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 Riskier weight loss surgery gets resultsGastric bypass surgery is more effective at helping severely obese patients lose weight and control diabetes than Lap-Band surgery, according to a new study. "If you have severe obesity and diabetes the better procedure is gastric bypass," says the study's leader author, Dr. Guilherme Campos, a surgeon at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. "The results are not as good with the band." Campos and his colleagues examined the two weight-loss surgeries in a group of 200 obese patients. Half underwent Lap-Band surgery and half had riskier, more complicated gastric bypass surgery. The gastric bypass patients lost 64% of their excess weight on average in one year, as compared with the Lap-Band patients, who lost 36% of their excess weight on average in the same period. Here's another way to look at it: Let's say a patient weighs 360 pounds and his ideal body weight is 160 pounds. That means he has 200 pounds of excess weight. With gastric bypass surgery, Campos says, the patient could expect to lose 128 pounds in one year. With Lap-Band surgery, he could expect to lose only 72 pounds in a year. Additionally, the researchers found the weight loss associated with gastric bypass surgery allowed more patients to safely discontinue the use of insulin to manage diabetes after one year. Campos’ study is published in Monday's issue of the medical journal Archives of Surgery. Weight loss surgeries restrict the amount of food a person can eat. During Lap-Band surgery an adjustable band is implanted around the upper portion of the stomach, then tightened to limit the intake of food. Gastric bypass surgery is more complicated. The stomach is "stapled" shut, closing off a portion while food is redirected or "bypassed" to the intestines. "Any time you're making holes in the bowl and connecting two pieces of bowel together you run the risks of leaks and bleeding," says Dr. Harry Sax, a surgeon at Warren Alpert School of Medicine at Brown University. "The risks are much lower than they were 10 or 15 years ago, but they are still higher than the bands." Since Lap-Bands were approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2001 there has been a steep increase in their use. A gastric band can be removed if necessary, whereas reversing gastric bypass is more difficult. The bands, however, are not problem-free. They can slip or erode into the stomach over time. The complications associated with gastric bypass surgery tend to occur early after surgery, and Sax says the procedure may be a more durable operation in the long term. If you're thinking about weight loss surgery you can find a map of accredited surgery centers in your area by visiting the American College of Surgeons.
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The spelling errors is in this piece are atrocious!
I only saw one spelling error. If you want to complain about spelling errors, fix your own; you don't need the word "is" in your sentence.
I didn't see any spelling errors so I ran the article through a spell checker. The only "error" it found was 'Guilherme Campos' because it is a proper name. What do you think are the errors?
Remove the beam from your eye before you try to remove the splinter in the other guys eye.
Holes in the bowl are soooo annoying.
I am a RN and have seen many complications with people who have had the gastric bypass done several years after their surgery. Mostly bowel obstructions and fistulas. From my experience, all weight loss surgery is risky but the lap band has far fewer complications overall. It may take longer to loose the weight with the lap band but it is much safer overall.
I am a Bariatric Nurse and Program Coordinator, and in working with both of these procedures on a daily basis, we see many more complications from Lapband than with Gastric Bypass. I've been doing this for almost 10 years and the success rate is much greater with bypass as opposed to band. Many of the complications are a direct result of patient non-compliance as well. Both surgeries have pros and cons, but having worked in the field for quite a while, I do know that we hear many more complaints from our band patients than bypass patients.
The link said "risker" vs. "riskier". The article spelled "bowl" vs. "bowel". For your information, "is" was not misspelled. It just shouldn't be there.
lol. I love reading the comments! Tired of CNN visit stupidDOPE.com!
Why is it all I ever see in these articles is 1 or 2 year stats? Never anything longer term then that. And surely never anything about how often 4-5 years down the road, after your metabolism 'honeymoon' is over, most start gaining again due to the bodies starvation responses long term. Nor anything about the attendant starvation caused anemia, hair loss, and all the other assorted signs of severe malnutrition. Starving your body of all it's needed nutrition is not the answer long term or all the other deprivation style diets would work. Nutrition people, nutrition.....
Probably because such starvation issues don't occur. These surgeries only make it so over eaters can eat just the appropriate amount of food, not so they starve their bodies. You'll never hear of someone having gastric bypass and losing ALL their excess weight without serious exercise.
