ice cream

fish sticks

grilled cheese sandwiches

macaroni and cheese, there are some really good frozen casserole macs at the store, Stouffers is one

turkey sandwiches with Swiss cheese, mayo, sliced turkey

chocolate pudding with whipped cream (buy the little containers of chocolate pudding and the Reddi Whip cans of whipped cream)

pancakes and syrup (you can actually buy frozen pancakes at the store, they come around 20 to a package)

biscuits and white gravy

From the store: cheesecake, cookies

beer? (but that has hops?)

Can you eat healthy fats? They really make you feel full. Adding some MCT oil to a cup of tea is a healthy way to get some super fats. Very dark chocolate is healthy and I find it is making me feel full - must be all the saturated fat (which in the case of dark chocolate is a healthy version of it).

That list sounds dreadful. If permitted, I'd add olive oil to the soup and grass fed butter to the cream of wheat.

Fiber Restricted Diet

A fiber-restricted diet
is for individuals who are suffering from abdominal cramping and diarrhea and
need to decrease their fiber intake.

Food Category

Recommended Foods

Foods that May Cause Discomfort

Breads, Cereals, Rice, and Pasta

Refined
breads, biscuits, rolls, pancakes, waffles, crackers

Refined cooked
cereals such as farina and grits

Refined cold
cereals such as puffed wheat, puffed rice, and cornflakes

White rice and
refined pasta

Oatmeal; any
whole-grain, bran, or granola cereal; any cereal containing nuts, seeds,
coconut, or dried fruit

Fruits

Most canned or
cooked fruits, applesauce, fruit cocktail, ripe banana, peeled apples,
melons, grapefruit and orange sections with the membranes removed, strained
fruit juice (pulp-free fruit juice)

Dried fruit;
raw fruits with membranes and seeds grapes, kiwi; all berries; any juice
containing fruit or vegetable pulp; prune juice

Vegetables

Well-cooked
and canned vegetables without seeds, vegetables with the skin removed,
strained vegetable juice, lettuce if tolerated

Winter squash,
sauerkraut, corn, peas, most raw vegetables and vegetables with seeds

Meats, Poultry, Fish, Dry Beans and Peas,
Eggs, Nuts

Ground or
well-cooked meat, tender beef, ham, lamb, pork, veal, fish, poultry, organ
meats; eggs; creamy peanut butter

Tough, fibrous
meats with gristle, any meat made with whole-grain ingredients, seeds or
nuts; dried beans, legumes, lentils or peas; chunky peanut butter

Milk and Milk Products, Yogurt, and Cheese

Milk (as
tolerated), cheese, cottage cheese, yogurt, pudding

Yogurt
containing seeds or fruit peels, seeded cheeses, pudding with nuts

Fats, Snacks, Sweets, Condiments, and
Beverages

Margarine,
butter, salad oils and dressings, mayonnaise;

Bouillon,
broth, or cream soups made with allowed ingredients

Plain cakes
and cookies made with all-purpose flour; pie made with allowed fruits; plain
sherbet, frozen pops, gelatin, custard, fruit ice; jelly, plain hard candy,
marshmallows; frozen yogurt and ice cream (as tolerated)

Ketchup,
mustard, vinegar
Coffee, tea, and carbonated beverages

Low fiber diet

Read the linked chart above. The cut & paste is mixed up! I thought it was a list of foods to avoid but is not. All three categories in bold are listed together.

I agree with mdln. For this type of advice, I would ask a professional, not the internet. :)

"Ask for a dietician consult while you are in the hospital"---- been there, done that. You'll get two minutes and printouts of the same stuff from the internet that's linked above.

Probably true, what I was thinking too. It is good advice but the link is UCLA's restricted fiber diet recommendations post colorectal surgery. I don't see why that isn't adequate. Why tax the health care system more than it already is when the information is easy enough to find. They would have recommended a dietician if they thought it was necessary.

I'm surprised you weren't given any detailed handouts after surgery.

You know, I'm not a complete idiot. I *have* 'medical' instructions. They are to eat a Low Fiber Diet. I want to shop *now*, not after a consult in the hospital. I know there are people on the KT who have already coped with this issue -- feeding themselves or relatives post-op.

Thanks Frosted. The UCLA chart you linked is very helpful. (Funny I didn't find it when I googled.) Nice I can have *some* protein.

Lucille -- Wow. Fish Sticks! DH can do that! Thank you.

