In a gastric bypass the connection between he stomach pouch and the small intestine is called the gastrojejunal anastomosis. It is roughly the diameter of a ladies little finger. This small opening slows food from leaving the stomach too quickly prolonging the satiated feeling. In extremely rare cases scar tissue may form at this connection resulting in a blocked outlet. Treatment to correct this is the insertion, endoscopically, of a special balloon. The balloon is inflated and expands the anastomosis returning it to the correct size.

If a patient has symptoms of blockage that is not the result of overfilling the stomach pouch they must seek the advice of their bariatric professional. The symptoms include chronic vomiting and food intolerance.

More commonly, a blockage of the anastomosis is caused by poorly chewed foods. Patients must be diligent in avoiding foods that may cause a blockage. This includes large pills, some types or too much bread, overcooked or chewy meats, starches and nuts. If a pill becomes lodged in the stomach outlet it will usually dissolve after a few hours. If food becomes impacted it will be painful to the patient. Food will eventually digest and dislodge itself in most cases. In extreme cases a patient may need to have an endoscopy to dislodge the offending food. Patients in the habit of chewing their food will rarely encounter a blockage or plugged outlet.

When patients do suffer a mild blockage they can find usually relief by taking a dose of Pepto-Bismol and returning to soft foods such as gelatin or broth for a day or two.

As I become acquainted with many of our LivingAfterWLS.com community members I’m finding that old snacking habits have crept back in to our lives. In my third year post-op I returned to the miserable habit of snacking and snacking on all the wrong foods. Crackers, popcorn, toast, cereal, pretzels, sugar-free candy, granola bars. The unpleasant result of this is I regained some weight, several dumping episodes, vomiting and bouts of fatigue.

According to my bariatric center “Snacking, nibbling or grazing on foods, usually high-calorie and high-fat foods, can add hundreds of calories a day to your intake, defeating the restrictive effect of your operation. Snacking will slow down your weight loss and can lead to regain of weight.”

Almost universally the snacks WLS patients admit to eating are high carbohydrate, nutritionally void processed foods. In order to maintain weight loss after gastric bypass successful patients avoid these poor snack choices:

What you will notice about the poor snack choices is that most are nutritionally void foods – they do nothing to feed your body the vitamins, minerals and nutrients it needs to function well. In addition when grazed upon many of these foods can be consumed in large quantities by gastric bypass patients. It’s called the “soft foods phenomena”. When WLS patients eat soft foods (think crackers) which mix with stomach fluids a slurry results. This mixture passes through the pouch into the bypassed intestine allowing for steady intake without satiation. In addition, these foods may cause dumping or vomiting.

You may be surprised to see trail mix and granola on the foods to avoid list as they are well known “health foods.” It’s true trail mix and granola are nutritionally dense but most bariatric patients report a low tolerance for nuts, seeds and raisins. In addition many of these foods contain hidden sugars.

Surprisingly, hair loss is one of the reasons female pre-operative patients sit on the fence before deciding to have gastric bypass surgery. Obese people, particularly obese women, often have lush gorgeous hair. Of course they do – it’s well fed and nourished! How many of us have been described as the woman with “beautiful hair and a pretty face”? What person in their right mind would give up one of their beautiful features?

Hair loss usually occurs in the fourth of fifth month following weight loss surgery. During the phase of rapid weight loss, caloric intake is marginal. This puts the body in a state of panic called starvation. Think about the pictures of prisoners of war. Most victims of this atrocity are without hair because they are literally starving to death. A healthy body normally sheds ten percent of hair follicles at any given time. When a body is starving roughly thirty to forty percent of hair follicles are sacrificed as the body channels nutrition to more vital areas. During this phase hair loss is dramatic, often patients find clumps of hair on the shower floor. Remaining hair becomes drab and lifeless.

I knew hair loss was a potential result of weight loss surgery, but because I’m a “cup-half-full” person, I didn’t believe that hair loss would happen to me! That just happens to other people, I told myself! Imagine my surprise when my blonde locks were littering the bathroom floor like hair saloon. I shed some tears over that.

The hair loss is a transient effect of your gastric bypass surgery and will be resolved when nutrition and weight stabilize. When my hair began falling out, my husband, who has been a proponent of vitamin supplements all his life, found a vitamin specifically formulated for building strong healthy hair. The vitamin I take for healthy hair and nails is Silica Complex by Puritan’s PrideÒ. It contains calcium, magnesium, zinc, boron, betaine and horsetail extract. Consumption of this supplement almost immediately retarded my hair loss and renewed my dull lifeless hair. I will continue taking this supplement throughout my life. Three years after surgery my hair is long, full and lustrous – one would never know I had suffered significant hair loss. In hindsight, I would certainly begin taking this supplement prior to my surgery. In the very least I would begin taking it soon after surgery before the signs of hair loss were apparent.

Here are a variety of home remedies for constipation using flax seeds with other seeds and nuts. They provide the fiber and oils that you need to relieve constipation. Drinking plenty of water with these home remedies will make them more effective.

Mix equal parts of flax seeds, almonds, sunflower seeds and sesame seeds. It is o.k. to mix only three of these seeds, if that is all you have.

Grind them in a coffee grinder to a power. You can eat the power or add it to a nondairy smoothie, a juice, or morning cereal. You can also sprinkle it on your evening salad. Use up to 3 tablespoons twice a day.

This mixture will provide you with extra fiber and a batch of minerals.

Drink plenty of water when using ground up seeds.

Flax seeds are astringent and have laxative action. They are good for mild or moderate symptoms of constipation.

Using an excess of flax seed can contribute to the back up in your colon. Flax seeds also have small traces of prussic acid, which is toxic in large amounts. But it would take a lot of flax seeds to reach the toxic level.

Place between 1 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon of flax seed in 8 oz of warm water and let it sit for one hour. Then just before going to bed, drink the 8 oz. After drinking this glass of flax seed drink another 4-8oz of water.

Flax Seed and Apple Cider Vinegar

Boil 1 ½ cup of distilled water.

Add 1 tablespoon of flax seed and continue boiling the water for 10 minutes – tea will become jelly like.

After this cools down add 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar.

Drink cup of this combination in the morning and until you get good daily bowel movement.

Flax seed contains the essential oil omega 3. If you lack this oil in your diet you will be prone to disease.

Apple cider vinegar (ACV) is another extremely important food you should include in your daily eating. ACV is high in various minerals and in particular potassium

Flax seeds and oat bran

To get your bowels moving again, prepare the following mixture.

Mix 1 tablespoon of flax seed and 1 tablespoon of oat bran into a glass of distilled water. Let it sit overnight. First thing in the morning, take 2 tablespoons. Wait half an hour before eating anything. Do this every morning until your bowels start moving

Flax Seed Oil

Our body does not make omega 3 oil and we need to get it in our diet.

For constipation, mix one tablespoon of flax seed oil with goat or cow yogurt. Add a little honey if you like. Take this mixture right about ½ hour before bedtime.

Do not heat flax seed oil and keep it refrigerated. Heating it may cause some cancer causing compounds.

There you have it, a variety of home remedies for constipation. Use these home remedies every day and you will see the difference in your regularity.