Question:
What kind of junk food are people able to have?
I was wondering what kinds of junk foods people are able to have? What kind of chips? Is anyone able to eat fries or fried food? What about fast food? I'm almost 5 weeks post op and am curious to know as I have been having some cravings. Thank you. — Carolyn K. (posted on September 17, 2002)
September 16, 2002
Carolyn - didn't you post a bunch of these same kind of questions a few
days ago? You got a lot of good responses - even from me *G*. Look, as
has been said many times before, WLS is a tool. It enables us to have a
window of opportunity to change our eating habits. You obviously want to
revert to the same eating habits that led you to this surgery to begin
with.
<p>
Please, please, please take my advice and talk to your surgeon (it's
obviously you don't have a nutritionist). If he didn't give you a diet to
follow post-op - and if he didn't, he's not a good surgeon - then ask him
for one. If he won't then talk to your primary doctor and get a referral
to a dietician or nutritionist who will help you...JR (open RNY 07/17 -74
lbs)
— John Rushton
September 16, 2002
Hi, do you want to eat this kind of stuff? Unfortunately for me -this kind
of food goes down and settles very well - too well! I still have to make
sure to limit my intake of these types of food to a couple of bites every
once in a while.
— Pam W.
September 16, 2002
There is a reason it is called junk food - IT'S JUNK! You couldn't pay me
to put anything like that in my mouth now. I worked waaaayyyyyyy too hard
to get this surgery, go through the almost unbearable pain, and slowly
(painfully slow) lose what little weight I have. There is no way I'm going
to purposely screw it up by eating junk. I know it's tempting and it's
definitely your choice. You just have to get your priorities straight. Do
you want to lose the weight and be healthy for the rest of your life, or do
you want to have 2 minutes of gastronomic pleasure and take a chance of
going back to bad habits that got you in this situation in the first place.
I'm not fussing - just trying to be the voice of reason and reality.
Healthy choices mean healthy success.
— Vicki H.
September 16, 2002
NONE, you can't eat any of it. IF you do you will explode or turn into a
frog. There...still want to eat it??? LOL. Any way, the real answer is that
you can eat what ever you tolerate. But please look at WHY you want to eat
it. To feed head huger?? To feed depression?? IS it a stress reaction??
Make sure you deal with the issue involved so that you do not fall into old
traps. 5 weeks is REALLY early to be adding junk back into your diet.
— Vicki L.
September 16, 2002
You can always try 3 or 4 baked tortilla chips w/salsa (watch for sugar).
Even lowfat bean dip, say a Tablespoon. They make sugar free cookies, but
you need to limit it to 1 cookie, just to satisfy your craving. You can
make just about anything that's usually fried into a healthy meal. You can
brown things in a pan with PAM spray and then bake it it the oven. Just be
careful. You don't want to lose control, even with lowfat and sugar free
foods. You aren't that far out of surgery. Some of these cravings will go
away and you won't want these foods anymore. Just stay focused on why you
did this surgery. As far as fast food, I looked up nutrition information
on the internet, and found pintos and cheese are a good choice at Taco
Bell. Chilli at Wendy's. The 4 piece chicken strips and Burger King.
(You probably won't be able to eat 4, I can't) I thought the chicken
strips would be full of fat, but they aren't bad. Mc Donalds doesn't have
healthy anything from what I found. AVOID IT!!! If you just look up the
fast food places on the web, you can usually get the nutrition info. Hope
this helps.
— lerli1
September 16, 2002
Hi Carolyn, I have noticed you have posted similar question recently, all
asking about foods that really should not be considered at this point of
your recovery. I am woried about you, Do not get me wrong I am not
criticizing you, I am concerned with what seems to be an obssesion of
making bad food choices. Please call you Dr, and tell him about this, do
not be ashamed to do it, also are you attending a support group.
You have been given a wonderful tool, and it is not easy, but it does work.
You need to reconize the difference between head hunger and real hunger. At
5 weeks I know my head hunger was out of control,and was never really
hungry at this point of my recovery.
