Weight loss dietitians Perth

Aruna followed her post-operative bariatric diet meticulously.

bariatric diet Perth

Bariatric Diet

There are a number of bariatric diets that you will need to follow to give yourself the best chance of a successful surgery and long term sustained weight loss. Each diet is specific to the stage of your surgery and recovery process, designed to help you achieve specific goals along the way. Our dietitians will support you through the whole process.
bariatric diet Perth

What is a Bariatric Diet?

Pre-operative diet

All our patients are required to go on a diet before bariatric surgery. This is an Optifast diet that you will need to follow for between 2-4 weeks pre-surgery. The bariatric liquid diet is extremely important, as the small amount of weight loss achieved during this period of time significantly improves the safety of your surgery. It does this by reducing the amount of friable fatty tissue immediately adjacent to the area in which the weight loss surgeon needs to work within your abdomen.

Post-operative diet

You will also need to follow a specific diet plan after bariatric surgery. Immediately after the surgery, a special diet will allow your stomach to heal. Initially, the stomach doesn’t contract very well, so you will consume liquids only for the first two weeks. This means no solid food at all during the post-op diet, although some people can manage runny pureed food by the end of this initial two weeks.

Two weeks after weight loss surgery

You can start to eat soft and moist foods. We can help you make a bariatric diet food list for guidance. You will be able to manage most food textures by six weeks after surgery. Some foods, such as chicken breast or well-done steak, often take longer to manage. Occasionally there may be a food that just never sits well in the stomach after surgery.

Video: What can you eat? Perth bariatric surgeons

Keep in mind

You will need to learn to eat slowly, chew food well, and get used to not finishing meals.

The following points are really important to keep in mind:

  • Everyone progresses at different rates with what foods they can manage after surgery, the amount of food they can eat comfortably, and their rate of weight loss.
  • It can take some people weeks to get used to eating smaller amounts of food and not finishing meals. You will adjust though, it just takes some time and patience.
  • Here are a few things that you can try when eating out:
    • only order small meals, entrees rather than main courses;
    • share food with others at your table;
    • ask to take leftovers home when eating out at restaurants and cafes. It’s important to acknowledge that you will rarely finish a restaurant meal in Australia. However, there are ways around this issue.

After a gastric bypass

After a gastric bypass, (and sometimes gastric sleeve), patients can encounter something known as Dumping Syndrome when eating foods high in simple carbohydrates such as sugar. For this reason, the bariatric gastric bypass diet does not include these foods.

Orbera gastric balloon diet

Our dietitians will provide very detailed information regarding what is suitable for the bariatric balloon diet. The main difference is that the progression from a very thin liquid diet to pureed and then soft foods is a little quicker. This is because the Orbera placement is a non-surgical procedure and no healing of surgical sites is required for the transition to occur. It is important to remember that the volume of food you will be consuming will be significantly reduced due to the presence of the balloon.

Helpful Tips

If you are getting uncomfortable when eating - for example, regurgitating, vomiting or having a buildup of saliva after eating - this means you are usually eating too much or too fast. If you believe it is for none of these reasons, please contact the clinic so we can help you resolve any underlying issue that might be causing you problems.

Try using smaller cutlery such as teaspoons rather than the usual knife and fork to help you to eat more slowly.

When preparing specific bariatric diet recipes, don’t hesitate to halve the quantities to create a smaller meal.

Serve your food on smaller plates and in smaller bowls to help to adjust to smaller portions.

Do not drink anything too close to eating. Wait about 30 minutes after eating to start drinking again. It’s important to remember that both food and drinks fill the space in your stomach and because you have had this stomach size reduced this it can be difficult to drink and eat at the same time.

Avoid getting over-hungry as you are more likely to eat too quickly, leading to some discomfort.

Can multivitamins cause nausea?

Sometimes multivitamins can cause nausea, particularly if taken on an empty stomach. Most patients will need to take calcium in addition to the multivitamin, and some patients will need other additional supplements such as iron or vitamin B12. Please talk to our dietitians if there are any issues with taking the recommended vitamins & minerals.

Supplements

It is strongly recommended to take a complete multivitamin after bariatric surgery. In fact if you have had a bypass this is essential to reduce the risk of a vitamin or mineral deficiency.

