Helen Bauzon

Hi Carolina Thanks so much. It is amazing how much easier it is to eat out with the Lap Band when the above principles are applied. Give it a go and let me know.

I can't beleive so much time has passed since I posted an article explaining that you can drink and eat with the Lap Band. This did create a lot of discussion. The link to this article is as below for those who wish to review or read for the first time. http://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/144189-yes-you-can-drink-and-eat-at-the-same-meal-time/ So why bother bringing this up again? I worked with Allergan soon after this post. Together we developed some great 1-2 minute video presentations, providing an update regarding the research surrounding the band including how and what to eat. The videos can be viewed at http://lapbanddiet.com.au/long-term-diet/ . Please refer to the 2nd, 3rd and 4th clip from the top. Hope you enjoy. Any questions of clarrification please just ask, I'm only a few clicks away. Or you can also attend a FREE online support group meeting if you prefer. http://lapbanddiet.com.au/lap-band-support-group/

Hi Carolina Great work. I am glad they were of help. Just in case you are not aware, I also have online support group meetings. The first is on the 4th March if interested. It will take the detail from the videos another level.

I would like to change your thinking and open your mind up to migrate away from looking for cook books specifically tailored for the Lap Band. Instead learn how you can quickly and easily create your own Lap Band friendly meals yourself. This will enable you to eat in all social settings freely. To achieve this there are two key take home messages, to creating Lap Band friendly meals. Avoid biting into food Modify the food prior to cooking or food served to you, as though you were feeding a one year old to prevent them from choking Let me reassure you, this will make sense if you understand how the band works as a "funnel" concept rather than a small stomach. Professor Paul O'Brien who I also work with has produced a great 2min clip explaining this at http://lapbanddiet.com.au/lap-band-surgery-how-the-band-works/ (the second clip on the page) Lets extrapolate the above two points further. 1. Avoid biting into food As adults we have big teeth and big mouths. If we bite into food we are likely to exceed a teaspoon portion. This is likely to result in inadequate chewing and over filling the "holding bay" before the esophagus pushes the food through the Lap Band. Pick with your fingers and eat with a knife and fork to portion control instead. Try an oyster fork. 2. Modify the food prior to cooking or food served to you on a plate, as though you were feeding a one year old to prevent them from choking Removing tough skins, strings and food cut into small pieces, makes an amazing difference in being able to tolerate a big variety of foods. The third mouthful syndrome is less likely. For example, salads can be challenging because they are usually present in large chunks of vegetables which have leathery skin. An alternative example would be a cherry tomato cut into half is much harder to eat compared to being cut into 4-8 segments. Diced salad is easier than an untouched chunky salad as an alternative. Another example would be at a food court,. The falafal wrap looks appealing but there is no way you would attempt to eat this because the chances of a food blockage is high. Well with the above two suggestions to creating Lap Band friendly meals, all you would need to do is place the wrap on a plate, unravel it and cut into small pieces before eating with a knife and fork rather than biting into it. Voila, the meal has become band friendly. With the above two key messages you can create meals and snacks appropriate for you with only a 5% modification. So the best Lap Band Cook Book is the one YOU create. To help you, I have uploaded a large number of recipes and made comments in red how to modify them that tiny 5% to create Lap Band Friendly Meals. Take a look and enjoy increasing the variety in your diet. http://lapbanddiet.com.au/dietary-advice/

This is what I have found also guys with my clinic. People would like to attend support group meeting but find it difficult due to travel, work and family commitments. So this is why I am about to start online support groups. Would you find this helpful to have live interaction with other banded individuals accompanied with education and accountability ?

We'll done. It's impressive to lose weight during any festive time. Great mind set and determination. Keep up the great work.

