Nutrition and Lifestyle Support Before Surgery

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Lately, I've been hearing of many friends and family who will be undergoing surgery in the near future.  If this is you (or someone you love), I'd like to share with you a few nutrition and lifestyle suggestions for the week prior to surgery.  These pre-surgery recommendations are intended to help boost your immune system and possibly allow you to recover from surgery more quickly.

Lifestyle

• Get plenty of sleep!  And that means 8 or 9 hours a night.  This is difficult for many people and I'd be happy to strategize with you on ideas for improved sleep.
• Reduce stress and avoid extra obligations. 
• Ask your doctor if excerise is recommended.
• Ask your doctor which of your medications should or should not be taken prior to your surgery.

Diet & Nutrition

• Some foods can impact how we react to anesthesia and our bleeding time.  You may want to avoid potatoes, tomatoes, eggplant, flaxseed, garlic, green tea, ginkgo and ginger in the week prior to surgery.
• Sugar supresses the immune system, so avoid high sugar foods and products where sugar is one of the first three listed ingredients.  Consider replacing sugar with xylitol.  (Xylitol is a safe and natural sweetener, from birch tree bark and corn husks.  It tastes and looks like sugar, but contains 40 percent fewer calories and does not raise insulin or blood sugar levels, nor does it feed intestinal yeast.)
• Eat plenty of clean protein, including meat, eggs and fish.
• Balance your intake of fish and red meat (fish contains Omega 3's, which thin the blood, while red meat contains arachidonic acid, which thickens the blood).
• Keep up your antioxidant levels by getting at least 7 servings of vegetables (and fruit) each day.   PaleoGreens and PaleoReds are two of my favorite ways to add an extra daily punch of nutrients, simply by adding to my water (I like 1 tsp of each in a large blender bottle, but you can adjust based on your taste buds).  
• Drink at least 64 ounces of fresh, clean water each day.
• Avoid or limit caffeine, alcohol, MSG and aspartame.

Supplement Suggestions

• One week before surgery, it's important to discontinue supplementing with Vitamin E, Vitamin C, B Vitamins, fish oils and all herbs.
• Supplementing with L-Glutamine can be very beneficial.  As an amino acid, L-Glutamine supports the immune system and digestive tract. It is very reparative and healing in the gut where it strengthens mucosal cells and can help with leaky gut and sugar cravings. Glutamine also promotes optimal muscle growth and strength is useful in preventing muscle wasting.

I hope this is helpful and you are feeling better very soon!

​Lorie