The following identifies areas that will
be important for patients to follow after weight loss surgery.
Diet
Going Back to
Work
Birth Control
& Pregnancy
Long-Term Follow-Up
Support Groups
The
modifications made to your gastrointestinal tract will require
permanent changes in your eating habits that must be adhered
to for successful weight loss. Post-surgery dietary guidelines
will vary by surgeon. You may hear of other patients who are
given different guidelines following their weight loss surgery.
It is important to remember that every surgeon does not perform
the exact same weight loss surgery procedure and that the
dietary guidelines will be different for each surgeon and
each type of procedure. What is most important is that you
adhere strictly to your surgeon's recommended guidelines.
The following are some of the generally accepted dietary guidelines
a weight loss surgery patient may encounter:
- When you start eating solid food it is essential that
you chew thoroughly. You will not be able to eat steaks
or other chunks of meat if they are not ground or chewed
thoroughly.
- Don't drink fluids while eating. They will make you feel
full before you have consumed enough food.
- Omit desserts and other items with sugar listed as one
of the first three ingredients.
- Omit carbonated drinks, high-calorie nutritional supplements,
milk shakes, high-fat foods and foods with high fiber content.
- Avoid alcohol.
- Limit snacking between meals.
Your ability to resume pre-surgery levels of activity will
vary according to your physical condition, the nature of the
activity and the type of weight loss surgery you had. Many
patients return to full pre-surgery levels of activity within
six weeks of their procedure. Patients who have had a minimally
invasive laparoscopic procedure may be able to return to these
activities within a few weeks.
It is strongly advised that women of childbearing age use
the most effective forms of birth control during the first
16 to 24 months after weight loss surgery. The added demands
pregnancy places on your body and the potential for fetal
damage make this a most important requirement.
Although the short-term effects of weight loss surgery are
well understood, there are still questions to be answered
about the long-term effects on nutrition and body systems.
Nutritional deficiencies that occur over the course of many
years will need to be studied. Over time, you will need periodic
checks for anemia (low red blood cell count) and Vitamin B12,
folate and iron levels. Follow-up tests will initially be
conducted every three to six months or as needed, and then
every one to two years.
The widespread use of support groups has provided weight loss
surgery patients an excellent opportunity to discuss their
various personal and professional issues. Most learn, for
example, that weight loss surgery will not immediately resolve
existing emotional issues or heal the years of damage that
morbid obesity might have inflicted on their emotional well-being.
Most surgeons have support groups in place to assist you with
short-term and long-term questions and needs. Most bariatric
surgeons who frequently perform weight loss surgery will tell
you that ongoing post-surgical support helps produce the greatest
level of success for their patients.
