Hi everyone need some advice! I officially start a 8 day strictly liquid pre op diet on August 3rd for surgery the 11th... Is it safe to drink alcohol this weekend before the pre op diet starts? I'm in Chicago on a little trip and my doctor never said anything about alcohol before the pre op diet starting but wanted to hear any one else's opinion on the matter. Thanks!

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In that case - I'd drink moderately (not bet sloshed which I doubt you plan to)!

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My surgery is scheduled for 8/17. I stopped drinking on 7/12. My reason is I want to lose as much weight as possibly before my surgery to make it safer and I can't lose if I'm drinking. Just a fact for me. I also wanted to eliminate the inflammatory effect of alcohol on my liver.

No alcohol. Sorry.

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I'm sure your doctor gave you the instructions. I don't know anyone's pre op diet that makes allowances for Alcohol. You may as well start taking this seriously NOW.

Theu said BEFORE their pre op diet. Calm down.

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Clear liquids like vodka, gin or tequila would be best.

This reply is after the fact, I would have asked your surgeon.

The preop diet, in part, helps shrink the liver. I don't see how alcohol consumption prior to surgery could have no effect on the liver (maybe very small amounts of alcohol wouldn't, but why risk it without asking your surgeon's team?)

Wow. I never knew alcohol did this. I'm quitting completely. Had no idea it enlarged your liver for a 2 weeks. Though I don't drink that much, I'm sure to have at the very least one or two drinks a week, so that means I've never ever had a normal liver since I was 19???

Yikes!

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Hi everyone need some advice! I officially start a 8 day strictly liquid pre op diet on August 3rd for surgery the 11th... Is it safe to drink alcohol this weekend before the pre op diet starts? I'm in Chicago on a little trip and my doctor never said anything about alcohol before the pre op diet starting but wanted to hear any one else's opinion on the matter. Thanks!

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Are you kidding?????

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Hi everyone need some advice! I officially start a 8 day strictly liquid pre op diet on August 3rd for surgery the 11th... Is it safe to drink alcohol this weekend before the pre op diet starts? I'm in Chicago on a little trip and my doctor never said anything about alcohol before the pre op diet starting but wanted to hear any one else's opinion on the matter. Thanks!

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Are you kidding?????

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Thanks for your more than helpful response!! For the record I was simply asking if it was safe BEFORE the pre op diet started...wasn't asking if I could include it in the liquid diet... Anyways I ended up asking my doctor and she said it was fine to have a few non carbonated non sugary drinks before I started my liquid diet as long as I was within my daily caloric limit we had set.. I rarely drink but due to the occasion I would have liked to have a drink or two...

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I should have never posted this since 50% of everyone who responded lacks the comprehension to understand my question. I did not ask about consuming alcohol ON the liquid/pre-op diet. This was directed strictly to PRIOR to starting the diet. Reading all of the posts of food funerals and last hoorahs I'm sure no one on here is perfect, otherwise why are you even in this situation to begin with? I have stuck to my 1600 cal diet religiously over the past few months and my doctor said as long as I stayed within my daily caloric limit she had no problem with me drinking responsibly PRIOR to starting her official pre-op diet.

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I should have never posted this since 50% of everyone who responded lacks the comprehension to understand my question. I did not ask about consuming alcohol ON the liquid/pre-op diet. This was directed strictly to PRIOR to starting the diet. Reading all of the posts of food funerals and last hoorahs I'm sure no one on here is perfect, otherwise why are you even in this situation to begin with? I have stuck to my 1600 cal diet religiously over the past few months and my doctor said as long as I stayed within my daily caloric limit she had no problem with me drinking responsibly PRIOR to starting her official pre-op diet.

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I don't believe half of the people responding lack comprehension to what you wrote.

There is a liquid diet (typically 1-2 weeks prior to the surgery) but surgeons also recommend losing weight from the initial consultation until the surgery date too to shrink the liver, lose fat which gives more room for them to work, show that you are committed to losing weight, lowers your chance of a complication (due to hopefully improved health/fitness, lower weight, smaller liver and more room to perform the surgery, etc.), amongst other reasons.

Also, most medical plans require a 3-6 month doctor supervised diet prior to the surgery. You would be in that phase, even though you were not in your liquid phase.

I know my surgeon recommended not drinking any alcohol during this period due to wasted calories, bad habits, etc..

Why did you ask this question to people on the internet, most of whom don't have any medical experience, also, criticize them when they answer your question to the best that they thought they understood what was being asked?

Edited August 1, 20169 yr by 4MRB4PHOTO

@jt925 I'm sorry the responses you got were so unhelpful. I hate when people read the topic and spout off before even bothering to read the actual post. I hope you were able to get the answers you needed from your surgeon, since you couldn't get them here. Please don't hesitate to ask questions here in the future though! This site can be very very useful sometimes. It's just sort of a mixed bag once in a while. Maybe, moving forward, be conscious of what you put in the topic and how that might be interpreted by people and what kind of responses it might attract.

I have the unique perspective of both going through the process of getting sleeved and watching my wife go through the process.

I did a much better job of sticking to the program, while my wife did not. She was eating bad food right up to the day before surgery. I lost 30 lbs in my 6 month waiting period. She lost 7. I worked out religiously, she never did. My recovery was quick and painless, hers was not.

So, what's the point of this story? Even though it is acceptable to consume bad food before surgery, it is best to acclimatize to your new diet as soon as possible.

I would definitely check with your surgeon before consuming alcohol. I realize it's before your pre-op diet, however, the entire point of the pre-op diet is to reduce the size of your liver as much as possible to give the surgeon easy access to the area he or she needs to work within.

Alcohol effects the liver directly, and could certainly have an impact on your success during the pre-op phase. Nothing would be worse than going in for your op and having the doc close you back up because your liver was too large to proceed. Obviously that's worst-case, but probably not worth the risk tbh...

Even with your doctor saying it's ok, I *personally* would probably opt against it just for the fact that alcohol directly impacts the organ in which the entire pre-op diet is geared to address. Obviously you spoke with your doc and they are fine with it so the choice is up to you....best of luck!

Edited August 3, 20169 yr by smg

Well I had my surgery my liver turned out to be small and fine! The surgeon only had to make 4 incisions instead of her usual 6! 4 days post op and am feeling pretty much back to normal minus my liquid diet and tiring easily lol.

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