Dietary Guidelines post Sleeve Gastrectomy Procedure

Adherence to a proper Bariatric lifestyle is key to losing weight and not the surgery alone. This article highlights the dietary guidelines for a patient who has undergone Sleeve Gastrectomy Procedure.

Gastric sleeve or sleeve gastrectomy is fast becoming a preferred Bariatric surgery. It is a procedure that induces weight loss by restricting food intake. The procedure involves surgical removal of the left side of the stomach leaving a banana size stomach.

One needs to be aware of the fact that Bariatric surgery isn’t a shortcut to weight loss. In fact, those who think it is, should avoid getting the surgery altogether. It is important to understand that Bariatric surgery is more like a commitment that one makes to self, a promise towards adopting a healthy lifestyle and healthy eating habits. This is what ensures a sustained weight loss and helps in avoiding nutritional deficiencies. As is the case with every Bariatric procedure, it is a prerequisite for a patient to modify his/her diet after the surgery. Here are quick guidelines designed for implementation after a gastric sleeve or sleeve gastrectomy surgery.

Dietary Stage 1 – The first three days after the surgery, a patient is advised to follow a clear liquid diet which includes –

Water

Clear soups

Coconut water

From the fourth day onwards, a patient can consume:-

Protein shakes

Thin dal

Buttermilk

Tea/coffee

Dietary Stage 2 – This stage is known as the soft diet stage. It mainly involves consumption of food with a soft consistency. The foods included in this stage are:-

Egg whites

Fish

Porridge

Khichdi (a mixed combination of lentils and rice)

Low-calorie cottage cheese

Curd

One should avoid consumption of salads or bread at this stage.

Dietary Stage 3 – In this stage, a patient is allowed to resume a full diet. However, there are certain guidelines to be kept in mind, including:-



Avoiding intake of high-calorie foods with fats or sugars

Maintaining proper intake of protein rich food (ideally, a patient should consume 50 to 60gms of protein in a day)

Adequate intake of liquids (1.5-2 litres per day)

Further, with sleeve gastrectomy, accompanying the bariatric diet with multivitamin & mineral supplementation greatly helps in preventing any nutritional deficiencies. It is best advised that a patient should regularly follow-up with his/her dietitian post the surgery to achieve best weight loss results. For every patient, it is vital to make healthy food choices and regularly exercise after surgery in order to achieve the maximum amount of weight loss and to sustain nutritional health. Having said that, I hope these guidelines will help keep you healthy while losing weight. All the best!