Dietary intake and quality of life after laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy

Jennifer Bowser, MSc, PDt¹, N Theresa Glanville, PhD, PDt², James Ellsmere, MD¹. ¹QEII Health Sciences Centre, ²Mount Saint Vincent University

Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) bariatric surgery decreases total volume of food consumed by morbidity obese patients. The objective of this research was to determine the adequacy of nutritional intake and the impact of weight loss on quality of life of patients >1 year after LSG.

All patients (n=72) who had surgery between December 2008 and March 2010 were asked to complete a four day food records and the Bariatric Quality of Life questionnaire (BQL).

For the 19 patients who participated (26% response rate), excess weight loss was 53.9 + 20.3%. Energy and protein intakes were 1256 + 384.5 kilocalories and 77.3 + 17.5 g per day respectively. Patients <50 years lost more weight, had higher BQL scores, and consumed less energy than those >50 years. Based on dietary intake alone, all patients were at risk of inadequate intake of at least one micronutrient but there was no consistent biochemical evidence of deficiency. Ninety-five percent of patients reported taking a multi-vitamin/mineral supplement.

Patients undergoing LSG would benefit from dietary counselling on ways to maximize nutrient intake from food. Older patients would benefit from guidance on ways to increase energy expenditure through resistance and non-weight-bearing exercise.