I had a gastric bypass 6 months ago, and if you follow what you're supposed to do, you have no problem. After 3 months, there's a little hair loss that grow back after about, again, 3 months. If you follow the diet restrictions you have no problem getting all the nutrition you need. You're also taking vitamins. There's no starvation. We don't feel like eating and our bodies begin to deal with not eating as much. We lose a lot at the start, hit a plateau, then resume until we're satisfied. Sure some gain, but on the bypass very few. There are meeting we have to attend every month to discuss these things. And NOT everyone is there because they can't stop shoveling food in, which is a misconception.
Jo – come back in a few years. I have two friends who have had gastric bypasses – one five years ago, the other ten. They both complain of feeling hungry all the time. One has regained 40 pounds. The other has regained 75.
The only way to lose weight is to burn more calories than you take in (unless you surgically remove the fat as with liposuction, etc). As such, every time you lose weight you are starving your body. One year is a WORTHLESS study and extremely irresponsible. What should be the focus is the LONGTERM results. It is safer to lose weight more slowly and keep it off longterm. Also, the faster you lose the weight the more skin you'll have to have surgically removed because it will hang off of you like a wet bag.
I'm tired of only hearing from the people who had a good experience, as though this is just a wonderful surgery that makes everything all better. I am starting to think that these news articles/segments on tv are produced by the surgeons. Why don't they interview someone like me? I'd give them an earful.
Sorry, Iva wrong. I know three people who had gastric bypass. None of them exersized, they all lost the weight. One was able to get off her insulin. In the end the two women put most or all of their weight back on over time. One has diabetes again and heart issues stemmed from not enough nurishment. The guy is still thin, however, he suffers from depression. Dr. told his wife the depression is common for people who had this surgery because most of them turned to food for stress release and no longer can so they wind up depressed. In all the best way to lose is diet and exercize.
I had gastric bypass surgery 10 years ago... so did my wife – 9 yrs, my mom – 12+ yrs, my step-dad 8+ yrs, my mother-in-law 10+ yrs and a close friend 9+ yrs. It isn't a perfect surgery, but I would do it again. It's easy to eat really unhealthy and gain the weight back, my mom, step-dad, and mother-in-law all have gained at least 1/2 of the weight they lost back, where as my wife and I have both kept nearly all of the weight off. There are and continue to be diet restrictions and complications that can and do occur, however those are the risks we took and I can say with certainty that this surgery's benefits have outweighed the costs for my family.
I had gastric bypass 5 1/2 years ago and have maintained a 180 pound weight loss ever since. I do watch what I eat, but don't routinely exercise (never have). My weight fluctuates approximately five pounds. Fortunately, I was not on any type of medication. Actually my blood pressure, sugar levels, and such were perfect. I just happened to be overweight and unable to lose it no matter what I did. I was very strict and followed my doctor's orders to the letter which is why I've had such great success. I also had no complications at any time. I know what I can eat and when to stop.
The safest and lowest risk method of loosing weight is just to stop eating so much especially all the sugars and carbs that seem to in all the processed food we eat every day.
Correct, but just as some alcoholics cannot stop drinking, and wind up dead as a result, some obese people can't stop eating, and die an early death. Surgery is a last resort. You could achieve the same weight loss by locking someone in a jail cell and feeding them the same amount of food, but once they got out, they'd put the weight back on.
Diets fail 95% of the time long term. If your dr wrote you a prescription and told you that it had a 95% chance of working would ya take it? Sometime surgical option offer the best and most reliable method for people to loose weight and keep it off.
Sorry typing to fast.... 95% chance of not working
@Debbie - You don't lose weight and keep it off by "dieting." You lose weight and keep it off by changing your diet and exercise habits. "Diets" are meant to be temporary fixes... something you do to squeeze into your wedding dress or to lose 10 lbs for your high school reunion. To permanently lose weight, there is no quick fix. No healthy one, anyway.
Debbie:
Diets never fail, people do. If you go off of a diet, the diet has not failed you. You failed yourself.
Obviously you know little about being overweight and weight loss. They typical person who is 50-75 pounds overweight cannot successfully keep it off without some sort of intervention. The body takes control of its self and you have little control. I did EVERYTHING
What happened to good, old fashion diet and exercise? What happened to self-control?
