RNY - 2 1/2 months out, lactose intolerant and struggling with protein!
on 10/24/14 12:14 am
Hi all-
As the title states, I am about 2 1/2 months out from having RNY. I was having pains in my chest and shoulder which I have pinpointed as lactose intolerance. (I don't have the pains since eliminated lactose from my diet.) That being said, I am really struggling to get my protein in. Most protein powders are not lactose free or the taste terrible. (It specifically has to be lactose free, low lactose does not work for me sadly). Also, Lactaid makes me dump, so that is not an option either...
What were you all eating at 2 1/2 months (types of food and amounts)? Two ounces of meat takes me an hour to eat!
Also, I developed the lactose intolerance after surgery. Has anyone developed the intolerance after surgery and then it went away? If so, how dong did it take?
Hoping for some help here!
Thank you!
Hi there,
I developed lactose intolerance after RNY. I can't drink Lactaid either. Another member suggested lactase pills. They seem to help, though I may need to take more than 1. You can buy them almost anywhere. I bought a generic brand as all you need is the missing enzyme. Nothing fancy pants.
If the lactase pills work for you, it will help with your protein intake as well since you'll be able to handle the powders better.
You can try Isopure RTDs but in my opinion they taste awful unless icy cold. I use them as a last resort to get my protein in.
Good luck and let us know how you do.
Suz
on 10/24/14 2:01 am, edited 10/24/14 2:01 am - Canada
Lots of people become lactose intolerant after surgery. Me? I used to drink my coffee black before surgery, and after surgery couldn't stand it this way...had to add cream and still do or I can't stand it. There should be quite a few lactose free protein powders around....go to a body building type store and ask there...there is pea protein, pumpkin protein, etc. available. You may be able to find one that is as digestible for us as whey isolate powders. You can also drink almond milk, coconut milk, soy milk, etc. as cow milk substitutes....so many on the market now.
At 2.5 months I still was only eating a couple of teaspoons of food per 'meal' but it was so long ago - 4 years - that I don't quite remember. Do remember forgetting to eat anything and drinking a lot more protein shakes than I do now..... Good luck; you will overcome this or find a way to get your proteins in through high protein foods...eggs, soft fish, etc......
A lot of protein powders are lactose free. Whey isolate is - so things like Unjury or Syntrax are. Or soy isolate or egg white protein.
It's unlikely the lactose intolerance will go away. It happens because there is much less lactase in our pouch and we need the enzyme lactase to digest lactose. It's unlikely you will start producing more lactase in time - in fact, people tend to produce less lactase as they age, even if they haven't had RNY, so some people become lactose intolerant when they get older even if they weren't before.
At 2.5 months out, I ate eggs, cheese, yogurt, beans, protein shakes, veggie burgers, vegetarian chili, stuff like that. I ate about 1/2 cup at a time.
Please note: I AM NOT A DOCTOR. If you want medical advice, talk to your doctor. Whatever I post, there is probably some surgeon or other health care provider somewhere that disagrees with me. If you want to know what your surgeon thinks, then ask him or her. Check out my blog.
on 10/24/14 6:48 am
I use unsweetened almond milk. Tastes great and the now have one with coconut. It's made by diamond in the milk isle.
Try to eat your protein instead of drinking it. Egg, tuna or chicken salad. Refried beans eggs. I make pickled eggs.
"The first thing I do in the morning is brush my teeth and sharpen my tongue." --- Dorothy Parker
"You may not like what I say or how I say it, but it may be just exactly what you need to hear." ---Kathryn White
I've been lactose intolerant since my late teens, so more than 20 years. Most lactose intolerant folks can tolerate cheeses and yogurt with live bacterial cultures. I have no problem with lactose free milk or whey isolate protein although I rarely find the need to drink shakes. I have no trouble getting 60-80g of protein a day by eating yogurt, eggs, chicken, turkey, fish, cheese, nuts and beans. Ground Turkey saves me! Easy and quick and easy to tolerate!
Good luck
Shakes are all nasty to me - so it didn't matter I get my protein from food. I highly recommend crab legs, shrimp and fish - much much easier to deal with early on than meat/beef/pork.
I also put chicken breasts in the crock pot and cook them forever. You can add a little Franks Buffalo if you like it hot, some tomatoes if you like it Mexican, you can do some soy and asian spices.
If you forced me to drink a protein shake - Unjury Chocolate Splendor which is Whey was tolerable.
Good luck!
Oh Greek Yogurt too, cheese, Wendy's chili.
I also became severely lactose intolerant after RNY....
However I found that I could still do ok with Greek yogurt and some cheese even though I couldn't handle lactaid milk at all. Chocolate protein shakes also seemed easier to tolerate. I like the costco premier protein chocolate shakes. I can't tolerate the vanilla ones but I do just fine with the chocolate