I am a little confused on a few things. I feel like they told us not to do this or that to scare us. LOL I was told we could never drink coffee or soda again. We can't even have the flavored Water that has seltzer in it. Coffee because of the caffeine and dehydration. Soda, no idea why not other then the sugar. But, why not diet soda? Also, why can't I have lettuce? I am not a big salad eater but, all of a sudden I want salad and the dietician told me no for right now. I had my surgery a little over 5 weeks ago and I go for my first fill tomorrow.

That's all I can think of now. Are there any others??? Is there a list somewhere?

I am a little confused on a few things. I feel like they told us not to do this or that to scare us. LOL I was told we could never drink coffee or soda again. We can't even have the flavored Water that has seltzer in it. Coffee because of the caffeine and dehydration. Soda, no idea why not other then the sugar. But, why not diet soda? Also, why can't I have lettuce? I am not a big salad eater but, all of a sudden I want salad and the dietician told me no for right now. I had my surgery a little over 5 weeks ago and I go for my first fill tomorrow.

That's all I can think of now. Are there any others??? Is there a list somewhere?

1. Never heard of the no coffee thing -- I know plenty of bandsters here drink it. I'm a tea person however.

2. The carbination in soda can be problematic for some. Never been a soda fan, again I know bandsters who have the occassional diet soda.

3. Lettuce is fibrous and can get stuck if you aren't careful, but this depends on your fill/restriction level. I eat salads throughout the week with no problem, both iceberg and romaine lettuce work fine for me.

4. There is no list. With the band and certain foods it really is YMMV. I can eat anything because I like a loose band; others keep a tight band and can't eat bread, rice, Pasta, etc.

I am a little confused on a few things. I feel like they told us not to do this or that to scare us. LOL I was told we could never drink coffee or soda again. We can't even have the flavored Water that has seltzer in it. Coffee because of the caffeine and dehydration. Soda, no idea why not other then the sugar. But, why not diet soda? Also, why can't I have lettuce? I am not a big salad eater but, all of a sudden I want salad and the dietician told me no for right now. I had my surgery a little over 5 weeks ago and I go for my first fill tomorrow.

That's all I can think of now. Are there any others??? Is there a list somewhere?

I drink coffee daily with no problem, Soda is a big no no we are not allowed to have carbonation and as for salad I have been eating it you just have to chew. Some people get stuck on it but everyone is different.

There's not really any food you CAN'T have. There are foods you should avoid, but you can have occasionally... IF your band and body tolerate them. My nutritionist said to avoid coffee, even decaf, because it's acidic and shouldn't be sitting up in your pouch. She did say I could have one a day. Carbonation, some people's bands can't handle it and of course, it makes them super gassy. Lettuce, seems to me like most bandsters can handle it just fine. If you ask around you'll see everyone's got a different "problem" food.

I drink coffee daily with no problem, Soda is a big no no we are not allowed to have carbonation and as for salad I have been eating it you just have to chew. Some people get stuck on it but everyone is different.

I am so confused, I had my sugery 04/29/11 and I am so hungery I have ate some foods I should have not eaten. Mostly soft foods like baked chicken that I had to chew really fine to swallow,my body is craveing protiens. I am not scheduled for fill until 6/7 I am afraid that I have gained wt. my clothes fill no different on me. I need other support ,I am feeling depressed, I dont want to start benge eating.I think I need my fill now.

Coffee isn't the issue it's caffeine. Caffeine thins the lining of your stomach. This can decrease restriction and cause ulcers. I have a banded friend who loves soda so much, diet soda, she let's it sit open and go flat. I am now addicted to water so I don't miss soda. Water is better for hydration anyway. My doc also says no lettuce because it takes up space and has little to nutritional value.

Sweetsheri1, the foods they didn't want you to eat were because you stomach was healing. Are you getting enough protein? At least 70gms a day? Are you drinking 64 oz of water a day? Be sure you eat 3-4 oz of lean protein to star every meal, then veggies or fruit, have some low calorie snacks around like sugar free pudding, cottage cheese, sugar free Popsicles that kind of thing. The higher protein options work best but you can add protein powder to pudding or yogurt to make those more filling. BTW this is what they call bandaged hell. It will get better when you get some restriction. Just keep making good food choices, baked chicken is a good food choice.

In addition to what everyone else said (which is right on target), I have found that even the documentation provided by my surgeon's office had some mis-information because it was geared to lap-band, sleeve and bypass patients. The documentation said no lettuce for 6 months but when I was talking to my NUT about a month after surgery she told me that no lettuce wasn't a lapband guideline but instead was a guideline for GBP.

