Why is everything on the pre and post op diet sugar free?

[Ariellestarr 53]

All sugar free items contain chemicals that are worse than eating regular sugar! I don't understand why doctors are encouraging this when it is toxic to our systems, and especially those of us with a minimized stomach.

Does anyone have an answer as to why they encourage our diets to incorporate artificial sweeteners?

[Dexter1118 27]

Because sugar is empty calories. Plain and simple. Maybe you should try Stevia? It's all natural supposedly.

[moonlitestarbrite 902]

the trick is to minimize added sugar as much as possible. for a lot of people that means artificial sweeteners. for me, i eliminated almost all the sugar from my diet. we dont do artificial sweeteners or stevia here. if we use sweeteners we use honey or maple Syrup in small amounts. i also limit fruit, cause even that can be too sweet for me.

[Chelenka 827]

Processed sugar may not be a manufactured chemical but isn't truly a natural sweetener either. Sugar cane bears little resemblance to the product that results from it. For most of us processed sugar triggers overeating and acts like a drug in our brains. Also, post-op it causes many people to have dumping syndrome. I was told it would slow my weight loss. I do eat some foods with processed sugar but try to limit it. It triggers me to want to eat all the time. There are natural sweeteners like stevia and also one called Nectressa which I like better. It doesn't have any bitter aftertaste like Stevia.

[LumpySpacePrincess 594]

Table sugar is also a chemical. By the time you get it in a bag it is nowhere near its natural state. Plus sugar is what makes you fat because it tells the body to release insulin and insulin is responsible for lowering your blood sugar by storing it in fat cells to be used later for energy. The problem is, most of us who are severely overweight have insulin insensitivity which means we need a ton more insulin to lower our blood sugar which in turn stores more sugar in fat cells and the body can't pull the stored sugar out of the fat cells for energy.

[Ariellestarr 53]

I regularly use organic coconut sugar. I was just curious because I went shopping for my pre op diet at Whole Foods. Even there I couldn't find any kind of decent ice pop or sorbet with stevia or the like. It just got me thinking! Thanks for all your responses

Edited June 17, 2014 by Ariellestarr

[moonlitestarbrite 902]

I regularly use organic coconut sugar. I was just curious because I went shopping for my pre op diet at Whole Foods. Even there I couldn't find any kind of decent ice pop or sorbet with stevia or the like. It just got me thinking! Thanks for all your responses

minimize the use of coconut sugar too, but i do use it in my coffee.

[2muchfun 8,928]

1. Pre-op..They want your liver to shrink so they can get to your stomach without damaging the liver. And carbs, especially simple carbs like sugar, make your body retain fluids and of course there's the calories.

2. Post-op..Your daily calorie input is extremely limited. Simple carbs have no nutritional value except maybe a little energy. Simple carbs also spike your insulin levels and when they come down you just want more sugar.

Many of us have/had sugar addictions and no time like the present to kick that bad habit.

[Writerjennifer 107]

All sugar free items contain chemicals that are worse than eating regular sugar! I don't understand why doctors are encouraging this when it is toxic to our systems, and especially those of us with a minimized stomach.

Does anyone have an answer as to why they encourage our diets to incorporate artificial sweeteners?

I don't think they want us to have fake sugar specifically. They do want us to not have real sugar drinks or foods with a lot of real sugar (my nut says food needs to have less than 20 grams per serving). This is both to help with weight loss and to avoid dumping syndrome. For some people fake sugar is an option. I get Migraines, triggered by fake sugar. So I will be avoiding that stuff like the plague.

Jennifer

[moonlitestarbrite 902]

i have also found over the years... dietitians are a very conservative type people who tend to enjoy rules and dislike innovation and change. its just the kind of people who are attracted to the job.

my hosp is still pushing fat free artificially sweetened products. sugar free kool aid is on the list of stuff to drink after surgery! they are wayyyyyy behind the research on what actually works for people in losing weight and regaining health. meanwhile, people using diets like autoimmune paleo and whole30 are achieving amazing things with really sick people. even just switching people to real food only is making a huge change.

but i feel like a lot of people wouldnt have this surgery if they thought they could only drink Water and unsweetened ice tea post op.

