Liquid Diet VS. A Modified Diet : Pre-Op

Hello Everyone,

As of today I am 11 days Pre-Op and my patient coordinator with Belite Weight sent me my Pre-Op diet and it does not call for me to be on a liquid diet only, yet; another patient coordinator with Pompeii Surgical sent me a all liquid diet plan. I am doing both liquids for lunch and dinner and a light heavy protein dinner. Any suggestions on which is better for my liver for surgery.

Is your surgery with Belite or Pompeii?

It is with Belite Weight with Dr. Jose Rodriguez-Villareal and Dr. Elmo Aramburo in Juarez Mexico at Hospital Angeles 12/18/17

Then I would follow the plan given to you by Belite.

This decision isn't ours to make; you need to follow the advice that came from the doctor (or clinic) that is actually doing the surgery.

Another vote for following the plan of the place actually doing the surgery.

Every doc is different, and sometimes even within a practice one patient will get a different pre-op diet from another. My surgeon doesn't do a full liquid pre-op unless she sees evidence of enlarged liver or other problems during the EGD scope that she always does before scheduling the surgery. She had me do protein shakes 2-3x/day plus a "healthy" dinner (lean protein, veggies, complex carbs) and I could have "healthy" snacks (fruit/veg/nuts) if I was hungry.

This is probably a good time to make sure you're clear on the post-op diet plan, especially if you're getting conflicting instructions from the different organizations you're working with. The post-op diet plan is for safety while you heal, so it's crtically important you follow it... so any conflicts between plans need to be resolved before you go under the knife.

Yes, follow the directions of the practice that you are using - don't second guess them. An all liquid diet won't "shrink the liver" any better than one of the more varied diets as it is the low carbohydrate content that does the job, not the liquid or solid form. If you follow their directions and they don't like the results, that is their problem and not yours - you did your part.

We can only guess at why some practices impose an all liquid diet, and their rationale no doubt varies. Personally, I would avoid a practice that uses an all liquid pre-op diet.

The diet doesn't even shrink the liver much in only 10 days time, however I would go with what the surgical practice recommends. Some surgeons want your system flushed out with liquids so there's no solid matter in the stomach to deal with.

Thank you everyone for your replies.