Eating Right May Help with Healing after Cosmetic Surgery

Researchers from Brazil asked 60 women (age 25-60) undergoing cosmetic abdominal surgery to eat six servings each of fruits and vegetables a day during the first month after surgery to see if increasing fruit and vegetable consumption after cosmetic surgery could help the healing process by reducing C-reactive protein, a marker of inflammation and infection.

According to the researchers, “fruits and vegetables are attractive tools for the combat of inflammation because of their rich endowment of anti-inflammatory vitamins.”

Patients started the diet three days after surgery and continued it for four weeks afterward; interviews were held the second and third week to rule out changes in dietary habits and to reinforce compliance with the diet.

The supplemented participants consumed more fruits (5.2 vs. 3.9 servings, approximately) and vegetables (5.9 vs. 3.4 servings) than the control group.

Results showed that C-reactive protein diminished in both groups, but a “more expressive decrease could be demonstrated for the high fruit and vegetable participants.”

The authors wrote that increasing servings of fruits and vegetables after surgery can be a feasible strategy to reduce C-reactive protein in adults. They also recommended future studies that focus on additional inflammatory markers, different disease contexts and longer periods of supplementation and follow-up.

The full study is available through Pubmed.