Welcome Fall with Delicious Superfoods

After getting a Lap Band, Macon becomes a challenging place to follow a nutritious diet and resist former treats. This is especially true as the fall season settles in. Cinnamon, pumpkin and all sorts of holiday favorites are beginning to line the aisles at grocery stores, and that can be difficult on someone adjusting to a new diet after Lap Band surgery.

As the cool fall nights replace the heat of summer, you don’t need to curl up with calorie laden sweets to embrace the autumn spirit. The fall harvest brings out plenty of superfoods that are nutritious and sweet so you can eat healthily and stick to your post-Lap Band diet.

Fresh, in-season produce often provides the most nutritional source of sustenance, giving your bariatric diet plenty of important minerals and delicious flavors. Though you should always consult your weight loss surgeon before making changes to your diet plan, the following “superfoods” may be good choices for your weight loss diet this fall.

• Figs are tree-growing members of the mulberry family are packed full of dietary fiber, which can be a big help with digestive health after Lap Band surgery. Figs are also a good source of potassium, which plays a role in controlling blood pressure. These tender little fruits are in season at the beginning of fall and have a uniquely sweet taste. They also only contain only 37 calories per 8 oz. serving.
• Beets get their unique purple color from the pigment phytonutrient betacyanin, an antioxidant with many disease-fighting properties. Beets are part of the chenopod family, which also contains spinach, quinoa and chard and has shown an increasing number of benefits not provided by other foods. This is partly because of phytonutrient content, but also because of an incredibly varied nutritional profile that includes folate, manganese, fiber, potassium, vitamin c, magnesium, iron, phosphorus and copper. Though beets and other root vegetables are typically available year round, you’ll find the best-tasting beets between June and October. One cup of raw beets contains 58 calories.
• Blueberries have the highest antioxidant capacity of any fruit, vegetable or spice, making it one of the best foods for optimizing your health and fighting off the cellular damage caused by free radicals. One of the few fruits native to North America, blueberries are also one of the most popular berries in the US and have been enjoyed in our country for hundreds of years. In addition to antioxidants, they contain high levels of vitamin K, manganese, vitamin C and fiber. You can typically find fresh blueberries in stores from May to October. One cup of blueberries contains about 84 calories.

Improving your health after weight loss surgery is about a lot more than just dropping pounds. Limited space means you need to make careful food choices so you get all of the nutrients you need. Talk to your weight loss surgeon for more dietary tips after Lap Band surgery.