[Colleen C 169]

I can agree, I dont like or think artificial sweetener is good in any sense of the word good.

With that said, lots of stuff like medicine I take that I need (blood pressure etc.) is not good for me in one sense but it is better for me than the alternative. (heart attack, stroke).

So for me that is how I think of the sugar free is that as an obese person, when I feel I have to eat something sweetened, it just has to be sugar free because the alternative to it is more sugar and more weight gain.

We absolutely should eat it in small amounts and learn to cut it out or greatly decrease the amount and while we are in that process the sugar free is what helps us get there and loose weight in the meantime.

I hope that made sense,

Colleen

[moonlitestarbrite 902]

I can agree, I dont like or think artificial sweetener is good in any sense of the word good.

With that said, lots of stuff like medicine I take that I need (blood pressure etc.) is not good for me in one sense but it is better for me than the alternative. (heart attack, stroke).

So for me that is how I think of the sugar free is that as an obese person, when I feel I have to eat something sweetened, it just has to be sugar free because the alternative to it is more sugar and more weight gain.

We absolutely should eat it in small amounts and learn to cut it out or greatly decrease the amount and while we are in that process the sugar free is what helps us get there and loose weight in the meantime.

I hope that made sense,

Colleen

the research suggests artificial sweeteners actually lead to more weight because of how the body is tricked. its better to wean oneself off of sugar as much as possible.

[Bandista 7,466]

Medical professionals are way behind in the nutrition department. My hospital's lapband program included a shake for the two-week pre-op liquid diet. When I saw the ingredients I couldn't believe it. When I mentioned it to the surgeon he said, "oh, I'd never put that crap in my body either." But apparently most patients are already addicted to artificial sweeteners and sugars in every form so they use this product to encourage compliance.

I found another product and had to meet with the nutritionist to get her to sign off on it -- pretty ridiculous as the liver clearing shake I chose was so superior in every way. This is the same nutritionist who told me her kids don't eat Breakfast in the mornings. Oh, and she announced my weight in front of my husband during the one visit I took him along, a figure I had managed to conceal for years! I have not been impressed with nutritionists on the whole. Remember one working with my husband who had a lengthy hospital stay -- they couldn't even get the gluten-free thing right and this was Boston.

Re: sugar, I enjoyed Popsicles post-op and since it's a rare treat I don't mind having a little of the real thing here and there. The MinuteMaid soft frozen lemonade in particular was great those first few days. I'd only have a little and I was done. I understand articial sweeteners signal the brain that food is on the way, great. And of course sugar is poison, too, but I try to at least get unbleached organic.

[Miss Mac 6,262]

Artificial sweeteners were a stepping stone for me when I did Atkins years ago, but gradually over time became a powerful crutch. I had become used to my food tasting sweet. I was putting that stuff in chili, tuna salad, salad dressings, just anything and everything in massive amounts. When I got my sleeve, I began notching down because here I was eating all natural healthy food, but adding sweetener to it and also drinking all those chemicals.

This past week, I decided to dropped them entirely and just drink Water 95% of the time. And guess what? I broke a plateau and lost four pounds in a few days! So, I am thinking the sweeteners were holding me back. Well, whatever the science, I am convinced that sweeteners and sugar are both not for me.

[Ariellestarr 53]

Congrats, @@MissMac! Sugar really is just a terrible thing that most of us can't seem to get away from. Luckily in this day and age there are so many alternatives to sugar AND artificial sweeteners. My personal favorite is organic coconut sugar. It comes in about a one pound at Trader Joe's for $3 and change. It's a great, healthy alternative, and tastes better than any artificial sweetener or sugar! I do believe it is also diabetic friendly, but of course check before you consume I'm glad I have a basic knowledge of real healthy eating and some good habits pre op.

I wish more doctors and nutritionists took more of a holistic approach to our diets. Doctors took a hippocratic oath clearly stating "let food be thy medicine", yet pump their patients up with fat free, low fat, splenda, artificial this and that, and even medications!