How much protein should we be taking in per day? I also am using the EAS Advant Edge (carb control) Calories are 110, protein 17 and carbs are 6.

What about vitamins?? I am using the Publix children chewable with iron so far I am only doing one per day. Do you think I should do two??

Thanks a bunch!

Protein- at least 60g per day...I have no problem getting that in with some each meal. My doc says no liquid Protein, only lean solids; defeats the purpose of the band (he says you might as well be on a Liquid Protein diet...you'll get hungry faster with a liquid). I do use the EAS after fills for my day of liquids.

Vitamins- I was told to take 2 Centrum Chewables one morning and one night (or 4 of the Flinstones).

Ok I understand the 60 per day but I am still on the full liquids. Should I put some protein powder in they liquids I am having? Or does the 60 kick in when you go to the soft food stage?

Oh whoops! I missed seeing that you were just post-op. My doc said you probably won't be able to get to the Protein goals until you at least get to the soft foods stage. He says when you're on liquids the goal is just to heal and your body has plenty of stored nutrients to get you through (I was on 3 weeks of liquids).

Try to get as much protein as you can though as it will keep you from getting hungry (I didn't start worrying about protein until I started to get hungry about week 3). I went to GNC and bought a higher protein (25g per scoop...much higher than EAS) drink powder and made some shakes with skim milk and fruit (I bought the Isopure Alpine punch...pretty nasty unless you add the fruit/milk). 2 of these a day and you've got 50+g protein. Or if you have another high protein one you can add it to things. Good luck!

Thanks that makes much more sense. I am making my own soup this way I can control the salt. I have cooking right now a chicken with mushrooms and veggies. It is so simple to do. Once it is done I will cool it down some and then puree it. Not to the liquidy stage but thick enough to drink through a straw. So the chicken will give me some protein.

Then tomorrow I am doing a crab mushroom soup also very low salt. I'll let ya know how they taste tomorrow!! I got these recipes on this web site!!

Proteins: soy (soymilk, tofu, soybeans, edemame), dairy (milk, cheese, yogurt, ESPECIALLY cottage cheese - so much protein), nuts, Beans and other legumes (like lentils)...

I'm a vegetarian, but fish and poultry are also packed with Protein. As I said on another thread though, beware salmonella when handling poultry (and eggs), mercury poisoning w/ fish, and avoid red meat, because it causes colon cancer among other problems - like heart problems.

Here's a resource for vegan protein, but again things like dairy and eggs are packed with protein (and yolks are high in cholesterol, so beware of that if you have a problem with it... sometimes if I'm making egg salad I'll use like one yolk and 2 egg whites, you can do the same w/ scrambled or you can eat no yolks at all... lots of places these days will serve egg white omelets or scrambles... i like the flavor of the yolk, so i might throw one in there...

Vegan food are primarily cholestorol free. I am not a vegan, I'm a vegetarian... people ask me "what do you eat?!" -- I eat everything, I don't consider animals food... even when I DID eat meat, it was maybe once a week or bi-weekly, it's very easy to maintain a mostly vegetarian lifestyle, and even people who love meat, like the New York Times' Mark Bittman are now saying that it's best to be mostly vegetarian... it's not that restrictive, and people like him still eat meat, just not all the time...

Protein in the Vegan Diet -- The Vegetarian Resource Group

My go-to foods for Protein are 0% fat Fage Greek yogurt, various hard and soft reduced fat cheeses, almonds, lean pork, beef, fish and shellfish, chili made with ground turkey or lean beef chili with Beans.

No food is automatically bad for you. Any food is bad for you in excess.

Did you read about the Mayo Clinic study that just came out looking at WLS patients? Apparently we are more than 5 times more likely to break bones because of vitamin depletion. They recommend for bandsters at least 1500mg calcium citrate a day (in addition to whatever calcium you are getting with your meals. ) Also extra D3, so make sure your multivitamin has that as well.

