After bariatric surgery, you need to follow a special bariatric diet. The bariatric diet usually has four stages.
Bariatric diet stage 1: Clear liquids. Right after surgery, your stomach needs time to heal. You will eat only clear liquids for the first day or two.
Bariatric diet stage 2: Full liquids. At this stage in the bariatric diet, your pouch is still very small and large amounts of food could damage the incision. Your meals will be limited to about half a cup. Over time, you will be able to increase the size of your meals to ¾ cup or so. The stage 2 bariatric diet needs to be high in protein so that you have enough protein for healing, and so that you lose fat and not muscle. The stage 2 bariatric diet usually lasts about two weeks.
Bariatric diet stage 3: Pureed foods. Your stomach is beginning to heal but is still not ready to digest whole food. You still need lots of protein and need to avoid sugar and fat. Good foods for a stage 3 bariatric diet are cottage cheese, pureed meat, mashed potatoes, pureed fruits and vegetables, hummus, scrambled eggs, oatmeal and similar items. You are usually on the stage 3 bariatric diet for 2-3 weeks, and you will gradually increase your meal size to about one cup.
Bariatric diet stage 4: You will stay on the bariatric diet at stage 4 for the rest of your life. You can eat regular foods at this stage with some cautions and exceptions. Your meals should stay about one cup in size.
In stage 4 of the bariatric diet, you must cut your food into small bites and chew it well. You can get an intestinal blockage if you swallow big pieces of food
Another limitation of the stage 4 bariatric diet is that you cannot eat foods high in sugar and fat content because they may cause dumping syndrome. You can eat these small, low fat, high protein meals for the rest of your life.
When you are on a bariatric diet, you cannot get all the vitamins and minerals you need in your food. Vitamin B12 deficiencies are especially common on a bariatric diet. To make sure you get enough vitamin B12 after bariatric surgery, your doctor will recommend taking a supplement. The B12 Patch is an excellent way to get the vitamin B12 you won't get in a bariatric diet.
