“What should I eat after anesthesia?”
I am an 18 year old female. I want to know what should I eat after anesthesia?
8 Answers
AnesthesiologistAnesthesiologist
You can eat anything that your stomach can tolerate. As long as you are wide awake and can swallow properly.
Start with clear liquids first and slowly advance to solids. The reason is that patients may have nausea and vomiting after anesthesia.
Start with water then other liquids and advance to solids as you tolerate.
That all depends on what surgery you have and if your surgeon has any specific instructions about post-op diet. In general, however, we usually recommend that the first post-op meal be something light and easy to digest. If the light meal is well-tolerated, then you can get back to your regular diet at your discretion. Most people don’t recover their appetites for a few hours after having general anesthesia anyway. A lot of that is dependent on what operation they had.
Jay R. Shayevitz, MD MS
Jay R. Shayevitz, MD MS
Anything
If you are talking immediately after anesthesia, nothing. You need to give things a little time to make sure you don't have any issues, that might make aspirate your food into you lungs. If you are talking a few hours later, then whatever you feel you can tolerate. Start simple and slow like toast, crackers, water or ginger-ale and see how it goes. If everything goes smoothly you can eat more robust foods.
It really depends on what type of surgery you have. Follow the instructions given to you by you doctor. If you take pain pills taking them with a little food like crackers, rice or bread is a good idea
As a teenager, after anesthesia, I would recommend to start out with clear liquids that you should get in the post recovery room. Then, once you get home, no matter how hungry you are, you should start out with a "breakfast" meal - eggs, waffles, cereal (easier on the stomach). If no issues with the "breakfast meal," then in an hour or two, you can eat whatever you want.
Jackie
Jackie