Please e-mail me if I can be of any help, I promise you, this surgery
works, but not on it's own, there are many things we need to give up in our
life, or at least limit food wise now. God Bless Carolyn
— Jeri P.
September 16, 2002
Carolyn, I agree with John....I question whether you are READY for this
surgery and if you have given it enough though. I have seen numerous
thoughts from you regarding soda, chips, fried food, fast food, etc...I
don't know you and I know everyone is different, but, have you seen a
psychologist or a nutrionist? With all these questions you are asking, it
is my belief you have a serious junk food/fast food addiction? I think you
need to get real and question if you are going to be able to do this. If
you plam to continue this BAD eating you will EAT THROUGH YOUR POUCH and
you will be the statstic that gains all the weight back and then some. I
am sorry to vent, but, this is s TOOL, not a cure all.
— heathercross
September 16, 2002
The reality is we CAN'T HAVE EVERYTHING WE WANT. Avoid junk food like the
plague. We all have cravings. Giving in to every one of them is falling
back into "Fat think", which is what got us all here in the first
place. Did you fully research WLS before you had it? Did you understand
what you were getting yourself into? It just sounds way too early for you
to start thinking of ways to sabotage your success. Please consider seeing
a therapist, it sounds like you need help dealing with WLS.
— Angie M.
September 17, 2002
ANd please consider the foods you CAN have. They aren't SO bad, and there
MORE of them to choose from.
— Karen R.
September 17, 2002
Good Lord...sometimes people on this site can be so dogmatic about what you
"can" and "cannot" eat post WLS! Unless you are in the
Hollywood mentality (where everything over a size six is considered FAT!)
most NORMAL people will occasionally indulge themselves in junk food. I do
not think french fries or chips once or twice a week will cause your pouch
to explode. The difference post WLS is that most of us can stop at 5-10
french fries, instead of three or four jumbo super size servings. Anyway,
my point is this...I don't think you need counseling...you need to get a
bag of Lays with your next 1/2 sandwich, enjoy them, and move on! It's not
about denying ourselves the occasional treat...it's about learning how to
relate to food in a NORMAL way. Whew! Glad I got all that off my chest!
— rebeccamayhew
September 17, 2002
Go Rebecca! Normal people don't always eat totally healthy food and NORMAL
IS WHAT I WANT TO BE! I think it's all about a healthy balance. We've
been out of balance in a "bad" way for so long that we sometimes
think being out of balance in a "good" way is the solution. For
me - blazing a trail right down the middle is what's been successful. Live
life - enjoy - have fun - BE NORMAL! Hang in there!
— ronascott
September 17, 2002
Heck ladies, I highly agree with you there on the normalcy issue, however
our dear friend here is just 5 weeks post op! I did not venture into the
'forbidden" until I knew (or thought I knew) my tummy could handle it
and it certainly WASN'T at just 5 weeks post op... In fact I think I just
got into some soft foods at that time. Here I am TWO YEARS post op and
advice like yours would be OK for me, but not a 5 weeker.... she has head
hunger, she's obsessed with food and I really think she needs to stick to
the program and get over the "hump".
— Karen R.
September 17, 2002
I do have to admit that I was guilty of "rushing" things post op,
but my doc's advice was to try tiny bits of pretty much anything and see
how it goes...I ate chicken too soon and it's taken me five months to get
my taste for it back. Anyway, of course we should all follow our dr's
proscribe post op guidelines as best we can, so the original poster should
definitely ask him if he thinks a potato chip or a french fry would do her
in at this point...if he gives her the green light I would encourage her to
try a chip or two WITHOUT GUILT and discover the joys of having control
over food for once, instead of food controlling her...otherwise if she is
too draconian she may go crazy over a bag of chips and do her pouch some
real harm. Sorry, poster, I don't mean to talk about you like your not
even there, but I guess I just have some strong feelings about this
subject...
— rebeccamayhew
September 17, 2002
And I did not mean to write this this: "she's obsessed with food"
I have NO IDEA what's going through your head. PERHAPS at this point (as I
know I was...) you think of food more often. I wasn't trying to beat you
up..... sorry
— Karen R.
