Surgical Nutrition

Question
Ms. Beebe,

I am a 27 year old vegetarian male who weighed 275 pounds at the beginning of May.

I am preparing for an orthopedic surgery in July and am wondering if there is anything as far as nutrition and supplementation go that I can do either before and/or after the operation to promote healing and improve the surgical outcome.

Thanks so much!

~Brian

Answer
Dear Brian,

While licensing laws prevent me from being able to address your case specifially, in general orthopedic patients are encouraged to get as close as they can to an ideal body weight prior to surgery. Immediately before and after the operation it's important to keep up an adequate intake of protein. About 75 grams per day is enough for most people. Your physician can tell you what your lab values indicate. The albumin level is one value that tells us whether a person has enough protein or if they need to focus on getting more (normal range is about 3.4 to 5.4).

Being vegetarian should not prove to be a problem in getting enough protein. Especially if you eat eggs or dairy products.  If someone does find their protein level to be low there are over-the-counter supplement drinks that add nutritious calories and protein to the diet.

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