Pre & Post-Surgery Nutrition Recommendations Optimize Your Surgical Outcome by Eating Right

The Role of Nutrition in Plastic Surgery:

Your body uses certain nutrients from healthy foods to help heal your surgical wounds faster and better! Superstar nutrients that are important for healing include lean protein, zinc, and vitamins A, B, and C. The good news is that meeting your needs for these nutrients can be achieved without supplementation. However, if your diet and lifestyle make it difficult to achieve this through diet alone, vitamin supplementation is perfectly fine and safe.

Optimizing nutrition can dramatically impact the body’s healing abilities and immune defense mechanisms. Along with the recovery benefits, a balanced diet can improve mental health. Vitamin C is important for skin and tissue healing, and other antioxidants, such as Vitamin A and E, neutralize free radicals so your cells can function optimally. Consuming anti-inflammatory foods can reduce post-surgical inflammation. Also, it’s important to limit your sodium intake, which will help with swelling.

Avoiding a catabolic (fasting) state with appropriate preoperative preparation continued into the postoperative phase will maximize healing and recovery. After the body experiences trauma (surgery), optimal nutrition helps it heal and recuperate. Make sure you drink plenty of water and avoid sugary foods as well!

Before a procedure, unhealthy habits such as smoking and drinking need to be stopped. These will have a significant negative impact on the outcome of your surgery.

Proper diet and exercise are essential to achieving and maintaining cosmetic results. A smooth pre- and post-operative experience require a commitment to health and wellness that starts weeks, months, or even years in advance. The great thing about this is that there are so many options that you can customize based on your dietary preferences and lifestyle.

Why is it important to have adequate protein intake before and after surgery?

Protein helps you build and maintain muscle, heal tissue, and have a healthy immune system. When healing from surgery, aim to have a total of 1.5 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight. In other words, divide your weight in pounds by 2.2 to get your weight in kilograms. Then multiply that number by 1.5. This is an easy way to figure out how many grams of protein you should have daily to optimize your healing!

Foods High in Protein:

Each serving listed = 7 grams of protein
1 oz chicken, turkey, pork, shellfish, seafood, fish, beef*
¼ cup fat-free cottage cheese
1 cup skim milk
½ cup fat-free Greek yogurt
½ cup beans
24 almonds
49 pistachios
2 Tbsp peanut butter
2 Egg Whites
1 whole egg
1 oz cheese
1 cup quinoa
*Lean cuts of beef include sirloin, flank, and tenderloin

woman sitting at a table with a laptop and a cup of coffee

Why is it important to have adequate Vitamin A and Vitamin C intake before and after surgery?

Vitamin A and C help your body repair tissue damage, fight infection after surgery, and help collagen organize into strong structures to optimize your healing (both internal and incisions!). Aim for 900 mcg of Vitamin A and 100 mg of Vitamin C per day by incorporating the colorful fruits and vegetables listed below. This will ensure that you are meeting the RDI (Recommended Daily Intake) for both of these nutrients.

Foods High in Vitamin A:

1 cup cantaloupe = 1500 mcg
1 cup carrots = 300 mcg
1 cup spinach = 300 mcg
1 cup mango = 540 mcg
1 baked sweet potato = 1400 mcg
1 cup kale = 2000 mcg
1 cup tomatoes = 370 mcg

Foods High in Vitamin C:

1 orange = 100 mg
1 grapefruit = 100 mg
1 cup strawberries = 90 mg
1 cup broccoli (cooked) = 100 mg
1 cup kale = 80 mg
1 cup spinach = 70 mg
1 kiwi = 70 mg
1 cup brussels sprouts (cooked) = 80 mg
1 avocado = 20 mg
1 cup tomatoes = 20 mg

Why is Zinc important?

Meeting the RDI (Recommended Daily Intake) for zinc will promote collagen synthesis and allow those incisions to heal beautifully!

Men 19 years + RDI = 11 mg
Women 19 years + RDI = 8 mg

*These recommendations change if you are below 19 years old or if you have a zinc deficiency.

Foods High in Zinc:

3 oz beef = 7 mg
3 oz lobster = 3.5 mg
3 oz pork = 3 mg
3 oz chicken = 2.5 mg
½ cup chickpeas = 1.5 mg
1 oz cheese = 1 mg
23 almonds = 1 mg
18 cashews = 1.5 mg
1 egg = 1 mg
1 cup Greek yogurt = 1.5 mg
2 Tbsp peanut butter = 1 mg
1 cup skim milk = 1 mg
49 pistachios = 2 mg

*If you consume above the recommendations for Vitamin A, C, or zinc, it is fine if you don’t exceed the UL (Upper Tolerable Limit). For adults 19 years +, the UL is 40 mg for zinc, 2000 mg of Vitamin C, and 3000 mcg for Vitamin A.

*This menu totals approximately 80 - 100 grams of protein; however, you can adjust protein intake to meet your needs based on your body weight.

Remember!

Nutrition plays a critical role in the healing and recovery process, and great results require a commitment to health that begins long before your consultation. A pre-and post-op dietary game plan, whether alone or with assistance from a coach or meal service, can optimize your body’s healing abilities and help improve all aspects of your recovery from surgery.

Sample Post-Surgery Healing Menu

(This is a suggestion, you do not have to follow this exactly)

First Option:

Breakfast:

Veggie Omelet + Fruit
Omelet made with 1 egg and 2 egg whites, sautéed vegetables (1/2 cup spinach), and 1 grapefruit on the side
14 g protein
2 mg zinc
120 mg Vitamin C
300 mcg Vitamin A

Morning Snack:

Yogurt + Fruit Parfait
1 cup fat-free Greek yogurt + ½ cup strawberries + 1 Tbsp honey
14 g protein
1.5 mg zinc
45 mg Vitamin C

Lunch:

Chopped Salad
Chopped salad made with 1 cup chopped spinach, cucumbers, carrots (1 cup), grilled chicken (3 oz), cheese (1 oz), chickpeas (1/2 cup), olive oil, and balsamic vinegar dressing
35 g protein
600 mcg Vitamin A
70 mg Vitamin C
5 mg zinc

Afternoon Snack:

PB apple slices
1 apple sliced with 2 Tbsp peanut butter for dipping
7 g protein
1 mg zinc

Dinner:

Steak with Veggies
3 oz sirloin steak, ½ baked sweet potato with a side of sauteed broccoli (2 cups cooked)
21 g protein
7 mg zinc
700 Vitamin A
200 mg Vitamin C

Total:

91 g Protein
16.5 mg Zinc
1,600 mcg Vitamin A
435 mg Vitamin C

Second Option: