Malnutrician

Has anyone had problems with malnutrition after surgery?  I am two years out and had a dr appt today and basically was told that my organs (kidney's, liver) were not functioning and it was like I had been starving for months.  I eat all day everyday, and a huge variety of stuff.

Hi,

I have never heard of this. Were you feeling any symptoms of anything wrong? Are you taking vitamins, have you had any checkups prior to this? What about bloodwork?

Angela

Diet's not enough. What kind of supplementation do you do?

Adding to Jupiter6's post, what surgery did you have?  It's not listed, but I'm assuming you had an RNY Gastric Bypass.  Please tell us what vitamins you take, what protein supplements you use, and give us an idea of what an average day would look like food-wise.  That would help us advise you, if you're looking for advice.  Also, if you could tell us when you have your labs drawn, that would also be helpful.

I had a DS, which is the most malabsorptive of the surgeries available today.  I take a fair number of vitamins, drink a protein shake daily, and eat a variety of foods whi*****ludes a lot of protein.  I've learned more about nutrition over the last 2 years than a lot of normies do in a lifetime.

yep big time!! It has been almost 2 years since I was hospitalized for it. At the time I was almost 4 years out. I hate to sound dramatic but it is dangerous and cause a host of medical issues that can change your life forever or even take your life.

As others have asked what supplements are you taking? Are you taking any? I hope that you are..please say that you are. If not you need to start getting some in you ASAP. Also I would think it would be wise to get in contact with your surgeon ASAP. You can not get all the vitamins and nutrients from food. I thought that since I was so far out and could eat almost normally that the vitamins didnt matter as much anymore. Boy was I wrong. I paid dearly with that stupidity.

OK EVERYBODY!!!  I use to take vitamins and I felt that since I was so far out that I didn't need them.  Actually to tell you the truth, just figured I would be just fine without I guess.

For the past six months I have medically gone through hell and back and got nowhere.  I was having bad headaches so I went to a neurologist.  They ran tests and told me that I was having seizures.  Took my license away until I had more tests done.  They sent me two hours away to a specialist in Dallas and he didn't find that they were full blown seizures, just an abnormal EEG.  I was having problems with passing out, forgetting whole days, heart rate was sky high and blood pressure was real low.  The specialist told me that I needed to see a cardiologist.  So I went to one heart doctor who sent me to another and put me on different meds and I did get a little better.  EVERY doctor I saw assured me that the symptoms I was having had NOTHING to do with my surgery.

Yesterday I just went to my OB for a annual pap smear.  And they *****ed my finger looking at my iron.  It was on the verge of needing transfusion.  Then they checked my urine.  In that he found there was protein, nitrogen, and biliruben of huge amounts in the urine.  So from that he figures that my liver is not functioning and that my kidneys are not either.  He was appalled that none of the doctors looked into the core of everything.  The surgery.

I never went back for my one or two year post op.  I felt like I was feeling fine.  Never throw up.  Eat everything in site, just not very much and I always have stayed away from sugar.  but other than that, I felt "surgery wise" I was fine. 

They did a whole mess of blood work yesterday and I am waiting to get that back.  That should all be in today or tomorrow.  I have an appointment with the surgeon who did the bypass on me for next Wednesday, but the labs will tell whether I need to be seen faster.

I am very sorry to hear about your troubles.  Just wanted to share this information...my surgeon has started using SpectraCell  to check our nutrition levels.  It is the most comprehensive nutritional test and can detect deficiencies before they happen.  They actually grow your red blood cells in their lab to project what you will be deficient in.  Regular labs are good but they only capture a moment in time.  I highly recommend you finding someone in your area that does this test.  My insurance paid for this test and my co-pay was $85.

Good luck!

http://www.spectracell.com/ 

SpectraCell Laboratories, Inc., is a specialized clinical testing laboratory company. We were established in 1993 to commercialize a patented, groundbreaking technology, the Functional Intracellular Analysis™ (FIA).  FIA™ was developed at the University of Texas, by the Clayton Foundation for Research, as a diagnostic blood test for helping clinicians assess the intracellular function of essential micronutrients.  Since acquiring the rights to FIA™, SpectraCell has become the premier provider of tests for identifying subclinical nutritional deficiencies.

Yes...but I do not have liver or kidney troubles...I was anemic and had several vitamin deficiencies at year 4....I thought I was fine...doing great so I stopped worrying about getting in all those vits...Big mistake! 

It took me 2 months bed rest and 6 months to get myself back to health...I've been taking my vits regularly and supps for my deficiencies for almost a year now...I was VERY lucky there is no damage that we know of...I was iron deficient anemic and either low or def in A,E,D, Zinc, magnesium, selenium and had low blood counts and high blood platelets.

I am due for my 6 months retest...So I'll see if I am keeping up my vit levels...My last tests were good with only a selenium deficiency and my thyroid went outta whack after 4 years of not needing meds I am back on them again too...

Can't complain, I am so lucky!  I hope you get on the vits you need and stay on them! I too eat a wide variety of foods and healthy stuff at that!  But I need all kinds of vitamins daily...I take all my vits individually now because I do not trust my regular chewable multi vits at all.  I did just start Bariatric Advantage multi-vits to see how I do with them...and will supp the ones I begin to get low on again...I have a feeling this how it's going to be from now on...I have to stay on top of my labs and you will too...I go every six months now rather than yearly and I get my own copies of my labs and keep them in a binder.  I know I have to be my own health care advocate because my doc who is really nice and I like a lot is just NOT very up on RNY surgery and the issues we have or how our bodies work....I didn't know myself until that day my labs came back and my doc put me on bed rest and told me I would need a blood transfusion and or iron infusions...

I didn't need that though after 2 months....I did a ton of research and learned about vits and which ones were the best to take with our low acid pouches and bypassed small intestines and fat malabsorption too! ...I thought I knew a lot about nutrition but RNY and other GB surgeries changes all that we knew was normal AND BEST... Now we have to take vits that are best absorbed in our altered bodies and many docs don't realise this...That's why it's important that you do!  So learn and be well!  I wish you much luck and a fast recovery to good health