Self what???? You don't expect us Americans to be reaponsible for something ourselves do you? There is always an answer for how it can be done without me actually doing it. The part I don't get about either of these methods is that all either of them really do is force you to reduce your intake. If you don't you can actually cause internal damage. So, if you REALLY want to lose weight, set your goal, put your self control in action, and lose the weight.. And before anyone says easy for me to say..... I AM overweight, I am following my own advice, and after less than 2 weeks I already don't miss most of the things I have cut out, I look at snacks differently now (I choose a veggie over cookie) and have begun to lose. You just have to find your reason to lose.
and please nobody tell "holdback" I spelled responsible wrong.
I did old fashion exercise and dieting....several times. Had Lapband surgery 3.5 years ago, lost 160 pounds, am in a normal weight range on the BMI scale, blood work is great, no knee surgery required anymore just a brace when I exercise, no more diabetes or high blood pressure. As for taking personal responsibility...I did. I paid for my surgery. Even though I saved my medical insurer a whole lot of money, bariatric surgery was excluded. But my blood pressure meds weren't or insulin, or the pending knee surgery.
What doctors usually fail to tell patients about these extreme procedures is that when weight is lost, they don't just lose fat. They also lose muscle mass, and the end result may be a normal-weight person who has the same body fat percentage of an obese person... meaning that for all intents and purposes, you're still obese.
Gastric bypass and the lap band procedures aren't magic bullets. They're short cuts to a half-done job. The REAL road to recovery still includes better diet and regular exercise, regardless of whether or not you have these dangerous and expensive procedures... so why not just start with diet and regular exercise to begin with and save yourself the money and risk? And if your doctor is telling you that surgery is the "only way" someone of your size can hope to lose all the weight you need to lose, ask yourself this... will your doc make more money performing surgery on you, or handing you a pamphlet on portion control?
Funny my job feels pretty done. Do the math. Diet and exercise alone only work 95% of the time. Not good stats. I'm not saying you don't incorporate them into your program after surgery but alone the odds are against you. As for your impression that after surgery and loosing weight people are still morbidly obese on the "inside" that is not true. I am in a normal BMI range and my dr says I'm more fit now than 10 years ago.
@Debbie - BMI and body composition are not the same thing. You can have a normal BMI but still be "overweight" or even "obese" because you have a high ratio of body fat. This is common in gastric bypass post-op patients... and it's a dirty little secret that gastric bypass surgeons often fail to disclose.
nope, diet and exercise NEVER fail. You just arent doing it.
I did workout religiously, ate 1500 calories a day and watched what I did eat. Know what that resulted in? A 20 pound weight loss in 7 months. My body wasn't going to lose the weight on its own. Actually many of us have done all of the things you keep telling us, but they JUST DON'T WORK. Our bodies have taken control and we have to sometimes take drastic measures to get it back. So, before you accuse of us be just fat and lazy you would be surprised at how active many of us actually are.
I am the model for the photo in this story.
I'm not even reading this article. I clicked on it to see if the typo on the front page had made it to the article. Front page: Risker surgery nets more weight lost.
Even my spell check caught that. All DAY it has been like that. CNN...what the.......???? Always with the typos. Hire someone to check these things. Please. Honestly, I think the sentence construction is kind of questionable, too. Valid content, but why is the front page always so messed up? It is kind of distracting.
Oh...PS...How about before some surgery some people try exercise three times a week and a reexamination of their eating habits? Surgery is dangerous. As someone who can definitely stand to lose some pounds, I think I ought to demonstrate I can make a REAL change in my life rather than just running for the easiest way out. That piece of chocolate doesn't chase me down, tackle me and force itself down my throat you know!
This article isn't about Lady Gaga or Kim Kardashian so CNN assumes no one will read it.
Well, the rant before your idiot statement pretty much says it all.
yeah, surgery isn't the "easy way out", hate to tell you. I don't know what you think surgery entails, or the lifelong side affects, but you are seriously misinformed
Lol, well then WHY didnt you pick the EASIER way out?!?!?!?!?!
there was no easy way out for me. I was obese since childhood and had spent my entire life exercising and dieting my way to nothing. Also I was young and suicidally depressed. I felt like it was do or die time. Doesn't mean I would make the same decision today. I am just saying though, that it's no cake walk. People act like it's as easy as getting a nose job. Not so.
I think CNN features an article on Lady Gaga practically every day.
