EAT: Tips to Up Your Nutrition

Having Trouble Getting Enough Nutrition In?

1. Make every mouthful count!
   • Concentrate on increasing your calories and protein healthfully, not just by increasing calories with low-nutritional value foods such as sweets, fast foods, etc.
2. Eat small, frequent meals. You can improve your calorie & protein intake by eating 4-5 times a day.
   • A snack could be a high-protein shake or 4 whole-grain crackers with peanut butter or a couple pieces of 2% cheese. (See our Healthy Snacks recommendations and our Smoothie Recipes for more ideas.)
3. Eat less fruits and vegetables. While these are very nutritious, they fill you up and are low in calories and protein, taking up room that should be filled with high-calorie, high-protein foods.
4. Eat more meats, whole-grain breads, dairy, eggs, and cereals.
5. Eat more healthy fats; such as nuts, peanut butter, avocadoes, olive oil, etc.
6. Add 2% / Reduced-fat cheeses to more foods.
7. Add dry, instant milk to the following foods and beverages to increase the protein content:
   • Liquid milk
   • Cream soups
   • Mashed and baked potatoes
   • Shakes
   • Use your imagination!
8. Take a multi-vitamin with minerals every day, until instructed to stop before your surgery. Continue to take daily at least 6 weeks after your surgery.