Navigating Your Diet Post-Endoscopic Sleeve Gastroplasty

Weight loss following endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty (ESG) requires a thoughtful approach to nutrition. Making improvements to your diet helps to maximize the benefits of your procedure, support your overall health, and achieve your goals. Here’s what you need to know about your endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty diet, including common challenges and tips for staying focused. 

What Is Endoscopic Sleeve Gastroplasty?

Endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty is a safe and effective non-surgical weight loss procedure that can reduce the size of your stomach by 70-80%. Using a revolutionary suturing device that enters the body through the mouth, your doctor will place stitches inside your stomach to reduce its size — without external incisions or cutting.

Making your stomach smaller promotes fullness and restricts calories. Paired with exercise and healthy foods, ESG promotes rapid, sustainable weight loss. 

Benefits of ESG

ESG is non-invasive with a very low risk of major complications. You don’t have a long recovery time and can return to normal activities within a few days. Plus, ESG can help you lose up to 20% of your original body weight. 

The Importance of Diet After ESG

Nutrition is an essential aspect of your ESG recovery. Your care team will prescribe a specific endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty diet, which is critical to follow. 

Why Diet Matters

Following your prescribed diet after ESG helps maximize the benefits of the procedure and ensures a smooth recovery to kickstart weight loss. 

Here’s why it matters so much: 

• It promotes healing: The initial post-procedure period is focused on allowing your stomach to heal by minimizing stress on the stomach lining and reducing the risk of complications.
• It optimizes weight loss: Your ESG post-op diet guidelines help ensure balanced nutrition while reducing overall calories. This is meant to help you adapt to your new, smaller stomach capacity and learn how to choose nutrient-dense foods. 
• It prevents nutrient deficiencies: Having a smaller stomach can limit nutrient absorption. Your prescribed diet is meant to optimize nutritional quality with smaller portions.

Common Challenges

Following your prescribed post-ESG diet is important, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy — that’s why we’re here to help. Here are some common dietary challenges patients may face:

• Adjusting to smaller portions: If you’ve been used to eating large portions, be patient as your body and mind adapt. 
• Managing hunger and cravings: As your body adjusts to smaller, more frequent meals, it can take time to learn how to manage hunger-fullness cues and specific cravings.
• Social situations: Eating with others after ESG can present new challenges but with time and practice, you’ll get used to this as well. Look at menus beforehand, bring your own pre-portioned food, or eat before a gathering.
• Emotional eating: We often turn to comfort foods when we’re sad, angry, stressed, bored, or even joyful. If you find yourself reaching for food in response to emotions, try other ways of coping, like taking a walk, listening to music, calling a friend, or doing something creative. 

Phases of the Post-Op Diet

Following an ESG, you’ll receive specific guidelines for optimal healing and recovery, minimizing digestive stress, and getting necessary nutrients. Let’s take a look at how your diet will progress. 

Immediate Post-Op Phase (Days 1-2)

After your procedure, you’re allowed sugar-free clear liquids. This will initially be ice chips and water, but eventually, diet iced tea, sugar-free gelatin, sugar-free popsicles, and even low-calorie sports drinks can fit. 

While there’s no limitation on the volume of clear liquids allowed, consume them slowly to prevent swallowing air that can turn into uncomfortable burps. Some people find that room-temperature liquids early in this phase are better tolerated than fluids that are hot or cold.

Transition Phase (Weeks 1-3)

Next, you’ll progress to a full liquid diet, which includes thicker, opaque liquids like protein shakes, potato soup, and milk, and then a pureed diet, like smooth, blended fruits, vegetables, and protein foods. 

Soft Foods Phase (Weeks 5-8)

As long as you’ve tolerated liquids and purees, you’ll graduate to a soft diet prioritizing low-sugar and low-fat foods. Think of the texture of this phase as items that can be easily mashed with a fork rather than chewed substantially. It’s essential to get regular sources of protein. Examples include soft-cooked vegetables, baked fish, and canned legumes. 

Long-Term Maintenance (Months 2+)

Congratulations — you’re back to a normal diet of predominantly solids. Foods should be nutrient-dense, providing lots of nutrients in small serving sizes, and you should eat appropriate portions for your reduced stomach capacity. Include plenty of fruits, vegetables, nut and seed butter, whole grains, and lean protein sources like legumes, fish, poultry, and lean beef.

Tips for Success

We know that undergoing a weight loss procedure like ESG can feel overwhelming as you navigate the weeks, months, and years ahead. Keep these tips in mind to help you stay the course. 

Listen to Your Body

You know what feels best for your body. As you follow your diet after endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty, pay attention to what is and is not serving you well and form your ongoing habits accordingly.

Plan Ahead

Planning and preparation prevent last-minute decisions. This might mean planning your meal before an outing or examining the week ahead and ensuring you have everything you need to make healthy meals and snacks.

Stay Active

Staying active is equally important for long-term weight loss goals. Mix it up with exercises like swimming, biking, walking the dog, playing tennis, or participating in a group fitness class.

Seek Support

Maintaining weight loss is more manageable with support, like friends on a similar journey, a support group, your dietitian, trainer, or therapist. Your True You Weight Loss team is also here to help.

Building a Healthier Future After Endoscopic Sleeve Gastroplasty

Nutrition is one of the most important aspects of healthy weight loss. After ESG, you will learn new ways to nourish and listen to your body to support your long-term goals.

The True You Weight Loss team has performed more ESG procedures than any other weight loss center in the country. Rest assured that you’re in good hands. If you’re interested in pursuing ESG, request a consultation. We look forward to answering your questions and helping you achieve your desired weight loss results.