Drinking straws

shannon0731
on 9/18/11 9:32 am - LA

OK, so I started something when I mentioned the whole "soft drinks stretching your pouch" and was told emphatically no it does not! so, is it true about drinking out of straws? the dietitian told me no straws, again, the air can cause gas but it can also the air drawn in can stretch your pouch/ Just wondering if that is true or not? what is your experience?

Thanks!

I'm Ready!

Nessy2976
on 9/18/11 9:54 am - MD

RNY on 08/17/11

I use a straw and have no problems. I can get my fluids in my easier with a straw.

"Patience is bitter, but the fruit can be sweet."

Lisa R.
on 9/18/11 9:59 am - CA

From what I understand, straws do not stretch your pouch, they only add more air and can cause discomfort. I use a straw everyday and it doesn't cause any problems for me.

If you think about using a straw and about our anatomy and you can see how the theory of stretching the pouch is rather impossible.

The question isn’t who is going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me. ~ Ayn Rand

poet_kelly
on 9/18/11 10:11 am - OH

RNY on 11/04/08

No, it's not true. You can suck in as much air as you want and it will not stretch your pouch.

Um, maybe next time you go to see the dietician you can take her a little diagram of the pouch? Clearly labeled to show the opening at the top and at the bottom? Because clearly she has no understanding of anatomy.

Kelly

Please note: I AM NOT A DOCTOR. If you want medical advice, talk to your doctor. Whatever I post, there is probably some surgeon or other health care provider somewhere that disagrees with me. If you want to know what your surgeon thinks, then ask him or her. Check out my blog.

SugarGrl
on 9/18/11 10:39 am

RNY on 03/23/11

I totally agree with Kelly. I had to dump my Nut because of all the off the wall information I was getting. Now I just deal directly with the surgeon's staff who most have been through some type of wls. I was told a straw is fine especially if it helps you get in your fluids. Personally, I've tried to wean myself from them unless I'm at a restaurant. I find that squeeze bottles work just as well as a straw.

WE ARE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER! LET'S GET HEALTHY! STARTING WEIGHT 211.8, SURGERY 23 MAR 11; ONEDERLAND 30 MAR 11 199.2

Cicerogirl, The PhD
Version
on 9/18/11 12:19 pm, edited 9/18/11 12:19 am - OH

RNY on 08/27/07

No, air will not stretch your pouch! Does your dietician not know that the stomach, and therefore the pouch that was made from the stomach, is made of muscle AND has an opening at each end?!? Or maybe (s)he was just given instructions to try to scare people into complying with everything with the threat of "it will stretch your pouch out"...? {Good grief... Sigh...}

SOME people find that they burp more if they drink from straws (and additional air can be uncomfortable very early out when the incisions are very raw). MOST people find that they don't have any problems drinking from a straw (and, in fact, can more easily drink MORE when using a straw).

Lora

14 years out; 190 pounds lost, 165 pound loss maintained

You don't drown by falling in the water. You drown by staying there.

Loveshinesthru
on 9/18/11 3:47 pm - Mesa, AZ

I have heard all these things too from my dietitian who works right with my surgeon. I dont know if they say so much that pop stretch's your pouch but may thin the pouch skin? Bu t I know i have heard that it stretch's it and I wouldve only heard it from them. They also say that drinking straws cause you to swallow too much air.. I am glad that straws are not off limits, I know that any way that I drink I swallow too much air.. Why do they tell us this stuff? My drs office even has a pop bottle with a balloon over the top of it to show what it does to it after time and it does make holes in the balloon. but maybe its not the carb maybe its just the bottle putting a hole in it?

HW: 314 SW: 297 CW:166

Cicerogirl, The PhD
Version
on 9/19/11 8:15 am - OH

RNY on 08/27/07

The problem with the pop bottle thing -- which SHOULD be obvious, but apparently is not to a lot of people -- is that the balloon and bottle are BOTH CLOSED while your pouch is not... you pouch has OPENINGS AT BOTH ENDS, and the soda (like every other kind of liquid) runs right through the pouch and into your intestine. Because it is an open system, there is no way for any pressure to build up within your pouch. It would violate the basic laws of physics.

The pouch has no skin, it is MUSCLE with a tissue lining. Even if what they are showing you is the balloon thinning or developing holes, that would only demonstrate that the chemicals in the soda degrade the latex that the balloon is made of... it shows NOTHING about the effect of soda on your tissue and muscle stomach/pouch!

Lora

14 years out; 190 pounds lost, 165 pound loss maintained

You don't drown by falling in the water. You drown by staying there.

shannon0731
on 9/19/11 4:42 am - LA

RNY on 07/05/11

Thanks everyone. Trust me, while I think my surgeon is top notch, the dietitian leaves a lot to be desired! She also told me to increase my protein so slowly that even my doctor's orders had me consuming more protein then she did!! So first that, then the whole soft drink now this--three strikes you are out in my book!

I'm Ready!

kipz303
on 9/19/11 8:49 am

RNY on 08/13/10

All the nut's here have told me the same thing too but the main one for my office explained it as : they don't want you drinking from straws or drinking carbonated beverages earlier out because the air will take up a little space that could otherwise be used for nutrients. Personally, I try not to swallow air LOL...

RNY - August 13, 2010

LBL - October 29, 2012

a total of 271 lbs lost!!

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