1 or 2 items every single day for a couple of weeks. I believe it is not meant as a long term solution.