I had the gastric bypass. I work out 5 days/week. I lost 66% of my excess body weight in 12 months. I will have plastic surgery to remove excess skin and fat at the end of May, after I've dropped another 25 pounds. That would be the equivalent of 75% of my excess weight at that stage, pre-plastics. Of the remaining 25% of excess weight, doctors expect about 15-20% of the remaining 25% to be lost with the skin surgeries.
Just a note: it can be a dangerous surgery. Get a great surgeon (check his/her statistics), follow the DIRECTIONS, and exercise. Most importantly, see a therapist for at least a year pre-op to get a handle on your eating issues. I did, and still do, see a therapist and I have no food-related urges at all. Yes, this is still the honeymoon period, but 18-24 months of good habits will become lifetime habits.
no not so easy as that...wait and see how you feel after a decade, like me. Things change. There is no way you can predict your lifestyle or habits a decade from now
This is not a magic bullet, however, it does help those with diabetes, hypertension and other medical problems which make exercise practically impossible. I know that many people think that just dieting and exercise are all we need, but there are many reasons why patients cannot exercise without increasing injuries or making existing medical conditions worse. If you want to have this type of operation, prepare for weekly visits to a psychiatrist, nutritionist or dietician. Also: you have to do this for the rest of your life. You don't just have the operation and dance away from the hospital. It's an ongoing process that will need to be monitored for the rest of your life. Behavior modification is a large part of it as well as self-discovery, making better food and activity choices, and getting away from "enablers" who don't believe that they're doing anything wrong.
Rest assured: if you want to have a gastric bypass, you will be making a lifetime committment. If you can't do that; don't even start.
After reading all of these comments I have to wonder about the intelligence of our society as a whole. Why is it so easy to tie a physical thing around your stomach in order to make it impossible to eat, but at the same time not believe food companies are making food addictive? I mean seriously, all you overweight people. You'll get a 15,000 dollar surgery, but not agree food should be more regulated..... Just sounds insane to me.
what do you mean? I absolutely agree that food companies should be regulated, in fact I do everything in my power to feed my kids whole foods, minimal processed food, organic milk and produce etc. Why do you make the assumption that fat people are happy with how things are?
I had lap band surgery in March of 2010. I hate it and tell anyone considering it not to get it. It is painful. I wish I had gotten the gastric sleeve surgery like my neighbor. She's lost 100 lbs & looks great. I've lost 15. SUCKS
I also had lap band and it did indeed suck. I had it removed. Absolutely horrible way to live!
Actually the best surgery is the duodenal switch but it gets very little press.
Hi Drinker, I thought about the duodenal switch, but I think you have constant bad poops. All I know is I spent $14000 (ins. didn't cover) on a product that I thought would be great & I hate it SOOO much! I have like 6 cc in it right now & I'm having all of the fill taken out Thursday. Did you know the fills were going to be so painful & that you'd have to have so many?
I have the ds now, if you eat how you are supposed to (stay away from sugar) there are no bathroom issues. With lap band I did know that it could take quite a few fills but I didn't know how painful it would be and I was never able to get to my sweet spot. My band actually slipped from vomiting so much.
Drinker – I agree – the DS is by far the best surgery. I wish more people knew about it. I researched The DS, Gastric Bypass and Lap band and found the DS to be the superior option for me. 6 years ago I had the DS and lost 210 pounds (more than I needed to). I have gained 30 pounds back but as soon as I cut out the carbs/sugar it drops off again. I have very little side effects but a little anemia which is controlled with iron. I love my new life where I can now exercise, dance etc... no more diabetes!
I am almost 3 months post op. I had this surgery to save my life as diabetes was controlling everything. I was on 6 shots a day and an oral insulin twice a day. I don't need any insulin now. This is not a magic overnight cure. You will have to change your lifestyle and habits for the rest of your life. It is something that I researched and thought over long and hard before I did it, because it is so extreme. For me..it was the perfect decision. I've lost over 60lbs now, but not without its ups and downs. You can't keep some things down and every day you have to exercise and be conscious of what you put in your mouth, not to gulp your drink and chew your food thoroughly. But I do have to say, that this is a life changing surgery and well worth the results. This was my decision. Others will say that all you have to do is back away from the table or you just have to exercise...it isn't that easy. Its easy for them to say, but not easy for us to do. Make sure that you research surgeons and that you check their credentials. It is a lifetime commitment!
