Low-fat, Low sugar, low carb--what's left?

You know my surgeon said to eat as stated above, 3 meals (no snacking) and try not to drink your calories or nutrition, but it doesn't sound healthy or well rounded to me and doesn't leave much! My questions to you (keeping those guidelines in mind) are: 1) What is your favorite salad dressing? 2) Do you keep a food/exercise journal or software program to help you track what you are eating? Do you find it helpful? 3) How many calories do you consume per day? 4) How do you battle head hunger? I have been eating well (read: not stomach hungry) Around 900-1200 calories and losing alittle at a time(15#since surgery). I have not had a fill yet (4 weeks post op) nor have I given in to head hunger yet. But it is coming I think so I would like to know what you all do. Thanks in advance, stacey

) What is your favorite salad dressing? Kraft Carb Well 2) Do you keep a food/exercise journal or software program to help you track what you are eating? Do you find it helpful? YEs www.fitday.com 3) How many calories do you consume per day?pre opt, way too many! lol 4) How do you battle head hunger? Everyday I try to leave out something and add something, leave out bread and add low fat, low sodium town house crackers! My surgery date is November 22, 2004 so I am still a couple of weeks out of surgery. I am very excited. I hope this helps, You can also find almost any of your favorite foods low carb these days even slim fast ans leann suisine has a low fat low calorie and low carb meals. It sounds alot worste than it really is. Good healthfood just cost's alot!

When it comes to post-healing-phase diet, we should be consulting with registered dieticians/nutritionists, NOT surgeons. Doctors get little to no nutritional training in med school, so are not the best source for sound nutritional advice. In reality, "low-fat" means 20-30% of calories from fats...the low-fat craze of the 1990s was really an "ultra low-fat" diet of fewer than 20% calories from fats. That's really too low. I aim for about 30%, per my dietician. Low carb...don't get me started...this whole current craze has too-often lumped ALL carbs as being equal and they are not. What everyone (WLS, fat, thin, whatever) should be aiming to do is reduce the amount of sugar and highly-processed simple-carb-based foods from our diets. They are not healthy and and no nutritional value. Good complex whole-foods-based carbs are VERY healthy and required for a healthy balanced diet. Our brains MUST have carbs to function properly. Ultra-low-carb diets have been shown to cause concentration problems and other reduced-brain-function side effects. My dietician recommends no less than 100g carbs/day for healthy brain function. She also recommends a MINIMUM of 25g fiber, which can only be gotten by eating complex carbs. Brain health and colon health...taking care of both ends with one group of foods, what could be better? LOL Bandsters should eat a well-balanced healthy reduced portion/calorie diet. Ultimately, it's about calories in vs. calories out. No matter how many fads and diet books come out promising a magic formula, it really does boil down to this. There are SOME conditions that respond better to reducing the overall carb intake a bit (such as PCOS and some forms of Type II diabetes) but it's a mistake to self-diagnose and utilize a potentially unhealthy dietary plan when these types of conditions are not diagnosed and may not be present. Women need about 50-60g of protein a day...we don't gauge protein requirements by actual body weight, but IDEAL body weight. Our fat stores do not need protein...our lean mass does. Excessive protein isn't better and can cause problems if there are underlying undiagnosed issues (such as undiagnosed kidney damage (most people who have kidney damage are undiagnosed). Protein ideally should be around 20-25% of daily calories Fats ideally should be around 25-30% The remainder should be good healthy fibrous complex carbs Bandsters shouldn't be on some crazy diet plan...sensible, healthy eating is what the band is designed for... Nancy 394/299/180