Every clinic will work differently regarding either inserting Fluid in at surgery or not. It is always a good idea to clarify for your understanding. It is more the norm. that it takes about 3-5 adjustment to controls one's hunger and get into the green zone. I always ask my clients two questions to verify if there is enough fluid in the band. These include: 1. When you wake up does it take about 2-4 hrs before you begin to think about food? 2. At dinner (the third meal of the day) does a small todller plate take about 15 to 20mins to eat and make you feel satisfied comfortably for the next 3-4 hrs? If they answer yes to the above questions, this is a pretty good indication that there is enough fluid in the band to control one's appetite, the rest us up to food choices and exercise levels. If you want more infomration on understaniing how to mange your band and deal with the daily variability, you can attend one of my webinars or seminars http://lapbanddiet.com.au/webinar-seminars/ Good luck and enjoy the journey Helen Bauzon Lap Band Dietitian

Hesitation, fear and conern accompanied with excitement is normal. Often negativity comes from people who just don't understand what is involved. rather than trying to explain and make them comfortable, focus on you to get ready for surgery. As long as you understand what your reuiqred lifestyle changes will be and you re happy to make them, you re ready. To help you along this journey there is a lot of information to help you in preparation to surgery http://lapbanddiet.com.au/fluids-post-surgery-diet/, the transition diets http://lapbanddiet.com.au/transition-onto-solid-food-post-surgery/and the long term lifestyle to lose weight with the Lap Band http://lapbanddiet.com.au/long-term-diet/. Hear to help. If you have anu questions feels free to ask Helen Bauzon Lap Band Dietitian

To control the hunger during the Fluid phase drink high Protein drinks and make sure they are quite thick fluids such as vitamized pumpkin Soup made with sweet potato perhaps, or even a minestrone soup blended, where the meat becomes a puree, which meets the fluid criteria. If you also vary the flavours within the fluid phase it does become easier. But just drink up to control the hunger. Once you satrteating solid food, this will help control the hunger a lot more due to the impact on the receptor sites. Details can be found at http://lapbanddiet.com.au/fluids-post-surgery-diet/ Good luck

Most people who choose to undergo Lap Band surgery, do so because they want to change their body and improve their health. Most people understand what to eat to lose weight, however you need to understand how to do this in conjunction with the Lap Band. The Lap Band can behave slightly differently each day creating variability in the food you can tolerate. The most important consideration is to ensure that the Lap Band falls within the green zone. That is, the Lap Band is not too tight. Clients do come to me frustrated that they are not losing weight quickly enough. My response always is; what is holding you back? The band or you? I often get a confused looking client in front me. This question can be quite confronting and forces one to self-reflect and be honest with themselves. I believe honesty is the best policy. With this article I would like to discuss a common challenge faced by most lapbanders, how much and how often one should eat? My philosophy is to keep things simple and easy to digest. Realistically I like to see a minimum of three meals a day consumed. Rather than focusing on how much to eat, try and place the focus on eating quality healthy food that would fit on a small toddler portion plate. This portion should take 15 to 20mins maximum to eat, after which you should feel disinterested in eating more food and be happy to stop eating. Remember, it is not the role of the Lap Band to stop you from eating, this is your responsibility. Ask yourself, are you really using the Lap Band to its maximum potential? Happy eating Helen Bauzon If interested, on Wednesday night 27th November, I will be running a 30min live webinar where you can ask me any question, plus learn a key activity you can do to prevent weight gain during the festive season. http://weightlosssurgerydiet.com.au/index.php/online-webinars

In essence we all understand which foods we need to eat more from to lose weight. That’s correct the more bulky unprocessed foods such as fruit, vegetables, fish, meats etc compared to the those wrapped in a plaster wrapper with bright colours displaying a variety of nutritional claims such as muesli bars, chips, cakes etc), which are much higher in calories. Unfortunately these higher calorie foods typically pass through the gastric band more easily and the more unprocessed foods can create discomfort on eating with the gastric band. This can easily be rectified by understanding two simple elements: 1. How the gastric band works 2. Modify how you chew your food This will enable you to eat more nutritious food pain free and maximize the effect of the gastric band to make you feel fuller for longer. Step 1. Let’s understand how the gastric band works in very simple terms. View the area above the gastric band as a funnel not a small stomach. The total capacity of the funnel holds 1 tbs of food only. Step 2. Modify how you chew your food. Consume maximum 1 tsp of food per mouthful, grind this into a paste before swallowing. Focus on the flavours and textures of the food by placing the food initially onto your tongue. The saliva released will help soften the food and make it easier to grind the food into a paste before swallowing. Once you have swallowed this first teaspoon of food, wait 1 minute before you swallow your next single teaspoon of food. This will enable you to: 1. eat the right balance of foods pain free 2. maximize the effect of the gastric band and you will feel fuller for longer and 3. ultimately lose weight For more details of my recent three articles can be accessed from the book, The Gastric Band Nutrition Essential, by yours truly.

