I am still very early in this whole process but I was reading on the website of the hospital that I will eventually have my surgery at, that I would be on a "full liquid diet" for two weeks prior to the surgery. Now what I understand to be a full liquid diet from my experience working at a nursing home is that you can have Clear liquids but also creamy Soups, ice cream, etc. A "full liquid diet" isn't the same as a "clear liquid diet" I don't believe? What have been your experiences and what were you able to drink?

Robin

Hi Robin,

I was required to be on a full liquid diet for one week prior to surgery. That consisted of yogurt, Protein shakes, pudding, Carnation instant Breakfast with skim milk, and low-fat Soup. Because it was pre-op, the soups could be chunky.

I just had my surgery last week and am now on a two-week full liquid post-op diet. The differences between the pre and post op diets is now post-op, soup must be pureed and the quantity of food is much less.

You are right about the full and clear liquid diet differences. I did have to be on a clear liquid diet the day before and two days after surgery. That consisted of broth, ices, Jello, and apple or white grape juice.

Good luck with everything! So far one week out I'm very happy with my decision.

You will need to talk with your surgeon and/or the practice's nutritionist to find out exactly what they mean and what they want you to be on. If you use the search function on here and look for pre-op or pre-op diets, or just run through the threads, you will find there is no one answer that is correct. The only correct one is the answer you get from your surgeon. Most (surgeons) believe (based on a couple of studies) that high protein, low carb, low fat diet for two weeks pre-operatiively shrinks the liver so that it can be more safely retracted and held out of the way during surgery. (Some don't require a pre-op diet, it depends on the surgeon.) I won't go into specifics about how the studies also showed that optimal shrinkage took six weeks, but I'm guessing the belief is that two weeks of shrinkage is helpful and safer for the patient. Also the two weeks of liquids preop helps to get you used to the liquids, you won't be eating solids for some time after the surgery as your stitches need to heal and "seat" the band on your newly formed pouch.