Protein is a necessary nutrient for your body. Protein is essential for the healing of your body after surgery. If you do not eat enough protein, you may experience weakness and possibly some hair loss. Eating enough protein helps in maintaining muscle tissue, and in hair and nail growth. The human body is not able to store protein; therefore, you must eat foods containing protein at each meal.

As a general guideline, you will need to eat at least 50 to 60 grams of protein every day. Ask your Clinical Dietitian to help you in estimating portion sizes and in planning for adequate protein intake.

To help you meet the protein needs of your body, eat the protein foods first. Remember half of each meal should be high protein foods, no matter what consistency you are tolerating. This will help you meet your body’s protein needs.

Eventually, you should aim to include 2 ounces of protein at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Red meats, such as beef, pork, and lamb are usually not tolerated in the first 6 months after surgery. Use the following chart to help you meet your protein needs.

Portion size	Type of food	Grams of protein
8 ounces	skim milk or 1% milk	8
6 ounces	plain low-fat yogurt, or artificially sweetened low-fat yogurt	6
	1 egg or 1/4 cup egg substitute	7
1 ounce	lean turkey, chicken, fish, beef, pork (cooked)	7
1/4 cup	tuna (fresh or packed in water)	7
1/4 cup	ground meat/poultry	7
1/4 cup	nonfat/low-fat cottage cheese	7
1 ounce	cheese (nonfat/low-fat)	7
8 ounces	soy milk (unsweetened)	6
1/4 cup	tofu or prepared textured soy protein	5
1 ounce	soy cheese	5
1/4 cup	mashed kidney beans, pinto beans, lentils	3

Ways to add more protein to your meal

• Add nonfat milk, nonfat evaporated skim milk, or nonfat powder milk to soups, hot cereals, casseroles, sauces, mashed potatoes, no-sugar-added puddings and custards.

• Add chopped beans/legumes with low-fat cheese and milk.

• If you are having difficulty eating your required amount of protein, you can drink Sugar-free Carnation® Instant Breakfast, or make a drink using whey protein powder supplement. Do NOT use Ensure®, Boost®, Slim Fast® or other products advertised as meal replacement drinks, since they tend to have too much sugar.

Basic food group plan

You may not be able to eat the recommended serving portions at first. You will gradually increase the amount of food that you eat until you reach the recommended serving sizes.

Meat/Meat Substitutes

Recommended Servings/Day	Food Examples	Comments
3 to 4	1 ounce cooked lean meat (turkey, chicken, fish, beef, pork)	These foods are high in protein and iron, which is needed to prevent anemia and to increase resistance to infection. These foods also provide energy and B vitamins.
	1 egg or 1/4 cup egg substitute
	1/4 cup low-fat cottage cheese
	1/4 cup tuna (fresh or water packed)

Dairy/Milk

Recommended Servings/Day	Food Examples	Comments
2 to 4	1 cup skim or 1% milk	These foods are high in protein and calcium. Calcium is important for bone strength and to prevent development of bone disease.
	1 cup low-fat Lactaid® or Dairy Ease® milk
	1 cup low-fat buttermilk
	6 ounces plain low-fat yogurt or artificially sweetened low-fat yogurt
	1 cup soy milk (unsweetened)
	1 ounce fat-free or low-fat cheese
	1 cup no sugar added pudding or custard

Fruits and vegetables

Recommended Servings/Day	Food Examples	Comments
3 to 4	1/4 cup canned fruit (juice packed or unsweetened)	These foods provide vitamins A & C and minerals to help keep your body healthy and to help your body resist infections. These foods may also provide fiber.
	1/4 cup cooked vegetable,
	1/4 cup vegetable juice

Grains/Starches

Recommended Servings/Day	Food Examples	Comments
2	1/4 cup refined cooked cereal (unsweetened)	These foods are needed to supply energy, iron, and B vitamins.
	1 melba toast
	2 saltines
	1/4 cup rice, noodles or macaroni (well-cooked)

Reading food labels

You will need to pay close attention to food labels. Some food labels will make claims such as “lite” or “low”. In order for a product to make this claim, there are certain guidelines that have to be met. Use the following guidelines to help you make healthy food choices.

Fat free: has to have less than 0.5 grams (g) of fat per serving.

Cholesterol free: has to meet two (2) requirements. There needs to be less than 2 milligrams (mg) of cholesterol and less than 2 g of saturated fat per serving.

Sodium free: has to have less than 5 mg of sodium per serving.

Sugar free: has to have less than 0.5 g of sugar per serving. Sugar can be listed as fructose, lactose, or sugars.

Low fat: has to meet two (2) requirements. There needs to be no more than 3 g of fat and no more than 1 g of saturated fat per serving.

Low in cholesterol: has to meet two (2) requirements. There needs to be no more than 20 mg of cholesterol and no more than 2 g of saturated fat per serving.

Low sodium: has to have no more than 140 mg of sodium per serving.

Low calorie: has no more than 40 calories per serving.

High fiber: needs 5 g or more of fiber per serving.

Reduced fat, sodium, sugar, or calories: You should compare this label to the label of the same product that is not “reduced.” The product that states it is “reduced” will need to have at least 1/4 less fat, salt, sugar, or calories. It must also contain no more than 1/2 the fat or sodium of the regular product.