It sure is easy for people who've never battled obesity to judge. My mom said " I would just starve myself until I lost all the weight". It's like a drug addiction. So hard to control. Good luck to you & glad your diabetes is under control <3
I wouldn't do the surgery for ANYTHING! Why would I want to risk leaks and bleeding just to fit some ideal body type? I understand some ppl are doing it for health reasons, but I worry that deep down they're influenced by the glorification of thinness and hatred of fatness.
Why have risky surgery and hair loss when different varieties of intermittent fasting are free and working great, even for people who have "tried everything?" All you have to do is limit intake to a shorter window of time. It's a lifestyle, not diet, so it lasts, going on 5 years or more. See Fast-5 diet, Eat Stop Eat, Leangains - similar stories, lots of success. It's not "eat right," it's "eat less" and eating less often helps one to eat less!
Severe obesity is really a psychiatric problem. They should address it from that perspective.
I had it done 11 years ago. They should study ME, because it's been a living he**.
Problems with this study: 1. It looks at patients one year after the procedure. This is a problem because usually we are concerned about the long-term consequences of a procedure. (like 5, 10 or 20 years later) The people with the lap-band may actually be healthier long-term because they lose their weight in a more controlled manner. 2. Placebo effect. It is proven that patients will respond better to a procedure if they think it is more dangerous and novel. The only way to fix this would be to not tell patients whether they are getting the band or the surgery. 3. In typical CNN fashion the article makes claims that the study does not
my sister had gastric bypass a year and a half ago....she went from 300 pds to 103 pds....at 5'10" this weight is not healthy. she has lost most of her hair, has no energy, it takes everything she has to get her girls off to school. just two weeks ago she was given a feeding tube in order to recieve the nutrients she needs. her liver and kidneys are failing, not to mention the strain on her heart. i have literally sat back and watched my little (33 yrs) sister starve to death. in three weeks if the feeding tube does what it should the surgery will be reversed and the journey back to health will start! i say that because before this surgery, she was healthy.....overweight yes, but beautiful, active and no health problems. i pray anyone considering this surgery will research the horror stories that i have read lately that so many patients have been through. there are so many more of them out there than we realize!!
yes, thank you for your comment. I also was healthier before my surgery than I am now. Would definitely NEVER recommend it to anybody, unless they were literally about to die from being over 400 pounds.
I do not know the process by which a person receives bariatric surgery, but I wonder if they have to undergo some sort of counseling beforehand. There's no such thing as a permanent quick fix. I believe these people need professional psychiatric help. Somewhere along the way they have either given up or just completely lost control. They may need some guidance to regain, or discover, the power that self control can bring to their lives.
Also, on a side note, I hate the whole concept behind the word "diet". I think when people go on diets they are just setting themselves up for failure. Diets are transient and some are even highly dangerous. Those temporary results accomplish nothing in the long run. Good eating habits should be a lifestyle choice. Gluttony and indulgence have been ingrained into our society as a right with all caution thrown aside. Like every other aspect in our lives, we need to take control, do our own research, and make the choice and live with the consequences.
it's recommended but not a requirement. Some surgeons may exist that do require it, but mine sure didn't. In fact I only met with my surgeon once, the day before he performed the surgery.
Surgery is not always the answer. You have to address the WHY you are eating as well as WHAT you are eating. If you don't deal with the psychological issues, I don't care what you have a surgeon do, you will end up right back where you were AND have your insides all messed up.
I am always amazed that many folks who have bypass have to lose weight BEFORE they can have surgery. Funny how they can lose 80 lbs doing a prescribed diet in order to get the surgery, but can't see that if they just kept that up,they wouldn't need the surgery. There is no quick fix, no magic bullets. Eat right, move more, deal with your issues with a therapist.
AVOID THIS HORRIBLE SURGERY: I can say from experience it is horrible. You will never fell right again. The surgery causes Blockage and Bleeding.
You will throw up after almost every meal.
It causes kidney problems and Kidney stones as well
The cost is 10,000 dollars and you never feel good. It is horrible. The Greed doctors are pushing this horrible surgery for more money
A filmmaker is reversing Obesity naturally with a diabetes diet
just google SPIRIT HAPPY DIET
This just in: Eating sensibly and getting some exercise on a regular basis has been shown to promote good health.
