Diet taboos after hemorrhoid surgery

The first is a diet that can induce constipation and cause dry and hard stools; the second is a diet that stimulates the dilation of perianal blood vessels and aggravates swelling, pain and bleeding; the third is a diet that easily produces a large amount of gas, causes abdominal distension and pulls wounds. Most of the other so-called "don't touch hairy things" and "don't eat food with residue" have no clear clinical basis and do not need to be followed blindly.

Last month, I accompanied a friend to have a mixed hemorrhoid peeling and internal ligation operation. There was a young man in his early 20s in the same ward. On the third day after the operation, he felt that he was recovering well, so he secretly ran out to eat a bowl of butter noodles and added two tablespoons of spicy oil. That night, he broke out in a cold sweat from the pain, and his underwear was covered with blood. In the middle of the night, he called the doctor to change the dressing, but he was scolded. This is a typical red line for stepping on the second type of taboo: the capsaicin in peppers will not be completely digested by the human body. When it is excreted, it will directly stimulate the fresh wounds around the anus. It will also cause the perianal venous plexus to expand and become congested. The tender wounds that are still healing will suddenly swell up. It is strange that it does not hurt.

When it comes to spicy stimulation, many people include onions, ginger, garlic, pepper, and pepper, and even coriander is classified as "hairy food" and is not allowed to be touched. In fact, clinical opinions have always been different: Traditional Chinese medicine does recommend avoiding spicy food after surgery to avoid inducing wound swelling and pain. However, the general consensus of modern anorectal medicine is that as long as the spicy seasoning is cooked, the irritation has been mostly destroyed. As long as you do not eat a large piece of raw ginger or garlic directly, it is perfectly fine to add a little less to enhance the flavor. On the contrary, many people have poor appetite after surgery and eat bland porridge until they vomit. Adding some seasoning can help them eat more, and supplementing nutrition can help them recover faster. My friend wanted to eat beef brisket stewed with tomatoes on the third day after the operation, so she asked her aunt to add two slices of ginger to remove the fishy smell. After eating, she had no problem and her bowel movements were normal. She was discharged from the hospital in less than a week.

What’s even more deceptive than spicy food is constipation, which my friend has stepped into himself. In the first two days after the operation, she was afraid of the pain of having a bowel movement and did not dare to eat staple food. She only drank white porridge and some boiled vegetables. However, when she wanted to have a bowel movement on the fourth day, her stool was as dry as a sheep feces egg and was stuck in the anus for a long time and could not be pulled out. The pain made her burst into tears. In the end, she used Kaiselu to solve the problem. The wound even bled a little. The doctor said that she was purely asking for it. Fine carbohydrates such as white porridge have almost no dietary fiber. No matter how much you eat, they will not form loose stools. Instead, they will make the stool stay in the intestines for a longer time. The moisture will be absorbed and the stool will become hard. If the dry and hard stool rubs against a fresh wound, the feeling will be no better than during surgery. Therefore, you should try to eat as little as possible in the first week after surgery, such as those particularly dry roasted seeds and nuts, desserts that are heavy in oil and sugar, and highly processed bread and biscuits. You should also drink more warm water after eating, otherwise you will easily become constipated.

Many elderly people will say that they cannot eat dragon fruit with seeds, kiwi fruit, or vegetables with residues such as celery after surgery. They are afraid that food residues will hang on the wound and cause infection. This is actually unnecessary. I specifically asked the bed doctor that the seeds and fiber of these foods are very soft and will be excreted with the stool after digestion. They will not get stuck in the wound at all. On the contrary, the dietary fiber is enough, the stool will be formed and soft, and it can reduce the friction on the wound, which is a hundred times friendlier than hard stool. What you really need to pay attention to is the kind of particularly hard and scummy food, such as uncooked bamboo shoots and old celery sticks. Just chew a few more bites when eating, and you don’t have to completely avoid them.

In addition to being afraid of spicy food and dry stools, there is another pitfall that many people are embarrassed to mention, which is gas-producing foods. The wound after surgery is already painful. If you eat too much beans, carbonated drinks, raw onions, raw broccoli and other gas-producing things, your belly will be bulging. When you fart, you have to hold it in with your fists, for fear that the wound will burst open, and the taste will be so sour. However, this also depends on personal habits. If you drink soy milk every day and don't feel bloated, it's absolutely fine to drink one cup after surgery. You don't have to avoid touching it at all for fear of producing gas. On the contrary, the wound will grow slower due to insufficient protein.

I was chatting with a friend who is a nurse in the anorectal department. She said that the most annoying thing is that family members give patients white porridge every day, saying "you need to be light after surgery." Being light does not mean just eating vegetarian food and drinking porridge. You can eat stewed chicken, steamed eggs, and boiled lean beef, as long as it is not spicy or oily. Add more protein, and the wound will grow faster. There was an uncle whose wound didn't heal half a month after the surgery. He drank porridge and pickled radish every day. Later, he was forced to eat two steamed eggs and drink a bowl of pork rib soup every day. The wound healed in less than a week.

In fact, to put it bluntly, there really aren’t that many messy rules for post-operative diet. The core thing is just not to let yourself suffer. If you don’t feel uncomfortable after eating something and your bowel movements are normal, then even if others say it’s a “fat thing”, it’s okay for you to eat it. ； If you are really craving for something spicy and you don’t feel any pain or bleeding after eating it, then you don’t need to feel any psychological burden. After all, a good mood is also the key to recovery. Oh, by the way, don’t forget to drink plenty of warm water. This is more important than any other taboo.