Not drinking enough

I am on a couple different consumer review boards and I often get asked to fill out surveys on products or about my habits (shopping, electronics, eating, etc.). So right now I'm in the midst of a week long survery about beverages. I have to record everything liquid I drink during the day and fill out a mini survey about each thing. Last night around 11:30 I was completing my daily diary online for what I drank yesterday. Ummm... let's just say that it wasn't pretty. I had my morning chai tea and coffe, then didn't drink ANYthing for the rest of the day until 11pm. Dang! I knew it was a busy day for me yesterday and felt like I was running around like a madwoman all day... but I had no idea I'd done so poorly with my water intake. For weight loss surgery folks, this is completely unexceptable. We don't absorb water in the same way as we used to (most water is absorbed in the stomach, which is now bypassed). So it's important that we stay hydrated and get enough water even if we aren't thirsty. And yes, even when I'm too busy to think straight, I still need to drink my water. Today I NEED to do better. In fact.... not just today, but EVERYDAY I need to do better. ~Pam

Allergy Issues

Before my bariatric surgery I was taking a Rx for environmental allergies. I've never been tested for what exactly I'm allergic too... just seem to have had sneezing fits on a regular basis, so the doctor put me on a prescription to help control it. After surgery I stopped taking the meds and my allergies seemed to clear up completely. It was heavenly not to have to worry about allergy attacks. Unfortunately it hasn't lasted. In the past 6 months or so the sneezing has come back with a vengence. And when I say sneezing... I mean all day sneezing. Like 20-30 sneezes an hour for 12 hours straight (or longer). At first Benedryl was helping if I catch it early enough in the day, but lately the Benedryl isn't touching it. Last time I had a bad allergy day - which actually lasted about 3 days - I went in and talked to the pharmacist to get advice on an OTC medication. When I told him Benedryl wasn't helping he said that I needed to move up to a sleeping pill formula. Unisome is apparently the same drug as Benedryl, but in a high dose - which obviously makes you sleep. And it works! Like magic. But the problem with taking Unisome is that it takes a full 24 hours to clear from my system once I take it. Last night I finally gave up around 11:00 and took a Unisome. I was deeply asleep within 15 minutes and when the alarm went off this morning it was very difficult to get out of bed. The drive to work this morning was pretty scary because I was so drowsy and my eyes were so heavy. And now 12 hours after taking the pill, I'm still foggy headed and so bone-tired. I could seriously curl up under my desk and sleep for hours! But I'm not sneezing, at least! I have a doctor appointment next month and will talk to him about getting me back on a Rx as an ongoing allergy treatment so when I have these attack days, they aren't as bad. I'm not sure how I went 18 months with no signs of allergies, then suddenly they are back with such a full force. I'm not liking it at all! ~Pam

Posting on the Go!

So check out this cool post. It was sent from my Palm Pre, through email with a photo attached and posted here on the blog automatically. I've been messing around with this option for the past couple days to figure out how it's done. That way when I'm on vacation I'll be able to post regular updates to the blog for ya'll. You'll get to see my Florida beach pictures as they are happening. I know, I know, I know... you're super excited about this!

So anyway. The picture above is from the Ren Fest I went to a couple weeks ago. The band was actually very good. They had a request to sing the "Free Credit Report.com" song ... and they did! It was hilarious!

~Pam

Another Goal Acheived

Almost a year ago I wrote a post called Working Toward Normal. One of the goals I listed in that post was:

When I'm in a photo of a group of people, I want to be a normal size. I don't want to be the fattest person and don't need to be the smallest person either. But I just want to blend in and look normal.

This past weekend I was part of a photowalk at a local camera shop. I wanted to check out everyone else's photos from the walk so I went over to the shop's website this morning ... and look at the picture that was front and center.

It nearly brought tears to my eyes. (I know, I'm a sap.) But look at me, you guys! I'm a normal sized person in a group of people who are also normal sized. I look just like the rest of them. In fact, I had to look twice to find myself because I didn't stand out in the crowd as being the fattest person. (That's me in the middle of the front row in the black coat.) And what else? I didn't hide in the back row so nobody could see me.