Why does this surgery even exist? And people wonder why health insurance costs are through the roof? Its because of situations just like this. How can you possibly justify spending tens of thousands of dollars on a procedure that is totally unnecessary and just a band-aid to cover someone's bad lifestyle choices? Put down the doughnuts and get off the couch!!
you're an idiot. People don't just do this instead of dieting. It's after years of dieting and exercising. You have no idea what it's like to struggle with lifelong obesity.
Just because YOU had a problem with gastric bypass doesn't mean everyone does. Try this on for size... I had gastric bypass last June. I've lost about 140lbs, have never thrown up (not a single time), and can eat anything I want without getting sick. I eat a very normal diet, much "healthier" than most people, but I still have the occasional cookie or chips.
Here's the truth about the surgery. Some people have issues, some don't. It's a risky procedure and I always tell people they need to make sure they understand the risks before signing up. I was willing to risk throwing up after every meal, dying on the OR table, and never being able to eat sugar or fat again. Luckily for me none of that happened. But if would have, at least I knew it was a possibility.
Stop generalizing about the surgery. No one can predict it's effectiveness long term, no one can say it will or won't work for everyone. It's a simple risk analysis. For some the benefits outweigh the risks, for others it's not worth it. Commit to your decision and move on with your life.
Oh, I should probably mention I did just have my gall bladder taken out as a result of the rapid weight loss. That's a pretty common side effect of the surgery. Again, I knew about that preop and decided it was worth it. So when I had to get it taken out, I wasn't surprised.
that's great for you that it worked out so well. How about not being so judgmental of the people who have suffered because of it? There are people who were NOT so informed as you were. I was only 21 or 22 when I had it, my surgeon only met me the day before my surgery, and I was given a little booklet about possible side affects literally 12 hours beforehand. I was young and didn't know better, and the internet wasn't what it is today. The surgeon is largely responsible for pushing a young, uninformed person into a surgery they knew nothing about. He performed 3 a week. Think it had anything to do with making money as opposed to actually helping people?
Don't eat and drink after 6 pm, and you'll start losing weight and looking great.
yea thats called dehydration
@ leannow,
I agree with disliking the ideal body image portrayed in the media, and its unfortunate that so many people use the 'wrongness' of it as an excuse for their own bad lifestyle choices that lead them to be obese and hate the image in media.
It sucks, overweight people as well as those who suffer from e.d (that eating disorders) hate it too. But just like chiggers and termites, the media does exist. Get over it, move on. I've been skinny as a kid, anorexic as a teen, overweight as a mom and now inm healthy weight. Somewhere between very lean and lean is the most comfortable place. You can outrun things, move, bend, fit on one airplane seat, and avoid many diseases, even family genes by staying at a healthy weight.
Being thin is NOT overrated. Its just plain stupid to stay fat as a way of rebelling from societie's interpretation of the right body image.
Before any of the weight loss surgeries, MOST insurance requries -one to three years weight charts from your personal physician, 3 month weight loss program at the clinic supervised by nutritionist, Personal Trainer, Psychiatriasts, a Pschological evaluation, two meetings with surgeon before surgery. Letter from personal physician.
You should only have surgery at a center for excellence. Google it.
Heathy people with no weight problems will never understand obesity/overweight problems. I have a husband like that, just exercise and eat less. There are underlying conditions you need to find out sometimes. Food allergies, digestive problems, endocrine and thryoid problems as well. If you are eating normal caloric intake and keep gaining weight or can't lose weight get things checked out! Sometimes surgery is the only hope for obese. You will live longer with the surgery than obese without it.
To gastricbypasspatient: I am sorry your surgery left you feeling terrible. I have a friend who recently underwent the surgery. She has lost over 100 lbs in about a year. she does throw up frequently and does NOT take her vitimins, I fear long tern neagtive effects for her. She says she does not "crave" certain foods but I doubt that. She used to love big juciy hambergers and steak, now if she has a teeny tiny bite of either she vomits and feels sick for a few hours. I think her drastic diet changes of no longer able to eat even a tiny bit of the foods she used to love must be depressing. She will never admit that surgery was a mistake but I can see sorrow or sadness in hers eyes.
Gastricbypass patient, I wish you lots of days of feeling good and good health.
The people commenting on this article suggesting 'pushing away from the table' or diet and exercise are not familiar with what qualifies a candidate for weight loss surgery. A detailed listing of diet attemps, kinds of diets attempted in the past, and approx 6 months of physical and psychological testing. I am 6 months post-op, and I can tell you that, after almost 30 years of dieting, it isn't losing the weight, it's keeping it off. This surgery has worked for me from a health standpoint by cutting my meds in half.