September 17, 2002
Boy did this question start a controversy! Here are my two cents. You are
human. If you are desperate for something, try a very small portion. Make
yourself your meal, include a few chips or fries, as a part of the meal.
Put the rest of the chips AWAY so you won't be tempted to have more. You
don't even know if you will tolerate or enjoy these foods anymore. I was
craving McD's french fries post-op. Two or three fries later, I don't like
or desire them at all anymore. So, my advice is to find out as soon as you
feel your body is ready, that way if it doesn't work for you, you know now
and don't have months of denying your cravings. And, if it goes down well,
you know that you're not going to explode. The key is EVERYTHING IN
MODERATION. Don't stress yourself out! Good luck. And, those people
criticizing you, don't let them get you down. They need to lighten up.
— cjabates
September 17, 2002
To maximize weight loss I encourage EVERY new post op to stick with the
program early on. Certinally a few chips will not end the loss, but during
the fast loss phase its better to take advantage of it! Later once most or
all the weight is off you can relax a bit. We are our surgeons partners and
I just dont want to see any sad cases here where folks are left still
chunky after 2 years... If folks CHOOSE to make bad choices then please
dont complain when your 2 years out and 30 pounds from goal.
— bob-haller
September 17, 2002
Now that I tried to make that point.... What I do if I want a BAD choice. I
FIRST eat something good, like cheese or other protein rich food. Then if I
am still hungry I will, have some of the poor choice. At least this way I
dont eat the entire bag of whatever....
— bob-haller
September 17, 2002
I just couldn't resist putting in my $.02. I have seen this point argued
many times on this board. I am 10 months post-op, 9 lbs. to goal. I have
been able to eat whatever I want. Of course most of the time my choices
are wise ones, but there have been times that I want something 'naughty',
have my small taste and the craving is over. I don't see a problem with
that. I want to eat like a normal person and I do. This surgery has
enabled me to do just that, and I am so grateful for this wonderful tool.
I didn't have surgery so that I spend the rest of my life on a diet. I
have done that ALL of my life. If she wants a few chips or fries or
whatever, I say GO FOR IT!! Then she won't be obsessing about it and it
won't be an issue anymore. I thought that I wanted fried food early on.
Had some. Haven't wanted it since. It was really simple. There is
nothing wrong with fast food. There are many that have been at goal for
years that eat fast food quite regulary. They typically try to eat the
protein first then pick at the rest. I do it every once in a while, its
not a problem. Went to Olive Garden the other night, picked out my chicken
and shrimp with some pasta in the bite and did great. I even had 1/4 of a
Tiramisu (because I can tolerate it), mmmm, and lost a pound the next day,
cool! Of course I am 10 mo. out, and that is the first time I have done
that. I do have to watch my sugar intake, too much and I don't feel too
well. But once in a blue moon, I'm bad and test my limits. I get over my
cravings and move on. And on the subject of only being 5 weeks out...my
surgeon will not release us UNTIL we have had soft solids. We go home able
to eat anything we want for the exception of meats, salads and items with a
casing(corn, peas). Everyone does fantastic on his program. So there
should be no problem with you trying out different things at this point.
Being 5 weeks shouldn't even be an issue. Now I never crave the fried
foods. I do snack on popcorn, or Terra chips (vegetable), and have fruit
for my sweet cravings. So to sum up, I believe in MODERATION, not
DEPRIVATION!!
— Cheri M.
September 18, 2002
I do like to treat myself to a little something every now and then. So i
searched and search to find things that resembled what I was craving but
were healthier choices. For example, I love ice cream. I found Smart
Ones, english toffee ice cream sticks (uumm) they have only 100 calories
and very low in sugar. If I'm craving french fries, I don't go to
McDonalds but I buy some from the store that I can bake instead of frying.
Don't keep too much of any one thing around in case you get tempted to eat
more than you should. But there are ways to satisfy those cravings without
all the guilt..most of the time - I'm still trying to find a way to have a
chili dog with cheese and onions without making myself sick though!!
lol...But the main thing I've noticed is that I just don't really care
about it as much as I used to.
— [Deactivated Member]
September 18, 2002
wow people!! its just a question!