So yes folks... I'm working toward being normal and today I feel like I'm one step closer to that goal.

If you want to check out the pictures I took on Saturday during the Alden B. Dow House photowalk, you can view them here. On the walk back to the camera shop, I took some more.. here.

The photo above was not taken by me (obviously since I'm in the pic). It was likely taken by an employee of the camera shop or maybe this one was by the wife of the instructor who gave the lecture before the photowalk - there were a few cameras going for this shot. So yeah, I'm totally stealing this picture, but I wanted to share it here anyway.

It gets harder...

Jason over at My Angle on Weight Loss posted today about how hard the weight loss journey is over time. He's accomplished amazing things - lost 130lbs using Weight Watchers, runs marathons and 50-mile endurance races. But still, nearly 3 years later, he still struggles just like the rest of us. In today's post he said...

I never would have dreamed that it would be this hard. I had such a streak, such a long time that things were so easy but now it seems that all of that is gone. It appears that not even one thing about doing WW or this healthy eating journey is coming easy anymore. I can’t seem to re-do some bad habits.... I don’t feel much capable of encouraging others on their health journey. I am barely hanging on to my own journey right now.

Jason's words could have just as easily been spoken out of my own mouth. For the first year or 18 months of this WLS journey it was pretty easy to follow the plan and be on track. But now that I'm approaching the 2 year mark I'm amazed at how much harder it has gotten. I've been struggling lately with old habits creeping back in. Struggling with a bad attitude about doing the right thing because sometimes you just get tired of always doing the right thing. Struggling with finding an exercise that doesn't hurt but still burns the extra calories I need to burn. Struggling with staying on schedule with my vitamins. And just like Jason, I wonder how I can encourage others on their healthy journey when sometimes I don't feel like I'm doing so well on my own journey. I know that this stems from being discouraged about the lack of weight loss.... with my body's inability to lose weight for some strange reason that nobody can figure out. It's been 10 months for crying out loud!! I know that I say "Don't let the number on the scale determine your self worth!" - but when that number taunts me and tortures me, how can I not let it wiggle its way into my thoughts with self doubt? I'm giving in to food cravings too often. I'm not working hard enough to find an exercise that works for my injured knee. I'm not being faithful with my all the doses of my vitamins everyday. I'm not journaling my food regularly (because I'm too lazy or because I don't need to, not sure which?) I'm not drinking enough water. I'm not scheduling enough down time to let my body recoup from the hectic schedule I keep. I'm not meditating like I want to be. I'm not journaling like I want to be. I'm not working on all the other life goals I've set for myself that I want to see accomplished. No, I'm not looking for any magic solutions or sympathy. I'm not even looking for a plan to accomplish all the things I know I'm not doing. I'm just putting it out there that I'm struggling too, just like so many others. Maybe acknowledging that there's a struggling going on, saying it out loud for the universe to hear, helps us handle the daily battles better. Maybe having a list of things I know I need to work on will help me tackle one small task at a time instead of looking at the whole and remaining overwhelmed. Knowing you're out there, supporting me and encouraging me in my journey - it makes the battles more managable somehow. ~Pam

Butternut Squash Soup

At work I handle the production of a newsletter for senior citizens. One of the features we put in is the Recipe Corner. Typically we just grab a recipe from a cookbook I keep at my desk (yes, I really do have a cookbook in my reference section LOL). Lately there's been some chatter over on ObestiyHelp.com about butternut squash -- cooked in all different kinds of ways and even made into soup. So I've been wanting to try a soup recipe. And there just so happened to be a soup recipe in my reference cookbook at work. But... it needed some assistance.

I took 3 different recipes for butternut squash soup, plus a few comments from online users of a couple of those recipes. And I created my own concoction.

Pam's Butternut Squash Soup with Ravioli

1 large butternut squash (mine was huge!)