Try trhis again-I had Gastric bypass 10 years ago. Have lost 80% of my extra body and not only kept it off-I feel great. Also this article is interesting in that I and noone I know had their stomachs stapled. I was completely cut and seperated. Anyway it is a tool to be used with a life change. If you don't change your brain, it won't work and you will be miserable.Anyone saying just shut up and quit eating does not have a clue about morbid obesity-it's not about dieting to fit into a dress. It's about life. The surgery forces me to make changes and stay with them-or face the consequences. I quit smoking 15 years ago too-cold turkey. That was easy compared to weight loss.
Did anybody think of the 5 to 10 percent of women that suffer from PCOS and insulin resistance? Weight loss through diet, exercise and even FDA approved medication doesn't do the trick, and these surgeries give us our lives back.
I have PCOS, hypothyroidism, and diabetes.... I have been thinking about doing this for quite sometime.. i cant lose weight to save my life. literally...
<3 hope you are doing well.
I have PCOS. And yes, diet and exercise DO work. It just takes more dedication and a more careful diet than it would otherwise. Seriously, all this major surgery does is to restrict what you can fit into your stomach. It doesn't "make you lose weight." It makes you eat less. So have some freakin' SELF CONTROL and eat less on your own willpower instead of having a surgeon carve you up like a turkey.
The RNY gastric bypass isn't as good as the duodenal switch for people who need to lose larger amounts of weight. Many RNY patients do regain. 5 year statistics aren't promising. 2 years after surgery the malabsorption is completely gone, and the body does go into starvation mode, and holds onto as much as possible. The duodenal switch has a 99% cure rate for diabetes, RNY doesn't. The low-carb diet which works best with the duodenal switch also helps alleviate PCOS and insulin resistance. Check out dsfacts.com for more information, including peer-reviewed journal articles.
4 1/2 years ago I made the best decision of my life. I had weight loss surgery (Gastric Bypass Surgery 6/20/2006, my BMI was 54 at the time) the weight loss resolved my comorbidities (GERD, severe sleep apnea, high blood pressure), I'm off all medications (prior to surgery I was on 8), went from a size 28 to 4. *It's not a solution for everyone* but it was the right one for me. It was the HEAD START I needed to change my life BUT I want to stress it goes hand in hand with HEALTHY EATING, DAILY EXERCISE and MOST IMPORTANTLY (and the hardest part IMHO) working on the head stuff (the why's of why I got fat.) This is a lifelong war versus obesity and having weight loss surgery was just one battle everyday I wake up and fight. My best wishes to everyone fighting the war. My weight loss journey & before & now pics: http://www.theworldaccordingtoeggface.com
After reading all of these comments I have to wonder about the intelligence of our society as a whole. Why is it so easy to tie a physical thing around your stomach in order to make it impossible to eat, but at the same time not believe food companies are making food addictive? I mean seriously, all you overweight people. You'll get a 15,000 dollar surgery, but not agree food should be more regulated..... Just sounds insane to me.
This surgery hasn't been around long enough for the long term studies that other people that are commenting are requesting. I hope that anyone that goes through such extensive surgery to overcome their problem has positive results
Staceyann C. Dolenti
To Nikki – these surgeries do not give you your life back, but take it from you slowly and painfully! I'm obese and have moderate to severe PCOS, so I know better than anyone how difficult it can be to lose w/ those health issues. But it is possible – diets do not work! The industry wants you to believe that they do and its all on you, but thats simply not true.
Your body has the best weight regulation system ever created, you just need to know how to use it. Processed foods and generally crappy eating throws it off and makes you crave more (its been proven that highly processed foods loaded in fat and sugar are extremely addictive). You need to follow your body cues, eat when you are hungry, focus on your food and how you feel, then stop when you are satisfied. It is difficult at first, trust me, but it can be done and once you've made habits of these recommendations, you'll be amazed of the results. I've lost 86 lbs in 3 years – that's about 30 lbs a year, about 2 lbs a month. I've heard people say, "but that's such a long time, aren't you frustrated?" ABSOLUTELY NOT!! This is a healthy gradual loss that is sustainable, something surgeries are not. PCOS or no, you can be healthy, once you've realized that its worth it for you to be so. I used to use that as an excuse (and it certainly plays a role) but health (notice I say "HEALTH" not necessarily THINNESS, the two do not always go hand in hand, regardless of what the media, doctors & the diet industry say – and yes, folks, doctors can be wrong and often are when it comes to nutrition) is very much achievable.