The Wikipedia definition of BREAKFAST states: Breakfast (literally meaning "breaking the fast" of the night) is the first meal taken after rising from a night's sleep, most often eaten in the early morning before undertaking the day's work. Do individuals with a Lap Band need breakfast? I don’t believe so. I often see clients reporting getting food stuck in the morning. As they literally try to force food through the lap band. Why? They have been told it is the most important meal of the day to get the metabolism going. So they persist and change if toast or fruit get stuck, to a liquid meal such as a fruit smoothie or a weight loss meal replacement. In addition, they often report they are not even feeling hungry. So why consume these calories. My solution / recommendation. Forget breakfast. Stop forcing calories through the lap band when you are not feeling hungry. It is more common that the lap band feels tighter in the morning. Hence the greater pressure on the receptor sites, this suppresses one’s hunger. It can sometimes take 1 to 3 hours on waking to become interested in food as the pressure lessens on the receptor sites. This is when I recommend we have our first meal of the day, not breakfast!!! Consider removing breakfast, lunch and dinner from your weight loss journey vocabulary. Replace these to the first, second and third meal of the day instead, consumed at times that suit your lifestyle.

Therefore, our primary focus is to avoid food blockages and secondly learn how to manage them. To understand the top three key points that will help you avoid food blockages, get your free ebook at www.weightlosssurgerydiet.com.au with all the answers. In this article, let’s discuss how to manage your predicament once the food has been dislodged and unfortunately you will likely feel a little raw and uncomfortable internally. But why? Improvise with me. If you were to walk slowly through a rose bush forcing your way through, I am 100% confident you will come out worse for wear. Your skin will feel raw, sore, grazed and irritated. Guess what! A similar situation could occur internally, as the food tries to squeeze through the lap band also. The area may get a little swollen and the lap band may physically feel a little tighter and more restrictive. Foods which you would customarily tolerate well may become a little challenging. You must avoid further irritation, by following the next 3 steps: Step 1. Relax the diets texture to soft, wet and easy for the remaining part of the day. Suggestions include soup, casserole, cottage pie etc Step 2. Take your internal anti-inflammatory. This will include icy cold water or ice cubes. Yes this is correct. No need to pop any tablets, just help ice the area and reduce the swelling ASAP. Step 3. Uncover what caused the food blockage and try to prevent this in the future. Wishing you luck Helen Bauzon Dietitian www.weightlosssurgerydiet.com.au

Clients do come to me frustrated that they are not losing weight quickly enough. My response always is; what is holding you back? The band or you? Most people who choose to undergo Lap Band surgery, do so because they want to change their body and improve their health. Most people understand what to eat to lose weight, however you need to understand how to do this in conjunction with the Lap Band. The Lap Band can behave slightly differently each day creating variability in the food you can tolerate. The most important consideration is to ensure that the Lap Band falls within the green zone. That is, the Lap Band is not too tight. Clients do come to me frustrated that they are not losing weight quickly enough. My response always is; what is holding you back? The band or you? I often get a confused looking client in front me. This question can be quite confronting and forces one to self-reflect and be honest with themselves. I believe honesty is the best policy. With this article I would like to discuss a common challenge faced by most lapbanders, how much and how often one should eat? My philosophy is to keep things simple and easy to digest. Realistically I like to see a minimum of three meals a day consumed. Rather than focusing on how much to eat, try and place the focus on eating quality healthy food that would fit on a small toddler portion plate. This portion should take 15 to 20mins maximum to eat, after which you should feel disinterested in eating more food and be happy to stop eating. Remember, it is not the role of the Lap Band to stop you from eating, this is your responsibility. Ask yourself, are you really using the Lap Band to its maximum potential? Happy eating Helen Bauzon If interested, on Wednesday night 27th November, I will be running a 30min live webinar where you can ask me any question, plus learn a key activity you can do to prevent weight gain during the festive season. http://weightlosssurgerydiet.com.au/index.php/online-webinars