1 large apple (peeled and chopped)

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 onion

1 tsp canola oil

1 tablespoon ground ginger

cayenne pepper (I used just a sprinkling, adjust to your taste)

1 quart chicken broth or stock

1 can (12oz?) coconut milk

salt

pepper

mini cheese-filled ravioli -- optional

cinnamon -- optional for garnish

Cut butternut squash in half and clean out seeds. Cut into large pieces to fit into a roasting pan. Roast at 350 until tender. Allow to cool, remove peel and cut into chunks. Saute` onions in canola oil until tender (do not brown them like I did). In a large soup pot add squash, chicken broth, onions, garlic, ginger, salt and pepper. Let simmer for 10 minutes or so... then add the diced apple. Let simmer until apple is tender.

At this point it would be ideal if you had an immersion blender. I have one. It's a dream. I love that thing. You just put the blade into our soup and turn it on, and it blends everything up into a smooth and delicious cream soup. It's an amazing tool. But .... I can't friggin' find it!!! Who took my immersion blender? I can find the attachment that fits onto the end, but I can't find the motor part! Seriously. How can you lose an appliance?

So in the absence of an immersion blender, just use a normal blender. Scoop the chunky soup into the blender and whirl it up in small batches until the whole pot is smooth.

Return to the heat and add coconut milk and bring back to simmer. Taste. Figure out what it needs. Salt or pepper? Now is the time when you add the cayenne pepper powder -- go easy if you're scared or be liberal if you're brave. I personally just wanted a tiny touch of "something" in the background, so I went with a light hand here.

Optional -- Add frozen mini cheese-filled ravioli. I couldn't find the mini ones so I used the normal size ravioli, but they really are a bit too big so as I was eating my bowl of soup I had to cut the ravioli in thirds before I could eat them. Big ones will work, but the mini ones would be perfect in this. I call this "optional" because it's not the greatest WLS choice in the carb department. So if you're doing to do this, make sure you're balancing your meal with another source of protein.

Cinnamon -- Ok, another optional thing here. Just before serving sprinkle a tiny bit of cinnamon on top. I haven't decided if I liked it or not, so I'll try it without next time... but it gave another level of flavor to this delicious soup.

Try this! It's wonderful!

I had my surgery on November 13th -- which was 10 days before Thanksgiving. I was still on soft / pureed foods for the big family feast. I had some canned butternut squash soup for my meal. I wish I'd had this recipe back then (minus the pasta, of course).

Mmm.... Enjoy!

~Pam

Today's Eating

Lately I haven't been tracking my food in FitDay. Mostly because I can calculate this stuff in my head automately since I've been doing it so long. So for the past 2 to 3 months I haven't been tracking every single day. But every few weeks I'll put my day's plan into FitDay to make sure I'm on track. Today was one of those days... And I was mostly right. I had been estimating that I've been eating around 1500 calories and getting about 100-120g protein. I was right that I am getting around 1500 calories. But my protein is MUCH higher than I figured. Today is around 160g protein. And here I was thinking I'd like to add another protein drink to my daily routine. Ha! Today's Eating Plan 7:15 a.m. - commute to work - Protein Hot Chai Tea 8:45 a.m. - arrive at work - "fake latte" (steamed milk & coffee) 10:00 a.m. - breakfast - Carbmaster yogurt w/ Kashi Go Lean 1:00 p.m. - lunch - homemade chili, pretzel crisps & hummus 2:30 p.m. - chocolate attack snack - Chocolite Protein Bar 4:30 p.m. - snack - apple & 2 Sargento Light mozz cheesesticks 7:30 p.m. - dinner - turkey sandwich on Arnold Thin w/ side of raw veggies and dip 10:00 p.m. - snack - strawberry protein frosty (Crystal Light, yogurt, strawberries, ice, protein) Totals Calories: 1489 Fat: 29g -- 16% Carbs: 137g (net carbs) -- 44% Fiber: 50g Protein: 163g -- 40% Observations:

• My fat intake is too low. I need to shoot for 20-25%.
• My fiber is too high, I can eliminate the fiber supplement in the morning chai tea.
• My protein is on the high side and I could eliminate second protein drink at night.
• My calories are in the right range. I'm burning an average of 2200/day, so the deficit today is 700 calories. Which SHOULD equal 1.5 pound loss per week. Ha!
• My percentages aren't too bad, just need to keep it close to 40% protein, 35% carbs, 25% fat, so today was fairly good.

A couple things about iron

I was doing a bit of electronic organizing the other day -- yes, I have a million bits of WLS information saved on my computer and a flash drive I carry with me at all times. I came across some info about iron that I wanted to share.

Iron is a mineral that can be found in plants, animals, soil, air, water, meteorites, and rocks, including on the surface of the moon. Here on earth, plants absorb iron through their root systems; animals eat these plants. Humans consume these plants and animals. Many think iron is a heavy metal, which it is not. Iron is an essential micronutrient. Essential used in this way means that the body does not produce the nutrient; micronutrient means that the body only requires tiny amounts to function.

Iron is like money (simple to understand terms)

• Hemacrit and hemaglobin are like cash. It's your readily expendable iron.
• Transferrin is like the armored truck that delivers new cash to the bank from the Federal Reserve.
• Iron saturation is like your savings account of iron. Stored for intermediate use.
• Ferritin is your 401k of iron. It's your long term iron storage.

What is Iron All About Anyway? (a bit more technical explanation)

• Hemaglobin (hgb) - a protein that transports oxygen to the body
• Hematocrit (hct) - proportion of blood volume that is occupied by red blood cells
• Transferrin - a protein that is the major transporter of iron and ideally is saturated with 25-35% iron; when working properly, transferrin binds to iron and transports it to all tissues, vital organs, and bone marrow so that normal metabolism, DNA synthesis, and red blood cell production can take place
• Total Iron Binding Capacity (TIBC) - a measure of the maximum iron concentration that transferrin can bind. Increased TIBC levels may indicate iron-deficiency anemia; decreased TIBC may indicate cirrhosis 
• Ferritin - a protein that acts like a large holding vessel; contains iron that we don't presently need

NOTE: someone who is anemic can still have normal hemaglobin and hematicrit numbers because their ferritin is being depleted in order to maintain those counts. But if the ferritin is in the toilet and no relief comes, the hgb and hct will eventually fall as well. 

Types of Iron

1. Heme Iron - primarily comes from animals/meat. Heme iron is easily absorbed by the body and the best source of iron for people who are iron deficient. Meat, especially red meat is the best source of heme iron. Heme iron can be found in some iron supplements and is the best option for WLS folks.
2. Nonheme iron - primarily comes from plants. This classification represents the majority of iron humans consume in their diets and is the type of iron in most supplements. It is inorganic and is found in grains such as rice, wheat and oats. It's also found in nuts, fruits, vegetables, most iron pills, fortificants, or contaminant iron such as from water, soil or cooking utensils. 

The Iron Rules

(This was posted on OH by a member who has struggled with iron deficiency, this is the system she uses to keep her iron levels in normal range) 

• No multi vitamin or calcium supplement within 2 hours of iron…before or after. 
• No dairy products of any kind within 2 hours of iron. That means no yogurt, milk, cottage cheese, sour cream, cheese, butter...nothing. 
• No coffee or tea within 2 hours. It's the tannic acid, not the caffeine...so not even decaf. 
• Take iron with acid to give it the best possible chance to absorb. 
• Open the capsule or take it liquid form. 

Understanding the Types of Iron Supplements 

Sources: Iron Disorders Institute

Thyroid?