No food is automatically bad for you. Any food is bad for you in excess.

That's not true - red meat is horrible for you - I'm not saying people can't have it once every few months or so, but it causes colon cancer and heart disease...

I would say that bacon is automatically bad for you...

Refined sugar, bleached flour... most of the processed stuff out there...

I am flat out getting down 30g Protein a day. More and I start vomitting. It's always been a bugaboo for me. As to red meat; it seems to be about quantity and frequency. Most of us bandsters couldn't get through the quantities required to cause cancer. See the following link:

http://www.cancercouncil.com.au/editorial.asp?pageid=1861

Edited June 18, 200917 yr by The Violet Rose
defective link

I beg to differ. I certainly think any bandster could get 1.7 ounces of meat down. There is new information coming out every day on this.

http://fightcolorectalcancer.org/dr_lenz/2009/05/why_is_red_meat_associated_with_colon_cancer_risk_new_clues_

That's not true - red meat is horrible for you - I'm not saying people can't have it once every few months or so, but it causes colon cancer and heart disease...

I would say that bacon is automatically bad for you...

Refined sugar, bleached flour... most of the processed stuff out there...

I disagree. Lean meats are excellent sources of many vital nutrients. My father is 88yo and in perfect health other than a bad hip. He hates chicken and seafood, so he eats pork or beef 3 meals a day his entire life. He has always eaten reasonable quantities and never overeats.

Of course I'm not saying that everyone should eat this stuff 3 meals a day. The foods you mention CAN be downright deadly if overindulged over a long period of time. It's all about balance and moderation, something the band makes a lot easier for many of us. I'm in the best health of my adult life right now, judging by my overall feeling and also my bloodwork. I happily eat beef or pork, in small quantities, 7 days a week and I've never felt better. I do however avoid sugar and refined flour as much as possible.

airkuhl - you are disagreeing based on one person, i am stating fact based on cancer and heart research... you can not disagree because your father (thank god) is healthy after eating a lot of red meat, when science shows that for a great deal of the population, the opposite is true. i included links in another thread, one even saying that 1.7oz of red meat ups your chances of colorectal cancer by 21%. i'm not pulling this stuff out of thin air, i know about it, and am trying to care for people.

airkuhl - you are disagreeing based on one person, i am stating fact based on cancer and heart research... you can not disagree because your father (thank god) is healthy after eating a lot of red meat, when science shows that for a great deal of the population, the opposite is true. i included links in another thread, one even saying that 1.7oz of red meat ups your chances of colorectal cancer by 21%. i'm not pulling this stuff out of thin air, i know about it, and am trying to care for people.

I appreciate where you are coming from and I know your intentions are good.

For the record I agree that eating red meat CAN increase chances of many health issues. Or if you want to be picky, things like choline, excess Iron and saturated fat. The WCRF (World Cancer Research Fund) recommends no more than 17.6 oz. of red meat per week to avoid these issues. BTW, note that all of these questionable substances are also found in many other foods including vegetarian sources.

My point is simply that for me, the risk is worth it. EVERYTHING in excess has risks. Eat too much Tofu? Cognitive impairment, Alzheimer's, thyroid dysfunction.

You seem to be extremely health focused and risk-averse, which is commendable.

I indulge in a wide variety of risky activities, from eating medium-rare pork to racing cars to riding motorcycles to eating unidentifiable street food in third world countries to the occasional cigar, bourbon or recreational herbal inhalant, lol. I'm OK with that.

I'm physically and psychologically in the best health of my life right now despite all of the above. All of these risks are completely dwarfed by the damage overeating was doing to me. I guess I'm saying that for me life is more about quality than quantity.

Anyway, more power to you and I sincerely respect the disciplined way you approach the betterment of your health. You are doing a good thing by raising all of these alarms. People should at least look into these things and decide for themselves. I concede that you are doing it the "right" way and I encourage readers to strive to match the standard you have set. It's just not for me. :tongue: