The Importance of Meeting a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist before Weight-Loss Surgery So you have decided to have weight loss surgery (WLS). In the pursuit of weight loss surgery, people often approach the food and nutrition expert's office with fear and nervousness. Why? Many people think of a dietitian/ nutritionist as someone who is going to tell you to DIET. If you have decided to go the route of having WLS you have likely tried several drugs, conventional diets and maybe even some unconventional diets, had some success, only to eventually gain the weight back again. You feel like a failure, and thus you are hesitant to go see a DIETitian. You don’t want to be lectured to or told: “I told you so”. Yo-Yo dieting is extremely common with conventional diets. If you think of them from a business perspective, why would a business teach you how to lose weight and keep it off? They are a business and need new and repeat clients to stay in business. So their focus is to get you to lose weight, in the beginning, to hit a weightloss plateau, and then regain the weight you lost and then some. You go back because “it worked” in the beginning, so you must have fallen off the wagon and done something “wrong”. You’ve been dieting your whole life and understand what you should be eating but haven’t been able to translate that knowledge into your lifestyle. Weight loss surgery is anything but a quick fix. In fact, surgery is little more than a tool that works best along with clearly stated diet and lifestyle changes to facilitate weight loss and improved health. But those changes don’t happen magically, this is where a bariatric Dietitian can help. Weight loss surgery works because of the gradual process. This process begins long before the first pounds come off after your surgery. This process starts with making the changes to your lifestyle habits before the operation. If someone handed you a hula-hoop and told you to go enter in a competition, you would practice first, wouldn’t you? Without practice you are setting yourself up to fail, right? In life, we rarely enter into situations without preparing for them; weight loss surgery is no different! Practicing the lifestyle changes recommended by your Dietitian BEFORE you have surgery will only help you to succeed in obtaining your weight loss goals. It is helpful to begin these changes beforehand so you are not overwhelmed with lifestyle changes and surgical post-op care all at once.
While it is exciting to think about the progress you’ll make after having weight loss surgery, when you make the decision to embark on a weight loss program like this you have to keep yourself grounded in the here and now. This is why seeing a Dietitian early on is a good idea. In fact, many weight loss surgeons go so far as to require that you visit with a Dietitian before you ever get weight loss surgery.
WHY A REGISTERED DIETITIAN NUTRITIONIST (RDN)? A Dietitian is an expert in health and nutrition and accredited by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND) and has completed an undergraduate program in nutrition and also a one year of clinical internship program. RDN’s must pass a national exam administered by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetic Association. They must also maintain their registered status through continuing education. We are experts in the areas of food and nutrition, with over 16 years practicing in multiple medical disciplines with a concentration in GI and Bariatric Nutrition since 2002. Our job, in addition to what makes up a healthy diet, is to aid in your continued weight loss, avoiding plateaus and weight re-gain, identify and address any deficiencies and/or food sensitivities. Some patients do develop food sensitivities, like lactose intolerance, after having weight loss surgery. Vitamin deficiencies are common but can be avoided with the right supplementation that works for a patient that has had a restrictive/ malabsorptive procedure like weight loss surgery. Meeting with a Dietitian gives you the chance to develop a customized dietary plan that meets your lifestyle and personal nutrition needs. Your specialized bariatric Dietitian should talk to you about issues like: The post-operative diet for the first 4-5 weeks, and weeks 6 going forward
Avoiding and addressing weight loss plateaus and weight re-gain Bariatric vitamins, how to take and nutritional deficiencies/potential side effects of not taking them
Dietary changes associated with weight loss surgery
How to avoid dehydration/constipation
Protein intake needs/weight loss gaols
Nutrient intake, Protein insufficiencies/ wasting, and more
By the time you are scheduled for your weight loss surgery, this is all information that you really need to master prior to surgery. Early education and practicing before you have surgery can make all the difference with how post-surgery life style change is handled both physically and emotionally. Meeting with a bariatric Dietitian early on gives you a chance to focus on adjusting to healthy habits before your body goes through any intense physical changes, which makes the transition to a healthier way of living much easier to adjust to.
Taking advantage of the resources around you, like meeting with a Dietitian (before and after surgery), and attending support groups will help you with your long-term weight loss success.