A month or so ago I was having a conversation with the head RN and also the director of my surgeon's office. I was talking to them about my lack of weight loss. Telling them my workout routine, my eating outline, how many calories I was burning vs eating... and that no matter what I did I couldn't lose weight. And that I've been stalled for essentially 10 months. Both ladies told me to be checked for thyroid issues. At least to rule out the possibility of that being a problem affecting my weight. I put it off figuring I'd just add that test to the round of labs being run in December at my next appointment. But lately the scale has been misbehaving. I've been fluctuating between 185 and 190 for the past 10 months. But in the past few weeks it seems to be hovering closer to the 190 end of that range and sometimes popping over 190 and then back again. So this is kicking me into action, I guess. I have the lab slip and will get blood drawn tomorrow morning. We'll see what it says. Not that I'm hoping for a bum thyroid or anything... just that I want to know one way or the other so I can move forward with figuring out what is really going on. I'm pretty pissed at my body right now. I really wish that stupid theory of "calories in vs. calories out" was true and actually worked - because if it worked, I'd already be at my goal weight - months ago. I'll keep you posted. ~Pam

Just a Monday Update

Over the weekend I met up with some WLS friends at the Yates Cider Mill in Rochester Hills. It was great to put faces with names and get to hang out with friends I've known online for a couple years. Lots of fun pictures... but here's one of us as a group. Sunday I spent a bunch of time finishing the editing process of my nephew's senior pictures. (That takes SO much time!) And then it took me 12 hours to get them all uploaded for him to review. This is one of my favorites from the 225+ pictures. This new semester at school is in full swing and I was busy with school work over the weekend. The classes are the first of my graphics classes, so I'm excited to get into the meat of my degree choice (Graphic Communications). I'm doing Intro to Drawing and Intro to Graphic Design. I was anticipating that the drawing class would drive me nuts because I couldn't see how pencil and paper drawing had much to do with digital graphic design work. But in both of these classes I'm finding it surprising at how much drawing skill is actually needed in the pre-design mock ups for clients and brainstorming. I'm definitely a novice artist at best when it comes to drawing, but after a couple weeks of homework I can see that I'm already improving in my technique. Hopefully by the end of the semester I'll be even better. I'm looking forward to my vacation coming up in three weeks. Just having some time off and to myself will be the best gift of all. Doing "nothing" is a great vacation, ya know. This week should be fairly quiet. Class on Monday and Thursday; support group meeting on Tuesday - but otherwise no big plans or obligations. The upcoming weekend is currently clear and I'm hoping to keep it that way too.... unless I find a play or concert to go to. Life is good. Just thought I'd share a short update on what is going on around here lately. ~Pam

The Hour-by-Hour Post-Op Schedule

Just before surgery, in my nutrition training class, we were given an hour-by-hour schedule of when to eat and when to drink and when to have snacks. I started following this schedule and tweaked it a bit as I developed my own routines and habits... but essentially it's the same basic outline that I use today, 2 years later. 


Right after surgery we don't feel hunger and it's very difficult to schedule food and water and get everything in that we need to. It can be overwhelming to watch the clock to calculate the 30 minutes before and 30 minutes after a meal... and only eat for 30 minutes. Then to figure out when to take vitamins and blah, blah, blah. 


So this type of schedule helps us get into a routine with food. 


8:00 - 8:30 -- Breakfast (meals take no more than 30 minutes to eat)
9:00 - 10:00 -- Water - 8oz. 
10:00 - 11:00 -- Snack (protein shake) 
11:30 - 12:30 -- Water - 8oz 
1:00 - 1:30 -- Lunch 
2:00 - 2:30 -- Water 8oz. 
3:00 - 4:00 -- Snack (protein shake) 
4:30 - 5:30 -- Water - 8oz 
6:00 - 6:30 -- Dinner 
7:00 - 8:00 -- Water - 8oz 
8:30 - 9:00 -- Snack (protein shake) 
9:30 - 10:30 -- Water 8oz. 