I eat what I want, I dont eat a ton of it, but I dont deprive myself, I
didnt lose a hundred pounds in 7 months by dieting either!! I dont believe
in depriving ones self, it just makes you eat more of what you shouldnt, if
you want a few chips have at it! ( when your pouch is ready of course)
— rebecca N.
September 18, 2002
I agree with Rebecca! It was just a question. I am 17 weeks post op and
yes, i craved junk food like the plague. But the only thing i indulged in
was chips. And the best (healthiest) ones are Ruffles WOW! Cheddar and
Sour Crea, and Doritos WOW! The Ruffles have NO fat and the Doritos have 1
gram of fat. Your pouch is small, so it's not like you can down a whole bag
of them anyway. Enjoy! Open 5/24/02, down 65lbs.
— Tamara F.
September 18, 2002
Tamara & Rebecca - you don't understand that Carolyn has been posting
these types of questions (what type of fast food, what type of chips, what
type of syrup, etc) for the past week. She's only 5 weeks post-op and she
seems to be looking to sabotage her WLS already. If she is asking all of
these questions, it seems that she has not gotten any guidance from her
surgeon or nutritionist (if indeed, she does have a nutritionist) on
post-op diets. I had an earlier reply that she should consult her
surgeon/nutritionist for a post-op diet and failing that, she should talk
to her PCP for a referral to a dietician to set up a diet plan...JR (open
RNY 07/17 -78 pounds)
— John Rushton
September 18, 2002
This is a support site so I'm going to try and give the best support and
advice I can. Just the title of your question worries me "what kind
of junk food are people able to have?"...I'd suggest that you look
through the literature that your surgeon's office provided (hopefully they
did) and see what it says. Junk food is what got me obese in the first
place---starch and fast food--and no control! No one can tell you what to
do its your body but it sounds like you are going through the head hunger
phase and if you are patient and continue to think about what made you have
this surgery in the first place you'll get by this phase. I'm 3 months out
and 60 lbs down and my doctor has advised that I am able to try anything
but to avoid fried foods and carbonated beverages and make sure to get my
vitamins in, my water in and first and foremost--protein. This surgery has
an 85% success rate and a 15% fail rate---which side do you wanna be on?
— Bambi C.
September 18, 2002
In light of the negative and judgmental comments made towards me by many of
you, I feel the need to respond in defense of myself. 1-For those of you
who I asked why I would want to: didn't you? I don't think that surgery
magically erased any cravings you had. NO, it took time. A lot of people
have said that in the beginning their cravings were really bad, It's only
natural for me to be wondering these things. 2-For those of you concerned
about the date of my surgery. A lot of my questions are referring to the
future, when I AM able to eat normally again. I want to prepare myself,
something I am sure you could understand. The fact is that I am probably a
lot younger than most of you, I am in college. Therefore, I want to be as
prepared as humanly possible so that I do not get dumping while I am with
friends (they don't know about the surgery), in the middle of campus, or
god forbid in the middle of a class. I will have to be eating my meals in
between classes which makes it very easy for me to go through dumping
during class and food does provide a social gathering for people my age so
this concern is a very real one. 3- About my question of fast food. I
don't know if any of you have visited a college cafeteria lately but the
food quality is similar. Therefore, I wanted to know if I would be able to
eat at school or have to brown bag it. I think that's a reasonable enough
question. Also, sometimes people are put in the position where fast food
is the only thing availible. Therefore, I want to know what I will be able
to eat if in that situation. Would you want to have dumping on the road or
while driving? I don't think so. 4- For the comments about my surgeon.
How many of your surgeons have had the surgery themselves? Because mine
hasn't and the posts people make here sometimes contradict, sometimes
provide the specifics doctor's don't go into, and I am more confident
getting answers from peers who have gone through the same thing as I have.