My niece went through this very surgery just this spring. Her diet afterwards was and is still very restricted. I do know she had to eat a lot of Jello and puddings, soft foods. Sorry I'm no help other then that but at least you can buy the little cups of it, no preparation involved. How about some Yogurts and cottage cheese?

Yogurt, the high probiotic stuff (go easy on the high-sugar stuff) is good, too.

If you want, I can consume your share of fiber for a while. However, ya gotta let me know when to back off a bit.

"The UCLA chart you linked is very helpful."

Go Bruins!

According to the link, you can eat almost any kind of meat, fish, and other proteins. No grilled or tough cuts. It's the vegetables that will be a problem, though it looks like most canned veggies will be okay.

Do you like tuna casserole? Scalloped potatoes with ham, burgers, chicken stew with well cooked or canned veggies, ham and eggs, creamy peanut butter and jelly (no seeds) sandwiches with chicken noodle soup. Hamburger steaks with mashed potatoes and gravy, applesauce.

It looks like you can have a reasonably healthy diet for the short term, and I wish you all of the very best. Tuesday is the big day.....I'll be thinking of you, we all will.

Gosh, what does someone with diabetes do with a diet like that?

No advice. Best wishes for your surgery.

My husband had colon resection surgery, in 2014. Finding a variety of vegetables, that fit the recommended criteria, was my biggest challenge. You can ask to talk to the hospital's dietitian, for meal ideas.

@ sushipup, that is not what happens at my place - if the patient truly wants a consult. I've had dieticians spend hours with pts and families, even seen them go to the grocery store with patients (albeit rare occurance).

They enjoy meeting with pts who want their help; too often they are asked to see pts not interested in being compliant with recommendations.

There is a difference between dietary "consult" and dietary "advice" where you may just get printed materials.

chisue, back in 2003, when I had the resection, I didn't even want to see food, let alone eat it. They insisted that I at least try the Ensure, which I did, finally, just because the nurse was so concerned and caring and told me I really had to have something. I didn't like it at all! So maybe you will be like I was, no food wanted. I was still in the hospital on Thanksgiving day and each patient had one of those tiny little Capons, in orange sauce. I did manage a few bites, and wished ever since that I could have one of those. Still haven't though. So you may not really have an appetite for very much. Either way, I'm wishing you the best and knowing that you will be fine and ready to go on with your plans.

I would think you could make smoothies or blender soups with veggies and fruit. They are extremely smooth in a Vitamix or Blendtec. They can be thinned down too.

I had a consult with a nutritionist post/op GI surgery and was given a printout of very unhealthy lower fiber foods (white this, white that etc) and urged to drink 3 Ensures daily. I did some research before I was released and found the following link very helpful:

http://healthyeating.sfgate.com/lowfiber-vegetable-list-1797.html

I avoided white flour and sugar products and incorporated fruits and vegetables as well as low fiber protein (make sure you get LOTS of protein for healing!). There's lots of easy-to-prepare whole food options such as rotisserie chicken, roasted (not processed) deli turkey slices, salmon (oven baked), canned fish and eggs.

Best wishes for a speedy recovery!

I like Rhizo's idea of casseroles, because you have a few days and maybe could make a couple ahead and freeze portions. The issue is not only about which foods are permitted, but which food are permitted and can be prepared by a helpful husband with little cooking experience.

The possible scenarios involving burned salmon or dried out roasted turkey could be circumvented with some made ahead food at least for the first couple days, until you are strong enough to deal with maintaining your usual gracious composure while the smoke alarm is going off in the kitchen.

Just to clarify, I meant to include already- prepared salmon, chicken etc. There's lots of good options from grocery stores, delis and ethnic markets. Some even deliver for free or a nominal charge.

More great help and support! I thank you. My DH thanks you.

I've added some pudding cups and turkey breast to the fridge. I'll be eating 'light' tonight and start The Great Purge at noon tomorrow.

The hospital will call me tomorrow afternoon to set the exact time for the OR. (Right now it's 8:47 am.) This is the same surgeon who removed a benign diverticulum in 2012 --and my appendix, since he was 'there anyway'. That was outpatient. He's the 'go to guy' for GI surgery in my area. It still amazes me that any of this can even be done!

I'm hoping for entirely 'small incision' or with only one larger one to remove the section of colon with the 'carpeting'. (Do surgeons learn 'folding'?) I want to be an uninteresting case -- with a benign biopsy and no complications.

Wishing you an easy surgery and a speedy recovery!

Best of luck and here's hoping for a most boring surgery and follow-up.