Snow The core of nutrition and diet after atrial fibrillation surgery is not about "big supplements, special supplements" as many people think. Instead, "stability" should be the first principle, and the overall adjustment should focus on reducing the burden on the heart, maintaining electrolyte stability, and avoiding inducing arrhythmias. There is no need to make too complicated folk recipes.
Last year, my mother underwent minimally invasive radiofrequency ablation for atrial fibrillation. I stayed with her throughout the whole process in the hospital. As soon as she was pushed back to the ward, my aunt was already waiting at the door with pigeon soup that had been simmered all morning. She turned around and was stopped by a nurse. She said that within 6 hours after local anesthesia, you could only drink a small amount of warm and cold water. After that, you should eat warm and soft foods that are easy to digest, such as porridge and steamed eggs, and put aside the rich soup. There was an old man in the same ward who was under general anesthesia and felt nauseous after waking up. His child insisted on feeding the ginseng soup prepared in advance to replenish his body. In the end, he vomited all over and suffered. There are actually different opinions on whether to take supplements after surgery. Western medicine generally recommends that when the gastrointestinal function has not fully recovered 1-3 days after surgery, give priority to warm and soft foods with low oil and salt. Eat small and frequent meals and do not overeat. After all, eating too much will cause the diaphragm to rise and squeeze the heart. It is like adding extra weight to the resting engine, which can easily cause palpitation and discomfort. ； Some Chinese medicine practitioners also believe that you can add a small amount of warm astragalus and dangshen to replenish qi 3 days after surgery. As long as it does not cause internal heat or increase the burden on digestion, it does not need to be completely eliminated.
Dietary adjustment after discharge from the hospital is even more critical. The easiest pitfall is electrolyte imbalance, especially low blood potassium, which is a high-risk factor for the recurrence of atrial fibrillation. When my mother was discharged from the hospital, the doctor repeatedly told her not to just eat white porridge with pickles every day, but to make sure she has about half a catty of dark green leafy vegetables every day, paired with oranges, mushrooms, kiwis and the like with high potassium content. If she is taking diuretics, her blood potassium should be checked regularly and any deficiency should be replenished in time. If patients need to take warfarin for anticoagulation after surgery, don’t panic. It doesn’t mean that you can’t eat dark green vegetables at all. As long as the amount you eat every day is almost stable, don’t eat a pound of spinach today and not touch a bite tomorrow, which will cause big fluctuations in the efficacy of the medicine. My distant relatives have stepped on this pitfall before. I heard others say that you can’t eat green leafy vegetables while taking warfarin. I didn’t eat them for three months. Finally, low blood potassium caused premature contractions and I was hospitalized again. It was not worth it.
Try to avoid stimulating food as much as possible. Strong coffee, spirits, particularly spicy hot pot, and functional drinks containing large amounts of caffeine and taurine can easily stimulate the heartbeat and put a burden on the heart. My mother was so greedy when she was discharged from the hospital for half a month that she secretly drank half a cup of strong tea made by my father. That afternoon, she became so flustered that she couldn't sit still. She went to check the electrocardiogram and found out that she had an accidental premature beat. Fortunately, it was nothing serious. From then on, she didn't dare to touch it again. Daily oil and salt should also be controlled well. Do not exceed 5g of salt and 25g of oil per day, especially for patients with high blood pressure and hyperlipidemia. If these two indicators are not well controlled, the burden on blood vessels and heart will not be relieved, and recurrence is easy even after surgery.
To be honest, in fact, there are not so many rules about the diet after atrial fibrillation surgery. It just needs to be light and balanced, and don’t take supplements randomly. It will be more effective than taking any expensive supplements.