5- Yes, some of my posts were similar. I had originally thought that my
questions would go to the specific foods section of the website, NOT the
Q&A so when I didn't see them on that portion of the website and I
thought I would try to post them again. I did not realize until a member
emailed me to offer me support and keep my spirits up about the negative
responses some of you have made. Of course, I did not remember the exact
phrasing but the general idea. So while one day I wrote about fast foods
the next about junk foods, it's because I simply couldn't remember. 5 -
The purpose of this surgery is that it will be a change of life, not
continual dieting for the rest of my life. 6- I am also hypoglycemic
(spelling?) that means that my blood surger is very level. When I have an
attack (which has already happened) I need to have surger in me FAST. I
want that surger to not get me even sicker. So naturally, I would ask what
kind of foods I'll be able to have without getting any sicker. 7- For
those who said that junk food is what got me and you fat, think again. In
my opinion, it was eating AN EXCESS OF JUNK FOOD that got us fat. Seeing
as that is not possible for me, I am not worried that 1/2 a hamburger will
make me once a month will make me gain a 100 pounds. That's just common
sense. 8- About junk food. One of the reasons I asked that is that I
figured you guys would know about healthier versions of them that I will be
able to have. For those of you that understood and helped me with that, I
greatly appreciate it. Thank you very much. For those of you who thought
that I was talking about binging on them, that's very judgemental and you
need to rethink your attitude. I simply wanted to know what kinds of
things I could have in small amounts on occasion to solve cravings. 8- For
those who questioned my research of it, I researched for over a year before
I even went to a surgeon, I did my research thuroughly but many articles
don't list specifically brand by brand what you can and cannot have AND as
we have all seen on these lists, everyone is different. In addition, many
people writing these articles aren't having the surgery. And in case you
didn't notice, there are many people out there in the specific foods
section with the same and similar questions to mine. Does that mean that
none of them researched the surgery fully? I think not. TO THOSE OF YOU
WHO OFFERED SUPPORT AND GUIDANCE - Thank you so much, I really appreciate
your kindness and support. It's people like you that make this website
successful and helpful. To the rest of you who made me feel ostracized in
what's supposed to be a welcoming community, I only hope that next time you
curb your judgements and instead offer them your support.
— Carolyn K.
September 18, 2002
I'm a hopeful pre-op and was completely blown away by the responses to this
question. I now know better than to post any more questions on this site
due to people not recognizing or empathizing what a fellow wls sister is
going through. It's bad enough to be treated with condescention by a thin
obsessed society, but to come to this site and get bombarded by some
sanctimonious post-ops is far worse. Carolyn, it sounds as if you're having
a tough time adjusting - I wish you strength and good luck. Do yourself a
favor and find a local support group to help you in the future. That's what
I'll be doing.
— Rhonda J.
September 18, 2002
Rhonda and anyone else who is offended by some of the answers here, When
you ask a question anywhere, you need to be prepared to hear all sides.
Sometimes the written word comes across harsher than it is meant to be. If
you go somewhere where people tell you only what you want to hear, it will
be calming but not educational. Good luck in your journey, but please come
back here if you truly want help. Also, if I don't like the tone of
someones answer, I skip it. If I truly feel that the respondent is being
unduly cruel, I will send them an e-mail.
— faybay
September 18, 2002
Just treat your responses like a plate of food. Pick through it and get
what youy like from it, and leave the rest. I simply have to be the odd
one. I have tried lots of different "junk" foods, like chips and
such, and have found that most make me feel awful! So, my new
"junk" includes sunflower seeds, pickles, chunks of Muenster
cheese (so great!), rolled up thinly sliced smoked turkey full of spicy
mustard. I also indulge in all the lobster, shrimp, and crabmeat I want
now, without any guilt. I did meet with a nutritionist in the hospital, but
also took nutrition when I was in college and still stayed MO despite it.
Was it necessarily due to stuffing my face? No. I don't think we can assume
that we were all MO for the same reasons. I didn't have a sweet tooth pre
op, and still don't post op. I did this so I would never have to diet
again. If I want to eat chips now (shudder), I do it with the full
awareness that I'm going to feel terrible shortly afterwards. As a nurse, I
cannot do that at work, I had to experiment and see what consistently went
down and stayed down well. I'd find a great nutritionist or dietician. They
will likely tell you to go ahead and try what you like, when you are
farther out if that's what your surgeon wants. You may just find that the
things your head is thinking might taste great, end up tasting just awful!
