My surgery is in two weeks and I want to get on a diet to maximize bone and tissue healing.
Anything special, vs. the general diets recommended for fractures? The most interesting article I found on that is
https://www.betterbones.com/fractures-and-healing/speed-healing/
Some things that stood out:
While a normally active adult may require 2,500 calories a day, a bedridden, injured patient with multiple fractures may need 6,000 calories per day! If this demand is not met, the healing process is compromised.
(The above is a bit surprising!)
Protein malnutrition or under-nutrition leads to a “rubbery” callus, compared to the rigid calluses of those with adequate or high protein intake. Numerous studies document the acceleration of fracture healing with even a modest 10- to 20-gram increase in protein intake.
Specific amino acids of special importance include lysine, arginine, proline, glycine, cystine, and glutamine. Lysine, for example, is known to enhance calcium absorption, increase the amount of calcium absorbed into the bone matrix, and aid in the regeneration of tissue.
Other resources are https://draxe.com/heal-broken-bones/ and https://www.webmd.com/osteoporosis/osteo-fracture-diet. They recommend the usual suspects: protein, calcium, Vitamin D, zinc, Vitamin C, iron, potassium, magnesium, omega-3 fats. Of course, avoid alcohol, coffee, salt and sugar.
An interesting bit from Dr. Axe,
Vibration therapy can accelerate healing of broken bones. Stand on a vibrational platform for 5-20 minutes 2x daily to improve osteoclast formation.
Other tips?
Quote from: myloginacct on March 02, 2018, 11:19:16 PMYou should make an appointment with a nutritionist.
Perhaps, but outside of individual allergies, I think the topic "Best diet for CLL" is common enough in this forum that we should have good answers for it sourced from nutritionists and personal experience. FWIW I've asked Paley & team - the advice was along the lines of "Just eat a healthy diet with http://bonehealthnow.com/ supplementation and keep in mind that most patients lose weight because of extra training and post-op discomfort."
Quote from: Purushrottam on March 03, 2018, 12:10:51 AMCorrect. You need about 2000 calories extra per bone break (So for LL, it would be 4000 extra calories.. 8000 for quadrilateral). You need to have lots of Protein, Calcium, and Vitamin D.
Holy moly, 8000 calories. Makes sense though. Puru, curious what the source of this information is. Thanks!
Quote from: Purushrottam on March 03, 2018, 12:19:47 AMI didn't ask Paley for specific numbers (he just said lots of calories). However there was another Quadrilateral patient there. He said that Paley/Robbins said the number was about 2k calories per break, so 8k calories for him.
Interesting. So two Paley/Robbins patients (Puru and myself; I've also asked specifically) weren't told any specifics about calories, but another patient was told 2000 calories per bone break.
Goes to show that you need to fend for yourself even with the best doctors.
Remember - you are the one single person on Earth most invested in your CLL success. Don't just "let the doctors do their job". While you may be "in safe hands", if you're serious about what you're doing, take matters into your own hands.
Quote from: Purushrottam on March 03, 2018, 12:34:47 AMI think you are misinterpreting. I didn't ask for specific calories.
I emailed them about diet and have the replies in writing. There was nothing specific about calories in the replies.
Oh well, now I know, thanks to this forum and my research online (which is my point - do your own research even when doctors give you an answer).
Quote from: Purushrottam on March 03, 2018, 12:34:47 AMNow that I think about it, they may have told me 2k calories per break as well. I just don't remember too well as it was in September.
How well did you manage to eat that much?
Quote from: myloginacct on March 11, 2018, 02:58:54 AMKnowing this about the calories, though, I wonder how many LLs went worse than expected due to sub-optimal calorie intake? Many LLers depended totally on the food available to them at where they were staying.
With my gf staying with me during the recovery, I had the option of eating 6,000 or even 8,000 calories a day, but that turned out to be just impossible. Even after getting off painkillers (except for one per day before PT), my appetite has plummeted. I'm lucky if I score 2,000 calories a day, and that includes a protein shake and Gatorade powder added to water for extra carbs. My body is just reluctant to eat, and some food smells have become obnoxious. Anything remotely fatty (like sausages, which I'd routinely eat 4 of for lunch) is borderline disgusting. I can still eat fruit, ice cream and candy as I used to.
Anyway, even if you manage to eat 6,000 calories per day, I highly doubt much of that will go into maintaining muscle mass. Without consistent usage, muscle atrophies very fast. It's been 3 weeks since my femurs surgery and I've lost so much of my glutes that I no longer have the "nice butt" that my gf liked, and sitting has become painful because my sit bones dig almost straight into the skin.
Quote from: myloginacct on April 27, 2018, 02:26:03 PMSorry to hear all that.
Do you think things would be different if you weren't doing quadrilaterals?
Not really. I still would'be been on the same medication, and I still would've been unable to walk, so biochemically and mentally probably in the same situation.
I can't tell what had caused the drop in appetite, but good news - a few days ago, 4-5 weeks after the femurs surgery, my normal appetite came back. No obvious connection with anything. I stopped lengthening tibias afterwards, on Fri May 11. No changes in medication prior to the appetite coming back, though starting May 11, I dropped Neurontin from 900+600+900mg / day to 3x600mg/day. It's as if the return of the appetite anticipated me stopping tibias. So no idea what caused it.
Unfortunately my gf is back in California, so my dietary options are more limited :-/
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