Eventually I added my vitamins into the routine. This is the schedule I follow today: 


7:00 a.m. --- Breakfast #1 (usually a protein drink) -- Calcium +D 
8:30 a.m. --- Water 
10:00 a.m. -- Breakfast #2 -- Morning dose of vitamins
11:00 a.m. -- Water 
1:00 p.m. --- Lunch -- Calcium +D 
2:30 p.m. --- Water 
4:30 p.m. --- Snack -- Calcium +D 
5:00 p.m. --- Water 
7:30 p.m. --- Dinner -- Calcium +D 
8:30 p.m. --- Water 
11:00 p.m. -- Bedtime (no food) -- Evening dose of vitamins


So if everything is scheduled and needs to happen at a specific time... it's easier to remember.

60 Minutes Report about Gastric Bypass

This story aired on 60 Minutes over a year ago. But I keep losing the link to the story and have to dig for it everytime I want to share it with someone. So I'm going to put it here for safe keeping. If you haven't watched the video yet -- DO IT! There is some fascinating information about new studies on how gastric bypass reduces the risk of cancer, diabetes and other diseases. About halfway through the video, pay attention to the doctor who talks about the studies they are doing on mice in relation to diabetes. The physical cutting of the duodendum is what gives immediate relief to diabetes after WLS -- but when they reconnect the duodendum in those same mice, the diabetes comes back. Fascinating! The Bypass Effect on Diabetes and Cancer

It's pretty well known to doctors that the most successful treatment for obesity is surgery, especially the gastric bypass operation. But here's something the medical world is just realizing: that the gastric bypass operation has other even more dramatic effects. It can force type 2 diabetes into almost instant remission and it appears to reduce the risk of cancer. Surgeons have been performing bariatric, or weight loss operations since the 1950s, but they're much safer than they used to be. They're typically done laparoscopically now, where doctors use tiny surgical tools and video cameras instead of making big, deep incisions. Despite the increase in obesity, only a small number of people have had the gastric bypass operation.

Sweet Salsa Dump Chicken

I found this recipe on RecipeZar yesterday and had to try it immediately. But I didn't have all the ingredients, so I improvised on some. I also added some lentils to make it a full meal and side dish together. The recipe is designed to be a OAMC or "freezeable" recipe, or you can make it immediately like I did. (I plan to make up some Ziploc bags of this concoction and store them in the freezer for easy meals.) Sweet Salsa Dump Chicken 1 package taco seasoning mix (I only had 1/2 pkg and it was plenty) 8 oz. apricot jam (I used about 6oz. SF Strawberry Jam) 12 ounces salsa (I used 1 can diced tomatoes and Clark's Gringo Salsa Mix) 1 1/2 lbs chicken pieces (I used 4 large boneless skinless chicken breasts) 3/4 c. lentils water Mix the top 3 ingredients together in a baking dish. Add the lentils then top with the chicken pieces. Spoon the mixture over the chicken so everything is evenly coated. Bake at 350 for 30-45 minutes (cooking time will vary depending on the type of chicken you use, so keep a close eye on it). My chicken finished cooking before the lentils were tender, so I pulled the chicken out and added some water (maybe 1 cup?) to the sauce mixture and put the lentils back in the oven for about 20 minutes until they were tender. Then I portioned the lentils and chicken into individual bowls - weighing the chicken to ensure they were 4 oz portions. I had one portion for dinner last night (delicious!), then packaged up four additional bowls for lunches this week. Your portions will vary depending on how much chicken you use. A note about the salsa mix. Salsa is one of those things that I do not allow myself to buy. Not that salsa is bad - in fact, it's a great WLS friendly food. But whenever I buy salsa, somehow tortilla chips jump into my shopping cart and then I end up eating them with the salsa. So to avoid this, I simply don't buy salsa anymore. But Clarks Gringo Salsa Mix is the perfect substitute for recipes. It is "just alright" as a salsa - plain with chips (I tend to be a salsa snob) -- but it's perfect for recipes like this one. It's also very convenient to have these because they don't go bad (they have been in my cupboard for almost a year) ... just mix with a can of diced tomatoes and you have instant salsa. I found the packages on sale at an outlet store (50-cents each) and stockpiled them. So if you can be trusted with salsa in the house, just use normal salsa. If not, these packets work great. If you haven't tried lentils before ... do it! The nutrition stats on these little buggers are amazing! About 10g protein in a half cup serving, plus packed with fiber (8g) and low in carbs (10g net carbs). They are a great substitue for rice dishes and take on flavors wonderfully. Nik makes a great curried lentil dish that is amazing. So go try them, they rock! Enjoy! ~Pam

Dishes

Every dish in my house is clean!