I can't drink coffee now! Ugh! I used to drink a pot a day pre op. Pre op I
would have been very worried about not being able to handle drink coffee.
My pouch simply hates coffee. Can I make a suggestion? Go read the message
board and try to find a few posties who are farther post op and less
fanatical about post op dieting. I'd e mail them and ask them directly
about stuff like this. I have a set group I can do this with and it's
wonderful! Good luck on your journey!!!
— NicoleG
September 18, 2002
Hi, I'm 7 months post op and can eat virtually anything I want in small
quantities. However, what I usually want is much more benign that before
surgery. Before surgery, a Whopper was great, now a hamburger or a hotdog
is great and I remove the top crust. I don't particularly like fried foods
anymore. One day my hubby and I ate breakfast at McDonalds and 1/2 of a
sausage egg McMuffin filled me up.
Every once in a while I get a yogurt granola parfait.
Before surgery and early after, I too was curious about what I could eat
and not eat. Today, it's really a non-issue. I just love the better for
you foods, especially salads and mostly I eat the "right" foods.
And, most miraculously of all, these are choices, not impositions, as they
were prior to surgery.
I hope all goes well for you.
— Linda V.
September 18, 2002
Carolyn, I know your situation. I was a big junk food eater pre-op. I
completely understand what you're asking. I am also very young (23). I go
to college full-time and I work full time. Therefore, I do not have all
the time in the world to sit around and plan meals. I try. I stick to a
lot of the WW Smart Ones meals and Lean Cuisine, which make two meals.
However, sometimes, life happens.
In an answer to your question, the other morning, I discovered that I can
eat an Egg McMuffin, without eating the top or the egg. What is better now
is that instead of eating an egg mcmuffin, a hash brown, and drinking a
coke. The whole Egg McMuffin was too much. The other place I looooooove
is Boston Market. Anyway...my point here is to make smart choices. And,
aside from the fast food thing (which is my major weakness), THIS IS NOT A
DIET. This is a change in lifestyle. You have to adjust this to fit your
life because this IS the rest of your life. You just have to keep in mind
your protein goals.
I can actually see someone at this point saying not to take my advise. She
has only lost 30 pounds at 2 months post-op. Well, if you look very
closely at my profile, you'll notice that I have gone from a dress size 28
to a dress size 20. So...it's going somewhere.
Hope this helps. I can't believe some of the responses that you've gotten
that have been downright unnecessary. Tiffany =)
— Tiffany D.
September 19, 2002
Hi Carolyn, I am 2 months post-op today down about 52lbs... I was a junk
food addict, probably still am... I really thought I would not want the
junk after surgery, but I do! Last night really wanted KFC, so I got it,
had a few bites of chicken, a little potato, couple bites of cole slaw and
a bite of the biscuit... I was completely full and satisfied. I have found
if I eat "junk" it is in a small to moderate amount, not
overeating like before. "normal" people do eat some
"junk" it is learning to eat a "normal" amount. As
long as you are making healthy choices most of the time - I don't see what
the problem is... I am sick of dieting and just want to be
"normal"... Yes, if I follow a rigid diet low fat, high protein,
low carb, my wt loss is going to be faster, but you know what... I
already feel really good, I am already living a healthier life style and I
am starting to feel a little bit "normal".... People who have
responded to you , especially those who haven't even had the surgery yet,
need to be realistic. There are still cravings, some of us still do feel
hunger. The key is in how quickly you are full.. I am going to have a
cookie right now, because I want one, I will have one cookie (not the half
the box or even the whole box) now that is progress! Best of luck, Jen
— Jennifer R.
September 19, 2002
Carolyn-I feel like I have to defend myself a bit as you privately emailed
me and possibly took a dig at me from my response below. I in no way,
shape or form was trying to be mean or harsh in what I wrote. Sometimes
that's a problem in itself--people interpret things with venom that is not
necessarily there. I was merely pointing out advice that hopefully will
help you in your journey. Good luck & God Bless.
— Bambi C.
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