Is this a side effect of coffee?

I didn't know you were from Panama! That's awesome! I guess that explains the Spanish, lol!

Dee, Panameña y con mucho orgullo ... dame mi pollera y mi tamborito y allí voy (translation: proud to be Panamanian, give me a pollera and some tamborito and I'm in my element)... I love America too...

I will stick to what my doctor said, "Caffeine (coffee) is a diuretic and stimulates the appetite." I had a cup of decaf last week and got the runs. I may have another cup tomorrow as Miralax isn't doing a thing...

As always, follow your physician's plan they have created for you. That being said, it is always good to NOT take everything your physician (surgeon or personal care physician) at face value and do a little research on your own. I only speak from personal and professional experience that many doctors are not as up on new data and research as you would think they would be.

Here is an article abstract from 2014 stating caffeine has similar hydrating qualities to water

"Our data show that there were no significant differences across a wide range of haematological and urinary markers of hydration status between trials. These data suggest that coffee, when consumed in moderation by caffeine habituated males provides similar hydrating qualities to water."

From Journal of Caffeine Research

"Conclusions: Caffeinated soft drink consumption had no significant effect on salivary flow rate after one hour by any of the three measures employed in this study. Caffeine's contribution to the cariogenicity of soft drinks is likely by centrally-mediated effects on consumption patterns."

Not related to a diuretic effect, but interesting article about Caffeine reduces risk of hypertension in non-smokers

And if you are a tea drinker...

"Statistical analysis, using a factorial ANOVA approach within PROC MIXED, revealed no significant differences between tea and water for any of the mean blood or urine measurements. It was concluded that black tea, in the amounts studied, offered similar hydrating properties to water."

There are numerous articles out there supporting the caffeine = dehydration is a myth. This is an interesting interview on NPR with scientific research to back up their claim that caffeine does not lead to dehydration in moderate levels, AND, it helps with cognitive performance, particularly memory. http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2014/01/13/262175623/coffee -myth-busting-cup-of-joe-may-help-hydration-and-memory

As I said before, follow YOUR plan and do what you feel is best, but keep in mind physicians are not gods and they do not know absolutely everything nor do many of them keep abreast of new research.

Best wishes!

Edited to correct typos

Coffee can have that effect on some people, but unfortunately I'm not one of them. :(  Maybe I need to buy stock in Miralax!

I paid my doc the big bucks and am doing as he says specifically on every step of the plan. He is a BiG coffee drinker and every time he came to the hospital he had some in his hand.........