Every clinic will vary regarding the duration on each transitional phase, so please be guided by your surgeons preferences. Meanwhile most clinics suggest a VLCD (very low calorie diet) to help shrink the liver. I have a presentation you may like to view at http://weightlosssurgerydiet.com.au/index.php/lap-band-diet/optifast-pre-surgery Post surgery you will be on fluids. Details of what would constitute a Fluid, how to prepare them and how much to have and possible issues you may facead how to avoid them can be seen at http://weightlosssurgerydiet.com.au/index.php/lap-band-diet/fluids-post-surgery When you begin to eat solid food, what to eat and all of the above details can be downloaded in a free ebook for you to read also.http://weightlosssurgerydiet.com.au/. This information is the first 30 pages of my book the Gastric Band Nutrition Essential. Certainly work taking full advantage of this. All of the above information is very extensive that you can work through. But can I take you to what is most important? Please understand how the Lap band works, to then adjust to your new lifestyle post surgery to successfully get through all the dietary phases and not place pressure on the lap band.http://weightlosssurgerydiet.com.au/index.php/lap-band-surgery/6-lap-band-surgery-how-the-band-works Within this section, I also have a short video clip explaining the chewing exercise to prevent food blockages. I actually present all of this information in a 60minute presentation for my clients pre-surgery. So please enjoy. Any questions feel free to ask Good luck Helen Bauzon

No need to pop any tablets, you can eat them. Ouch!!!! Food blockages are the biggest pain of a lap banders life. We must prevent this situation occurring daily, as this is crucial to help avoid a pouch forming. A pouch results in a dysfunctional lap band and weight gain is common.Ouch!!!! Food blockages are the biggest pain of a lap banders life. We must prevent this situation occurring daily, as this is crucial to help avoid a pouch forming. A pouch results in a dysfunctional lap band and weight gain is common. Therefore, our primary focus is to avoid food blockages and secondly learn how to manage them. To understand the top three key points that will help you avoid food blockages, get your free ebook at www.weightlosssurgerydiet.com.au with all the answers. In this article, let’s discuss how to manage your predicament once the food has been dislodged and unfortunately you will likely feel a little raw and uncomfortable internally. But why? Improvise with me. If you were to walk slowly through a rose bush forcing your way through, I am 100% confident you will come out worse for wear. Your skin will feel raw, sore, grazed and irritated. Guess what! A similar situation could occur internally, as the food tries to squeeze through the lap band also. The area may get a little swollen and the lap band may physically feel a little tighter and more restrictive. Foods which you would customarily tolerate well may become a little challenging. You must avoid further irritation, by following the next 3 steps: Step 1. Relax the diets texture to soft, wet and easy for the remaining part of the day. Suggestions include soup, casserole, cottage pie etc Step 2. Take your internal anti-inflammatory. This will include icy cold water or ice cubes. Yes this is correct. No need to pop any tablets, just help ice the area and reduce the swelling ASAP. Step 3. Uncover what caused the food blockage and try to prevent this in the future. Wishing you luck Helen Bauzon Dietitian www.weightlosssurgerydiet.com.au

