Eating the right foodsand avoiding the wrong foodscan keep you healthy while preventing complications likeconstipationandpostoperative infection.
Sometimes, eating post-surgery is difficult.
This may include eating more whole (minimally processed) foods.
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An easy way to find whole foods is to start in the produce and meat sections.
Eating whole foods supports your good health during recovery and every day after.
These factors can get in the way of your healing.
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Foods to Eat
One key way to prevent constipation is to get enough fiber.
This is especially true ofinsoluble fiber, which increases the speed stools move through the digestive tract.
That said, some protein sources arehigh in saturated fat, particularly red meat and processed meats.
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Overeating saturated fat places inflammatory stress on the digestive tract and can cause constipation.
They also help keep you regular by delivering a healthy dose of fiber to your diet.
However, not all whole grains are created equal.
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White rice, for example, is heavily processed and doesn’t offer as much nutrition as brown rice.
It can also be constipating (while brown rice can help alleviate constipation).
Both can place stress on the intestines after bowel surgery and impede healing.
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Those with pre-existing lung disease can experience morecoughing and lung secretionsafter eating dairy.
For these people, dairy may need to be limited following surgery.
The same may apply to people who have undergone chest surgery or have apersistent coughafter abdominal surgery.
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Coughing can place unduestress on incisionswhile healing.
If yourehaving nausea, vomiting, or abdominal cramping, you may not want to eat at all.
To maintain strength, try eating small amounts ofbland foodsthroughout the day, focusing oncalorie-dense foods.
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These foods pack a lot of protein and other nutrients in a smaller amount of food.
If you have stomach upset, try sipping peppermint tea or flat ginger ale or suck on ginger candy.
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Temple Health.Six post-surgery nutrition tips.
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International Foundation for Gastrointestinal Disorders.Controlling intestinal gas.
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National Emphysema Foundation.Foods that can irritate COPD.
