 [ Symptoms ] what medications and foods should i avoid before surgery [ Disease ] we know aspirin interferes with blood clotting so people go off aspirin for some period of time but often patients do not know that some of the other medications they are taking without a prescription again or even with prescription may interfere so we have a list of over 200 medications over the counter and prescription that are known to contain elements that would interfere with blood clotting and we give it to the patient well in advance of the surgery and say look through this list and if you are taking any of these please stop or let is talk about and we ask very specifically on our questionnaires what medicines are you taking both prescription medications and non prescription medications we are trying to make sure the patient does not forget or does not disregard the importance of these medications that could interfere by the way not only with the bleeding but even with the anesthesia there are certain drugs that the anesthesiologist would be very unhappy if he did not know the patient were taking but it is not just supplements and prescriptions what about foods well garlic and ginger for example when consumed in large amounts can cause some change in clotting yeah so we tell people about it we tell people those things that would get them into trouble by the way foods can also help us though because papaya and pineapple rich in an enzyme called papase which is the same thing that is in meat tenderizer after surgery very good because they help digest the red cells that cause bruising when you see a bruise it is because the red cells in the blood have seeped into the tissues and it helps digest them so you know foods can work for us and they can also work against us but we need to know this is the most important thing and this is why it is so important to have a very complete evaluation by the cosmetic surgeon a very complete evaluation by your personal doctor so that none of these things would slip through the cracks we do not want anything slipping through the cracks an anesthesiologist is worst nightmare is that the patient took a drug that the anesthesiologist did not know about and that drug was in the patient is system and could interfere sometimes significantly with a safe anesthetic