These support group meeting are manned by Dietitian Helen Bauzon. The overall purpose is to be motivated and made accountable to help you move forward with your weight loss journey in partnership with the lap band, including taste testing of a new food product. The up coming meeting on Thursday night 23rd August, guest speaker Dr Linda Wilson will be presenting. Dr Linda Wilson specialises in the 'stress' response in all it's many forms from emotions to cravings to unhelpful habits. You will feel empowered to look at your situation from a different perspective and also be introduced to tools that could change everything - when you apply them. Linda's presentations are lighthearted and informative and will give you lots to think about in relation to your unique challenges. You will learn what is contributing to your thoughts and behaviours that you might not even know about! Find out what could be your greatest asset when dealing with yourself - and you already have it! For more details and to book in, visit http://www.globalgas...s/face-to-face/

Forget BREAKFAST!! Rename it to the first meal of the day instead. The Wikipedia definition of BREAKFAST states: Breakfast (literally meaning "breaking the fast" of the night) is the first meal taken after rising from a night's sleep, most often eaten in the early morning before undertaking the day's work. Do individuals with a Lap Band need breakfast? I don’t believe so. I often see clients reporting getting food stuck in the morning. As they literally try to force food through the lap band. Why? They have been told it is the most important meal of the day to get the metabolism going. So they persist and change if toast or fruit get stuck, to a liquid meal such as a fruit smoothie or a weight loss meal replacement. In addition, they often report they are not even feeling hungry. So why consume these calories. My solution / recommendation. Forget breakfast. Stop forcing calories through the lap band when you are not feeling hungry. It is more common that the lap band feels tighter in the morning. Hence the greater pressure on the receptor sites, this suppresses one’s hunger. It can sometimes take 1 to 3 hours on waking to become interested in food as the pressure lessens on the receptor sites. This is when I recommend we have our first meal of the day, not breakfast!!! Consider removing breakfast, lunch and dinner from your weight loss journey vocabulary. Replace these to the first, second and third meal of the day instead, consumed at times that suit your lifestyle.

Absolutely, that's what it's there for. Also I have just recorded more with Allergan, when they are available I will upload these and let you know also. Should not be too long. I have proofed them.

I do like to change the labelling to help stop people forcing food through the band too early in the day. What ever helps people get the results and unerstand the band.

Thank you,I have checked and I have foud it to work ok, without it the program asks me to fix the link. Within my Bio, the https:// present or not did not help to make the link live It's a constant learniing curve to me Thanks again Cheers Helen

Yes you can drink and eat at the same meal time. There is no concern in flushing the food through the gastric band. That is the old thinking. There is no concern in flushing the food through the gastric band when the area above the band is empty. Recent research has provided a better understanding of the how the gastric band works, conducted by CORE in Melbourne. We now understand that food only remains in the area above the gastric band for approximately 1 minute, it is then pushed through the gastric band via the oesophageal pressure. This takes about 3 to 6 peristaltic motions. You can eat and drink at the same time; however it is essential you allow sufficient time between swallows to ensure the area above the gastric band is completely empty, before you consume a sip of your drink. However, be careful to not drink liquids with your meal to assist the movement of food through the gastric band, this is cheating. Focus on tasting and enjoying the flavours and textures which will enable your saliva to soften the food and make it easier to grind the food into a past prior to swallowing. Many people feed back to me that they often do not wait long enough between mouthfuls and take a sip too early and get into trouble. So you may wish to consider an alternative option to not drink and eat during your meal, but rather eat your meal and begin drinking again once you feel comfortable. Choose either option, or blend them both when it suits you as summarized below: 1. Wait enough time between mouthfuls before consuming a sip of your drink 2. Consume a glass of water before the meal, eat your meal then begin drinking again once you feel comfortable.

We are looking at a meal. As more Fluid goesin the band the more time consuming the meal becomes. Just workout for as an individual what amount of fluid suits your lifestyle. Today I saw a client who was not keen to eat so slowly to avoid blocks, so I suggested she remove 0.2ml to help avoid her frustrations,but the band will still provide adequate control of her appetite. At times it can all be too much. I am passionate about ensuring the band is not too tight. This needs to be a personal decision.

I had to laugh,what a tongue twister,I am impressed. So we agree on the functioning but choose to use it in a way that suits us personally. Perfect.

Hi Jean, Thanks once again.