Do any of you post esphegectomy patients use protien/weight training powder to bulid yourselves up ?

[Hope1972]

My dad is post op esphegectomy and still has his jeg insitu ... (he hates it) He has lost over 2 stone now and is very very weak.

I made my dad a chicken curry the other day and put some of my sons protien powder in (no flavour) the small amount i added didnt make it taste or look any diffrent and added abother 4-500 calories.

Does anyone else use this in there food ? I was thinking about vuying dad some so mam can add it in his mash potatoe ect .... do you think this would be ok as its not cheap to buy.

My dad said his taste buds have gone and everything is tastless, hes gone off creamy sweet stuff, chocolate and biscuits and finds it hard to eat meat still ?

[ELI55]

Hi Hope,

It sounds as though it is very early days for your dad - getting the eating bit right after surgery can take some time, and it may be a while before he gets his taste buds back. When my husband first came home, I bought powder (think it was like a flavour free Complan) which I added to any milk he was having. He didn't notice as far as I recall. If your dad likes Bovril/Marmite try him on beefy drink now and again to stimulate his appetite. It took a long time for my husband to tackle meat in any form - and unlike your dad he came home with a sweet tooth and hated anything savoury. Try not too worry too much about his weight, and encourage him to nibble all day - every mouthful helps . I have also heard that peanut butter is a good source of energy - if he likes this, try it on a couple of small crackers as a snack.

It's all trial and error but usually improves. Have a look at the OPA website for downloads on foods and stay positive.

Best wishes,

Elaine x

[Hidden]

taste buds go get wrecked, but they go come back normally, in a process that nobody seems to be able to explain. If he keeps drinking and keeps his mouth clean and looks after dental hygiene, the taste buds should come back - but when this will be nobody will be able to tell. Some people have sworn by the benefit of hypnotherapy to help with this, and there is no doubt that there is a mental aspect to not looking forward to eating and the complications.

If he can eat at least something, concentrate on that. His system should gradually train itself to cope with eating with the new plumbing arrangements. Losing that much weight is not unusual. Others have lost a lot more than that and have managed OK in the end. It might be that his body will settle in to a new normal weight.

He may well find himself completely lacking in energy. Keep up some form of vitamin and mineral supplements (like for the build up drinks), and try some encouragement for gentle exercise in the open air. A bit of physiotherapy might also help.

It is a great test of patience and resilience all round, including for you, but things normally work out all right, but on a timescale that is far longer than ever we would anticipate in the early days.

I do not think that the protein powder would do any harm, but like a lot of things, it is trial and error. There will be lots of things that you will bend over backwards to provide for him that he may not appreciate at the time. I am sorry to say that this is the typical road that one has to travel. Eating, and enjoying the prospect of eating, will seem a very distant pleasure to him at the moment. But normally it does improve, but after the expenditure of much frustration and even irritation.

He will have to learn to eat things he may not fancy to keep himself going, and that his lack of taste is not anyone's fault.

[Spikey]

Hi,

Unless your father is doing body building exercises, I would not recommend him taking protein shakes, which are designed to aid muscle recovery after strenuous exercise. As others have said, weight loss is normal and, to some extent, unavoidable.

[Hope1972]

Thanks for all of your replies my dad is having some of his build up drinks aswell as little bits of food throughout the day.

Ive decided against giving him the protien my dad just looks so drained & tired he looks worse everytime i see him.

He has his post op appoitnment with his surgeon tomorrow and another appoitnment with the chest clinic the day after.

[luluw]

My hubby had his IL in August. He uses Sanatogen Protein powder in soups and in milk.