Pork rinds....

Yes, it's interesting how many opinions you can find on any subject. My surgeon and nutritionist say that no food is prohibited in moderation; the only foods I might want to avoid right now are those that are gas-producers and those that are particularly hard to digest (like carrots and lettuce). I am to eat protein first (80-100 g each day) and if I have room, veggies and fruits. Carbs are dead last on my list since they make me have gas. Pork rinds actually digest nicely right now. Again, eating them does not appear to have slowed my weight loss down. I am now down 58 lb in 2 months. Best of luck to you. -joanne s

Hi Joanne, No, they are on my surgeon's list of *BAD* proteins (their terminology) because they are high fat and along with chicken nuggets, bacon, salami, etc. They specifically prefer we eat lean proteins, i.e. skinless chicken breast, tofu, eggs, shrimp, etc. and highly recommend items low in calories, fat grams and food additives. Now this is the protocol for the vertical sleeve gastrectomy, not the full DS, but seems logical to me that if we are trying to lose weight we should avoid items high in saturated fat. There are many crunchy goodies that are MUCH lower fat. Soy chips, etc... There is a huge flame war on the main board about a woman eating spagetti o's two weeks out...white pasta is also specifically prohibited on the protocol I've been given. I am also specifically prohibited from drinking juices...yet I see them on other's allowed lists. The differences in opinion on food are confounding...but I'll probably follow the surgeon's advice. Interesting input everyone...thanks , Jo

I had the VG, and my surgeon's nutritionist does not have any "forbidden" foods, although she frowns about too much fast or prepared foods. I just have to be sure I get my protein and water in first. That does not leave a lot of room for anything else. And of course, I try not to snack on crunchy things at all, since I don't have a lot of control when it comes to salty crunchy things. While soy chips sound very healthy, you might be surprised when you look at the labeling, they can be very high in carbs for the amount of protein they have. It is possible to have a diet too low in fat, especially for women. And fat is important for skin, hair, nails. And eating itself can be difficult after the surgery. Very low fat proteins go down hard. After you've had your surgery, you will be surprised at how your tastes change. And your surgeon's advice may change as you lose weight and your pre-op blood work done.

Hi Joanne! They may be on you surgeon's list of foods to avoid because of the texture, rather than the content. They can be a little hard on a tender new stomach! Fitday.com lists pork rinds as having 10 grams of fat and 19 grams of protein per cup. Zero carbs. When you "deep fry" things like pork skin, or turkey and goose for that matter, you are actually rendering the fat out of the skin, leaving less fat than roasted! They are actually a good snack choice when your tummy is healed. By the way, I find Fitday.com is a great place to check out foods for content. Now, excuse me, I have to go get some pork rinds and salsa, now that you've all got me thinking about it!

Pork rinds don't exactly rock my world but I would eat them before eating potato chips or pretzels -- especially because of the carb factor. However, there are so many low carb products out on the market that can give you that satisfaction for "the crunchies" but have much higher protein content. One of these is an "all cheese" cracker with practically negligible carbs. I spread peanut butter on some of the crackers to emulate a similar snack food: netrition.com/betafoods_snackers_page.html