Surgery might be the solution you need but for the health conscious person, the risks of interventions used are always at the top of the mind.

There are the effects of anesthesia to the brain. The disruption of the gut with antibiotics. The toll the liver, stomach, and kidneys take with the pain killers and anti inflammatories. The damage to the tissues from cutting. To top it all off, there’s the ‘food’ given post operation: jello, ice cream, soda, and juice.

The good news is that you can help mitigate some of that damage and keep on your health plan despite the potential for set back.

Pre-Surgery (3-4 Weeks)

The intent is to start prepping for surgery 3-4 weeks before you have it. It doesn’t matter if it’s for your knee, a hernia, or dental surgery. The stronger you are heading into it, the better the recovery.

From personal experience, I had ACL, MCL, and medical meniscus repaired when I was 23. I injured it during the Summer break but held off on surgery until Christmas break. During that semester, I did everything I could to strengthen my knee, clean up my diet, and develop a consistent rest schedule. Think of heading into a surgery like you would heading into a marathon. The more do on the front end, the better you hold up during the procedure, and the better the recovery. It’s going to be hard and painful during the event but that’s why the preparation is so important.

Lifestyle changes were already on my mind but what I was missing were some general supplement recommendations that could have made it go even better. Keep in mind, you will be advised to stop most supplements, especially blood thinning ones, at least a week prior to surgery.

These listed below are some foundational supplements intended to build up what is about to be broken down. There are more you could add but start with these foundational ones.

ProbioMed 100

ProbioMed™ 100 is a high potency, shelf stable, dairy-free probiotics formulation containing 100 billion CFU per serving. It consists of ten of the most highly-researched probiotic strains, with each strain and specific CFU count being fully disclosed. These are robust strains that are capable of surviving the harsh journey to the intestines and are able to attach to the intestinal walls, where they can grow and function effectively to support GI health. The survivability of the strains is further assisted by delayed release technology as well as unique moisture-resistant, desiccant-lined packaging. This novel packaging removes the need for refrigeration, making ProbioMed™ 100 convenient for travelers and anyone on the go.  

OmegAvail (Smoothie Flavors)

OmegAvail™ Smoothies are delicious tasting, high potency fish oil products. They are manufactured using a proprietary emulsification technology that significantly reduces the size of fish oil molecules, resulting in enhanced absorption and easy digestion. These novel products are ideal for children and those who do not prefer to swallow softgels. They have the taste of a fruit smoothie without any oily taste or texture. OmegAvail™ Smoothies are very convenient to use, as they quickly dissolve for easy mixing in water, juice, or blended beverages. They may also be taken alone. 

OmegAvail™ Citrus Sorbet and Key Lime Smoothies provide 910mg of EPA and 590mg DHA in each 1 tablespoon serving. OmegAvail™ Mango Peach Smoothie provides 440mg of EPA and 280mg DHA in each 2 teaspoon serving. 

As with all of our OmegAvail™ products, OmegAvail™ Smoothies carry the TruTG™ seal, which means the fish oils are delivered in the form found in nature and are of superior TG potency. Our fish oils are molecularly distilled and filtered to ensure purity and to maximize the removal of heavy metals, pesticides, solvents, PCBs, and other contaminants. 

GPC (Glycerophosphocholine) Liquid

GPC (glycerophosphocholine) is a supportive nutrient for the brain, kidneys, muscles, testes and other organs, and is a building block for cell membrane phospholipids. Without the presence of this nutrient in the brain, we could not think, sleep or remember. 

GPC Liquid allows for easy absorption and assimilation in the body. It has a naturally delicious, sweet taste so no additional sweeteners were added to this product.

The products above are specific to Designs for Health. You can get them online a number of ways and with some discount codes below.

If you have further questions, maybe on the potential to actually avoid surgery all together, feel free to book a free discovery call.