Diet before bariatric surgery

High-protein diet

If you are planning to undergo bariatric surgery, it is advisable to reduce your weight before surgery. It’s not pointless. By losing weight, your liver will shrink (become less fatty) and the surgeons will be able to see your stomach more clearly, and surgery will be easier for them to perform. Naturally, it has benefits for you too - your eating habits will improve, which will be useful after bariatric surgery to ensure the procedure achieves the greatest effect (weight loss + long-term weight maintenance).

A few important rules to start with:

• Include physical activity at least 3 times a week for 20-60 minutes. It can be anything - walking and strolling, exercising at home, cycling or an exercise bike, dancing, Zumba, group classes, etc. Always adapt the movement to your health condition!
• The diet should be varied, regular (about 5 times a day), balanced, and focused on quality and nutritious foods.
• The diet should contain all the important macronutrients (carbohydrates, fats, proteins) and micronutrients (vitamins and minerals).
• Always take your time to eat, don’t eat on the run, and chew everything thoroughly. Put food on a plate. Try not to “nibble” here and there during the day.
• Do not starve unnecessarily between meals, i.e. do not take long breaks between meals.
• Increase protein intake. Reduce the intake of fats and simple sugars.
• Reduce portions.
• Start the day with breakfast. The last meal of the day should be about 2-3 hours before bedtime.
• Follow a drinking regimen - about 2-3 liters of liquids per day - water, unsweetened teas, unsweetened mineral water... 

Choice of foods:

1) Fatty and sweet foods should be eliminated from the diet - fatty deli meats (sausages of all types, wieners, dry salamis, pâté, bacon), fatty meats (pork belly, duck, goose), fatty cheeses (blue cheese, camembert, gouda, cheddar), processed cheese, whipped cream, cream, mascarpone, creamy yoghurts, fatty dairy products, mayonnaise, tartar sauce, dressings and condiments, fried foods, fast food, baguette sandwiches, cookies, chocolates, ice cream, candies, desserts, pies, sweet pastries, sweetened drinks, sodas, sweet yoghurts, chips, salted nuts, snack bars, etc.

2) Focus on the appropriate choice of meat, because meat is an important source of protein - lean, non-fatty types (chicken, turkey, rabbit, fish, pork, beef, premium quality ham...).

3) Another important source of protein is dairy products - choose low-fat or semi-fat options, up to 3 g of fat per 100 g of product (milk, kefir, buttermilk, yoghurt, cottage cheese, skyr, Greek yoghurt...) - all these products should be unflavored, plain! You can then flavor them with fresh fruit, oats, nuts, seeds...

4) Choose low-fat cheeses - edam 20-30%, cottage cheese, gervais, mozzarella, fresh cream cheese, Olomouc curd cheese - most cheeses can be found in a low-fat (light) version.

5) Limit unprocessed fats in the diet - butter, lard, vegetable margarines, spreadable butter (ideally skip any spreads or greasing of foods entirely).

6) A drizzle of rapeseed oil can be used for cooking (no frying!). Many dishes can be prepared without fat (in a good quality frying pan, in the oven on baking paper, in a hot air fryer, on a contact grill, etc.). Do not thicken meals with flour (for example, blended vegetables or potatoes can be used for thickening). Suitable cooking methods include: boiling, steaming, stewing, oven baking, sautéing in a small amount of fat...

7) Eggs 1-2 per day - the whites contain mainly protein, the yolks contain fat (cholesterol).

8) The main source of carbohydrates should be composite carbohydrates - bread (ideally wholegrain, rye), potatoes, pasta, rice, legumes, couscous, bulgur, buckwheat, quinoa, oatmeal... Wholegrain options can also be used (e.g. for pasta).

9) Restrictsimple carbohydrates (“sugars”) - sugar, honey, various syrups (maple, date, agave...), juices, sweetened drinks, lemonades, chocolate, cookies, sweet pastries, candies, sweetened yogurts...

10) Choose unsalted, unroasted nuts and seeds - about 10-20 g per day.

11) Restrict salt and salty seasoning mixtures - e.g. Maggi, stock cubes... Food can be seasoned with herbs - basil, parsley, chives, thyme, pepper, caraway...

12) Get enough fiber (30-35 g per day) - wholegrain breads, wholegrain products, oatmeal, legumes, fruits, vegetables...

13) Vegetableintake: up to 500 g per day (cooked, steamed, grilled, raw...).

14) Fruitintake: about 200 g per day (beware of compotes, dried fruits, candied fruits, juices, ciders, jams - they tend to be sweetened!)

15) Drinking regimen: about 2-3 liters of liquids per day - water, unsweetened teas, unsweetened mineral water...…

16) Natural non-caloric sweeteners can also be used - stevia, erythritol, (chicory syrup, xylitol).

17) Ideal weight loss = 0.5 kg-1 kg per week (= 2-4 kg per month).

Protein content in foods

Food 100 g	Protein content
Edam 20%	32 g
Olomouc curd cheese	30 g
Edam 30%	27 g
Meat, fish, ham, tuna in brine (average)	20 g
Mozzarella light	20 g
Fat-free quark	12 g
Skyr natural, Greek yoghurt	11g
Plain cottage cheese	11g
Low-fat gervais	9.5g
Egg 1 piece (mainly white)	6g
Plain yoghurt	4.5g
Buttermilk, kefir, acidophilus milk	3.3g
Semi-skimmed milk	3.3g