this was on OH for bands - but, i think it applies to all of us

Jan 22, 2009

TOP FIVE Worst Foods for Gastric Band Patients

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Watching what you eat is important for anyone who wants to lose weight, but those with adjustable gastric bands need to be even more careful. These are five food categories that band patients should steer clear of:

Ice Cream

This tasty frozen dessert is high in fat and calories and should be a rare treat for anyone. However, for a gastric band patient, even an occasional serving of ice cream can have an adverse impact on weight loss. The average patient should consume about 1000-1200 calories per day. A half-cup serving of ice cream typically contains 275 calories and 15 grams of fat, but do you think the band will stop you at a half-cup? Think again. Ice cream passes through the band very easily, allowing you to eat well over half a cup at one sitting, which could mean up to 1000 calories or more. Let’s not forget about the enormous amount of heart-clogging saturated fat, either. So don’t fall victim to the ice cream temptation.

White Bread (Flour)

This can encompass a whole spectrum of foods, all of which are weight loss killers. Some of them do not pass through the band easily (doughy bread) and some pass through the band too easily (crackers, cookies). Consuming a highly processed white flour product is a complete waste of valuable “pouch space” for a gastric band patient. White flour is a whole grain stripped of its essential components, the germ and the bran (fiber), leaving only the endosperm. It is then “enriched” with vitamins and minerals because the endosperm is so nutritionally empty. White flour is also often treated with potentially unhealthy chemicals that whiten and mature the flour.

Many patients avoid white breads, pastas and rice because they can be painful when passing through the band. Most bariatric surgeons recommend avoiding white flour completely for at least the first year after surgery.

Creamy (High-Fat) Soups

Soups made with heavy cream should be avoided completely. These are extremely high in fat and calories and go through the band easily, which allows the patient to eat more of them at one time. Broth-based soups, especially chunkier soups full of beans and lentils, are acceptable as long as they provide a feeling of satisfaction for a few hours. So, if you see heavy cream as an ingredient in the soup you are about to eat, put the ladle down and choose a lighter meal.

Tough, Chewy Red Meat

Red meat can be a healthy addition to anyone’s diet. Unfortunately, most red meat is very hard to digest and does not pass easily through the band. The leaner red meats will have the word “round” or “loin” in their names, such as beef tenderloin or ground round. Less expensive red meats require a lot of chewing and still may not pass through the band once they are swallowed. Most patients choose to avoid chewy meat due to this.

A pound of beef tenderloin can cost $18 per pound, but most bariatric patients can only consume two ounces per sitting, which works out to $3 per serving.

High-Calorie Liquids

There are very rare circumstances when a bariatric patient should consume a high-calorie beverage. Most of the time, these are completely useless and can hurt weight loss. Sports drinks and vitamin-enhanced beverages are usually high in sugar and calories and should only be consumed in extreme cases, such as after intense exercise. Simple, plain water is always the best choice.

Artificially sweetened drinks can increase appetite, resulting in a higher consumption of food, not to mention the questionable effects that artificial sweeteners have on our bodies. High-protein beverages such as skim milk or protein shakes can be counted by themselves as a meal or snack.

So what should you eat? A basic diet high in lean proteins (fish, chicken, low-fat dairy, beans), fruits, vegetables and whole grains should be the emphasis for good weight loss and overall health.

Michael Murphy, RD, is the bariatric dietitian for The Weight Loss Institute of Arizona in Tempe, Arizona.

December 2008

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