That feels pretty dang great!

~Pam

Messy House = Messy Eating

I'm a highly organized person .... at work. All of my organizational abilities are used up at the office so when I get home I have nothing left in me. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. So yes, my house is a mess. It's not really that I'm not organized at home... it's that I don't have the time to be organized because I'm not home very often. On an evening when I have nothing going on and I can go straight home from work (which is rare) - I can walk in the door around 6:30 p.m. Last night I got home from work around 8:30 p.m. and that was because I had to stop at the store. On school nights (2 nights a week) I don't get home until around 10:30 p.m. (or later). So by the time I get home all I have time to do is grab a quick dinner and get to work on school stuff ... then fall into bed too late for a good nights sleep. These "quick dinners" aren't horrible choices... just not the best choice if I'd taken the time to really cook and prepare. Last night I grabbed an Arnold Thin w/ cream cheese and jam and a slice of deli turkey. A fine choice, yes. But not as "protein forward" as I'd normally choose if I had actually cooked. You've heard all this before. It's an ongoing issue for me. Never enough time to get it all done, blah, blah, blah. (Whine much?) I work 75 miles from my house, so I'm on the road an average of 15 hours a week, Monday through Friday. I go to school, attend support groups, meet up with friends and all the other stuff one needs to do to run a life. And weekends are filled with events, obligations or catching up on tasks left undone during the week. So yeah, I've chosen a busy life for myself. I've come to realize that when the house gets out of control (like it is now), I see a general "slacking" attitude in all areas of my life. Not eating properly, oversleeping, not being faithful with exercise or vitamins and water -- it all trickles down when the house is a disaster. Have you ever Googled "Messy House" ... it is fascinating to see how that one simple issue can affect all different areas of people's lives. Sheesh! There's even a medical diagnosis for it (Diogenes Syndrome). I don't believe I'm to the point of having that type of medical issue, of course. I think it's just a matter of lack of time and energy to get it organized and dealt with. I don't want my house to be an excuse for poor eating choices. So I'm making it a priority in the next week or two to get things in order and running smoothly again. ~Pam

Coffee and Caffeine

The question comes up a lot on the WLS forums. A lot of people wonder if they can drink coffee after WLS or not. The standard answer is "follow your surgeon's guidelines", of course. And many surgeon's recommend staying away from coffee for the first 6 months to a year - some say it is fine right after surgery... so figure out what the recommendation is from your medical team and follow that advice.
But for those wondering the pros and cons, here's the scoop on coffee and caffeine:

• for some caffeine can be an appetite stimulant
• for some caffeine can be an appetite suppressant
• for some caffeine can cause stomach upset and digestive discomfort
• for some caffeine can promote ulcers or thinning of the lining in the stomach
• for some caffeine aids in gastric motility (keeps you regular)
• for some caffeine can increase heart rates and blood pressure
• in large amounts (over 400mg/day or 32oz brewed coffee) caffeine can cause dehydration
• caffeine can interfere with calcium absorption if taken in large amounts (300mg/day or 20oz)
• tannins in coffee (more so in tea) interferes with iron absorption
• Tannins inhibit B12 as well and there are Anti-Thiamin Factors (ATF) in coffee and tea (caf and decaf) will eat thiamin in the body.  (Thanks to Andrea U. for the information about interfering the B's.)

Knowing all the risk factors and possible benefits is key to making the decision about whether to have coffee regularly or not.

Pam