Diet taboos the day before caesarean section

The core dietary taboos for the day before caesarean section can be summarized as follows: Do not eat high-oil, high-sugar, difficult-to-digest foods, and do not eat gas-producing foods such as sweet potatoes/beans/milk. Strictly fast 8 hours before the operation, and strictly avoid water 4 hours before the operation. Don’t take supplements, folk remedies, and novel foods that you have never eaten before. Don't take it seriously, someone really was greedy and ate a butter hot pot meal. During the operation, the flatulence was so severe that the doctor had trouble finding the uterus. After the operation, he vomited three times and received two injections to promote flatulence. It was a common mistake.

Some people may say, I saw some bloggers shared in private hospitals that fasting is enough for 6 hours before surgery, and they also said that you can drink clear pulse 2 hours before surgery? This is actually a difference between different clinical guidelines. Some European and American guidelines will relax the fasting of clear liquids for pregnant women with no underlying gastric problems and normal gastric motility to 6 hours before surgery. However, domestic clinical practice generally implements the more reliable 8-hour fasting and 4-hour water fasting standard - after all, everyone's gastric emptying speed is far different. During pregnancy, gastric reflux is prone to gastric reflux due to the influence of hormones. If something goes wrong, the reflux material will choke into the trachea and cause aspiration pneumonia. The risk is no joke. I met a pregnant mother before when I was accompanying the obstetrics department. She ate half a sauced duck 7 hours before the operation. After the anesthesia, she had regurgitation and coughed. The operation was temporarily stopped for half an hour for sputum suction. Her voice was hoarse for three days after the operation, and it hurt even to speak.

In fact, it doesn’t mean that you are not allowed to eat well. You will have time to make up for your gas after you have eaten whatever you want. The lighter the burden on your gastrointestinal tract the day before the operation, the better. For things like fatty meats, fried foods, and cream cakes, it takes at least 6 hours for gastric emptying. If you have gastritis or lack of gastric motility, you will not be able to digest it in more than ten hours. After anesthesia, the cardia will relax, and the contents of the stomach will easily move upward. This is a completely unnecessary risk.

As for gas-producing foods, this does not affect the surgery itself, but mainly causes post-surgery problems. The anesthetic used during caesarean section will inhibit intestinal peristalsis. If you ate sweet potatoes, corn, soybeans, drank ice milk or sparkling water the day before, there would be a lot of gas in your stomach that could not be discharged, and it would be swollen like an inflated ball. It would hurt when you pull at the wound, which is more excruciating than the pain of post-operative uterine contractions. My best friend didn't take it seriously when she had a resection last year. She drank two cups of bubble milk tea the night before. After the surgery, she was so bloated that she didn't even dare to turn over. She took two injections of medicine to promote flatulence. It took until the third day to barely pass the gas. She didn't even dare to drink more water during the period. She was so regretful that she slapped the bed.

There are two other things you should not touch blindly: one is novel food that you have never eaten before, such as avocado or raw pickled food, and you suddenly want to try something new. In case of allergies or diarrhea, the surgery will have to be postponed, and the gain will outweigh the loss.； The other thing is the various supplements and folk remedies mentioned by the elders. Don’t drink ginseng soup, red ginseng water to boost gas, or honey water to prevent constipation. Ginseng will affect blood coagulation function. Honey water has high sugar content and is prone to flatulence, which will make the operation more troublesome.

Of course, there is no need to be too rigid. Different hospitals may have different requirements. Some hospitals will ask you to drink electrolyte water to cleanse your intestines the afternoon before, while others only require you to eat light food the day before. Just listen to the words of the doctors and nurses in charge of your bed. When my former colleague performed an autopsy, the bed nurse specifically told her to eat something light like steamed fish and fried vegetables for lunch the day before. She could only drink white porridge in the evening and couldn't eat anything after 10 pm. She strictly followed her instructions and the operation was completed in more than 20 minutes. She passed gas 6 hours after the operation and was able to drink lotus root starch the next day. She suffered a lot less than the pregnant mothers in the same ward.

In fact, there are not that many complicated rules. The core is not to burden the gastrointestinal tract or add risks to the surgery. Just endure the craving for one day and save two or three days of suffering after the surgery. It’s a good deal no matter what, right?