Personally, I don't drink a lot of coffee but do have it a couple of times a week and haven't had any issues. I was always told not to drink carbonated beverages and I haven't other than a sip here and there but I really don't miss it (and I was horribly addicted to diet coke). I also have lettuce quite frequently and haven't had any issues. I really don't agree with any food being automatically off limits...there are people who have issues with being stuck on certain foods and have had to remove them from their diets but I think everyone needs to determine for themselves what foods they should and shouldn't eat.

Thanks everyone! I see what you mean about the soda. I tried it this morning because I was dying for it and now I am burping like crazy. After the band the burps are hysterical. It's like they are super long. My kids crack up! LOL

Sweetsheri1- I was also banded on April 29th and get my first fill on June 7th. I am more hungery now than when I was first banded, I believe that is because of less swelling. We will not have really any restrictions until we have a fill. I wouldn't worry on losing weight until after you have your first fill. Since this time is for healing. You are doing great. I just try to keep my food choices on the healthy side. congrats.

I am so confused, I had my sugery 04/29/11 and I am so hungery I have ate some foods I should have not eaten. Mostly soft foods like baked chicken that I had to chew really fine to swallow,my body is craveing protiens. I am not scheduled for fill until 6/7 I am afraid that I have gained wt. my clothes fill no different on me. I need other support ,I am feeling depressed, I dont want to start benge eating.I think I need my fill now.

I believe the coffee is for "no caffeine" reasons-- and I ignore that. I've read the caffeine research and I remain unconvinced that there is even a reasonable amount of evidence that it's a problem to drink 2 cups of coffee's worth of caffeine a day.

Soda is for the "no carbonation" rule, which I do follow. Plus, I find that drinking even diet soda, since it is so sweet, increases my cravings for other sweet things (I found this out pre-band). Not to mention the gas-- I've found that drinking anything carbonated (I've had a sip of tonic Water and a sip of soda) or even drinking something non-carbonated through a straw makes me uncomfortable and burpy so I avoid it.

I'm not sure about the lettuce thing-- my doc never mentioned it. I do know some people get stuck on it but I eat salads regularly and have no issues.

My nutritionist said that the diet coke thing is because the carbonation actually STRETCHES the small pouch because of the carbonation - she told me that there is a female champion eating contest pro that actually drinks a bunch of diet coke before contests in order to stretch her stomach and make room for the extra food. I am a huge diet pop fan but it is not worth stretching my pouch - that will defeat the purpose of the surgery - so I have come to terms with giving up both diet pop and my favorite weekend treat - light beer. Neither one is happening after surgery (which is likely at end of June - received insurance approval today- yeah =)).

I was told not to have coffee for awhile because it dehydrates you and being dehydrated could happen because you may not get all your water in at first. Also I was told no raw vegis for 3 months because they're too fiberous for the new pouch. Oh and the soda thing as already stated is because of the carbonation!

I am so confused, I had my sugery 04/29/11 and I am so hungery I have ate some foods I should have not eaten. Mostly soft foods like baked chicken that I had to chew really fine to swallow,my body is craveing protiens. I am not scheduled for fill until 6/7 I am afraid that I have gained wt. my clothes fill no different on me. I need other support ,I am feeling depressed, I dont want to start benge eating.I think I need my fill now.

OMG I am so glad that I read this post and the answers that followed!! I was banded on 4/26/11 and at my doctor's appt last Wednesday, he kind of lectured me about how I should be pureeing everything and not eating solids yet. Just the thought of pureeing chicken or fish totally grosses me out. I have not had any problem eating anything now that I'm out of the liquid stage (which was TORTURE to me). I am also afraid that I'm gaining instead of losing...although I was down another 4 lbs last Wed (total of 13 lbs. down since the surgery)...so that's reassuring.

He told me that there's a reason they have the guidelines on what to eat at what stage...he said that eating solids too soon can cause band slippage. While that did scare me, I still feel that if I make better choices, eat small bites, chew thoroughly, and cut out the late-night muchies (my witching hour is around 9:00 PM)...I'm going to be ok. It's not like I'm sitting down and eating steak!!

Don't get depressed...just keep thinking long-term...that's what I'm trying to do!

When I mentioned not having reg. coffee my surgeon said "Why not?". The Nut said to have only 1 cup reg black coffee before switching to decaf because it dehydrates you. For mushies canned chicken works will. I mixed it with low fat laughing cow cheese which I liked because it could then be microwaved.