Currently, the widely available ‘Gummie’ multivitamins are not a sufficient alternative for our bariatric surgery patients. There are two chewable multivitamins currently available in Australia that are designed for bariatric patients, especially if you have trouble swallowing the larger multivitamin tablets that are also available.

It is also recommended that you have a protein supplement as well - usually available in powder form - for a period of time after surgery. You will still need to eat foods high in protein, but it can be hard to eat enough without adding in a protein powder. There are many options available on the market but a pure protein, with a limited amount of other ingredients added, is usually recommended.

Video: Vitamin Deficiency | Perth obesity surgery


Bowels

You can expect your bowels to change after bariatric surgery. You may go more or less often than usual. Ensure you are drinking enough fluid and contact our clinic nurses if you experience ongoing issues.

Reflux

Some patients can experience reflux symptoms such as heartburn after bariatric surgery. Ensure you are not eating too much in a sitting, drinking too soon after eating or eating too close to bedtime. If reflux continues to be a problem, please book an appointment to see your bariatric surgeon.

The role of exercise

Video: What is the role of exercise?

FAQ

Resources

BN Chewable Bariatric Multivitamins

Nutrichew Chewable Bariatric Multivitamins

Boomers Whey Protein Powder

Peptipro Collagen Protein Powder

Other Protein Powders/Protein Waters

Life Extensions ‘Bone Restore’ calcium and vitamin D supplement Bariatric Recipes

About Obesity Surgery WA: Our 6 commitments

Taking surgery seriously

We know that entering into an operation is a big deal and we are very serious in getting the best outcome for you. We practice what is considered to be a world class standard. Our staff regularly attend national and international conferences and bring back what is the latest research and technology.

Running on time

Our Surgeons and all of our staff try their best to run on time. Although it's not always possible, our commitment is that we do our best. Your time is valuable and we respect that.

Readily available

Our surgeons (or at least one of them) are always available in a crisis. Some of them may provide you with a direct contact, but all are available through the hospital switchboard and happy to chat any time if there is a crisis.

An obsessive attention to detail

We do our best to not miss anything. Every stitch, every staple and every clip is applied to exactly where it needs to be with the greatest care possible.

Commitment to performing the best operation possible

Not all operations are the same and there a few extras that we do to make things better. We know that our results are better with the minimiser ring so we offer it to everyone. We know that reflux can be an issue so we try to tighten every oesophageal hiatus to make reflux control as good as possibly can be.

A commitment to new technologies

  • We have brought in STRETTA into Western Australia, which we believe will revolutionise reflux management. (Have a look at the Stretta page for more information).

  • SJOG Murdoch has just purchased a new DaVinci robot and we believe that this will allow us to do operations with keyhole surgery that previously needed a major laparotomy incision. Lynx is on the horizon and promises to also help manage reflux, we hope to have access to this in early 2020.

Useful links

Gastric
sleeve

Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy is the most common bariatric operation performed in Australia to achieve weight loss. In the right hands, a well-constructed sleeve gastrectomy is a powerful and safe weight loss tool.
Gastric sleeve

Gastric
bypass

Of all bariatric surgeries available, gastric bypass is probably the most well known. The newer version of the surgery is even more effective, and both bypasses are especially good as a revision surgery after a previous weight loss surgery.
Gastric bypass

Obesity

Whether you are overweight or obese, there are significant lifestyle and health challenges associated with excess weight. There are a range of medical interventions for obesity, including medications, psychological support and lifestyle changes, and a choice of bariatric surgeries.
Obesity

Meet our team

Dr. Harsha Chandraratna

Dr. Harsha Chandraratna

Consultant Surgeon
MBBS FRACS

Harsha was made a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons in 2001. He undertook post fellowship training in Perth and then in Leeds (UK) in Liver and Kidney Transplantation as well as Bariatric Surgery. He understands that there is more to surgery than just technical skills and hopefully that will become apparent to you when you meet him.
Dr. Bill Gong

Dr. Bill Gong

General and Laparoscopic Surgeon
MBBS FRACS

Bill Gong is a specialist General Surgeon. He completed his training at The Alfred Hospital in Melbourne and obtained his Fellowship with the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons in 2014. In 2016, Dr Gong commenced private practice at St. John of God Hospital, joining Associate Professor Harsha Chandraratna.