we dont eat any artifical sweeteners or flavorings or dyes in our home. i am concerned that so much stuff on my first post op diet plan are "sugar free" processed products. i have bought hemp Protein powder... its pretty minimally processed. i plan on making and storing homemade bone broth (chicken and beef). we get milk right from the farmer, and i have found a brand of plain greek yogurt i like. i also plan on juicing cucumber, romaine, apples, pears, etc. anything low sugar.

i think i will be fine but keep worrying.

I wanna live where you are! I want milk straight from the farmer. How do you keep up with this? Is it due to allergies? My little one is a vegetarian and it is very difficult for me to cook three different dinners daily but I eat 4 oz my daughter doesn't eat meat and my son is 16 and eat everything all the time. It sounds like you are able to juggle many different needs or preferences. What do you use to sweeten anything, besides cane sugar? I have tried agave and stevia but they don't taste very good. Sorry your post caught my interest so I have a ton of questions.

honey, maple syrup... i still use sugar in my coffee but just bought some coconut crystals... much lower GI than sugar.

how do i keep up with what? cooking? we eat almost no processed food, so if i didnt cook we'd all get pretty hungry!

Wow, I wish I could help, but I envy you your ability to stick to a mostly unprocessed diet. I've always had this ideal of sticking to whole, unprocessed foods, but inevitably at some point it just seems like too much work to fit into my lifestyle. Best of luck, I expect it will take a significant amount of research to figure out what recipes and products will give you what you need after surgery, but I know you can get it worked out! It takes a lot of determination not to become complacent and let processed foods into your diet.

Best of luck to you! I would love to hear what strategy you decide on!

what kind of foods did you eat that caused you to need weight loss surgery? It must have been processed foods.

I expressed concern about this to my doc too. He gave me no pre op diet and got me back on real whole foods as quickly as possible post op.

melissa, too much food is too much food! i have issues with portion control, along with depression and emotional eaing, and hormone imbalances.

I feel your pain. I really try to stay away from processed food as well and the post-op diet suggestions sound horrible. Given how much protein is needed though, I just decided to drink the crap until I can eat pureed food. It's just a few weeks. You can flavor the water with fresh fruit, you just can't, obviously, eat the fruit.

love your user name zoftig.

As long as you can get your water and protein in you're good to go. I use stevia a sweetner, but other than that everything natural should be doable? There are many organic yogurts too

good fat is important too. avocado and coconut oil. milk, meat and eggs from grass fed organic animals. you can eat all the protein you want, if you dont eat any fat, you will be malnurished. that why so many lose their hair.

Actually, there are quite a few of us who have gotten an abundance of protein and still lost hair.

I'm not sure if I understand your question... Looks like you have the foods you need to stay nourished. (Plus vitamin supplements.) Any food can be puréed so it's just what you've eaten prior to surgery so there shouldn't be an issue

Actually' date=' there are quite a few of us who have gotten an abundance of Protein and still lost hair.

I'm not sure if I understand your question... Looks like you have the foods you need to stay nourished. (Plus Vitamin supplements.) Any food can be puréed so it's just what you've eaten prior to surgery so there shouldn't be an issue[/quote']

I might add protein and the right fats..

As mentioned by the op. there is no miracle that is going to save you from the very real "side effect" of this surgery and anesthesia, which is hair loss.

I also do not eat artificial sweetners as I am allergic to Aspartame and am concerned about the initial post-op diet. I did find a recipe to make jello with Stevia. It is flavored with koolaid, so it still has chemicals, but gives an option other than broth and juice. I tried it this week and it turned out well.

what i said was, if you dont get enough of the right kinds of FAT you are creating the conditions of malnutrition in your body and this is what causes hair to fall out. you can ge an abundance of lean or fat free Protein and still be starving.

i am only concerned the liquid phase of post op diet. mostly i am just nervous cause i am nervous and need something to focus on. if you are wanting Gelatin in your diet (speeds healing and allows the body to better use protein) make bone broth. look up recipes online. incredibly nurishing and yummy too. Jello..... the nutritional aspects.... not much. i did make jello for my daughter when she had the stomach flu with unflavored knox and raspberry-hibiscus tea. it wasn't nearly as sweet as jello, but she enjoyed it. the stash's raspberry hibiscus tea is so sweet it doesnt need sugar or honey. i am planning on making popsicles with unsweetened herbal green tea. i wont have to share them with my kids! lol

here is a super basic article on fat requirements. you should eat 30-60 grams of good fat per day. at least half of which should be "raw." i am aiming for 2tbsp of coconut oil per day during phase one, sinceits liquid at body temp.

http://www.askdrsears.com/topics/family-nutrition/facts-about-fats/why-you-need-fats