Try the LARDLOSS diet I am about to post on Facebook (join the Lard Loss page as a Friend).
I make no comment about lap bands, bypass, etc.; and am selling absolutely nothing. I am, however, a PhD biochemist interested in nutrition and weight loss, and am seeking Friends interested in the same.
My daughter died at age 37, largely a result from the problems associated with gastric bypass surgery. She developed beri-beri. Her doctors researched any link between the two and discovered that physicians are reporting more gastric bypass patients, 6-7 years post bypass surgery, are developing beri-beri and are dying.
It was horrible for my daughter – slowly but surely, her systems began shutting down. The last two years of her life were spent in and out of hospitals, and her body could just not take it any longer. Gastric Bypass still kills. Don't do it!
It is not all about diet and exercise with everyone ok?
I played hockey my whole life, played hockey in college 6 days a week 2-3 hours a day... in the 4 years i was in school i gained 80 pounds. Right before college my thyroid and sugar levels were "borderline" my doctor told me not to worry because i eat healthy and was working out everyday... well low and behold I gained said 80 pounds and I have PCOS, hypothyroidism, and diabetes. I lost 20 pounds since beginning the medication but have been stuck at 185 for a year now no matter what i do. Oh and you may think 185 isn't too bad... well im 5'0.
Seriously, as I stated before...Vogue won't be calling me anytime soon to model the Spring collection, so I feel justified in saying this:
90% of weight loss (unless you have some sort of medical problem that prevents you from actually losing weight) can be traced back to poor eating and exercise habits. Whether you learned them as a child, or were foolish enough to assume that you could eat that way you did when you were in your teens now that you are in your 30s, the truth is those of us with extra pounds to lose can blame ourselves. Sorry. I know, I know...in this era of finger pointing, we all want to be able to blame something societal. After all, no one wants to actually say...yeah I knew nothing of good nutrition and now look at me...but that's usually the case.
Regulate the food industry? Please. Regulate yourself. That applies to most things in life. Why is it in this century we need regulation on EVERYTHING? What exactly is preventing you from picking up a package and READING what's in it? And don't give me that "I'm not a celebrity. I can't afford a trainer and a nutritionist." Sorry. As with most things in life, you need to put in to get out.
Yes, I do think surgery in 95% of the cases is COMPLETELY unnecessary. If you aren't immobile, you can exercise and eat right. No, you won't see those dramatic, quick results. You'll have to stick to it. I'm well aware...having had two close friends who both had it AND regret it. It is amazing to me that people would rather be cut from stern to gullet these days for any little thing rather than put in some hard, dedicated work and make LIFE changes. A sad testament to our magic bullet, quick fix society today.
*APPLAUDS*
*VOMITS*
It must be very difficult to be overweight and even more difficult to make a large decision like gastric bypass surgery. Losing weight isn't easy. It takes time and dedication. Gaining weight/being overweight is not as simple as just over eating or not eating right. It is more complex, many are not properly educated on how to live a healthy lifestyle and others have emotional problems that led to their state. It is very important to be active. I think physical education in schools needs to be addressed. Parents at home need to make their kids active at a young age. Parents, check out Exercise TV! They have kid focused workouts and programs for the whole family to enjoy. At least it’s a start in the right direction.
how bout getting on a stair stepper fatties
I had gastric bypass surgery 7 years ago and I have maintianed a 100lb. weight loss, it isn't a quick fix, I go to the gym 3 – 4 times a week, and I do watch what I eat, it is still a battle evryday, the surgey just jumped started me to a helathier lifestyle. I am also off all medications for high blood pressure, high cholestrol, and I do not have near as much joint pain. The surgery is not a fix all and I still do get sick sometimes but not many. I do know many people who have gained their weight back however, they never changed their lifestyles. Also the Doctor I saw did require you to see a therpist and attend classe.
To anybody trying to lose weight who has access to the web on their phone (e.g., Droid, Blackberry, etc.), I would strongly recommend giving Weight Watchers on-line a try. So long as your honest with what you input into the system, it will calculate on the fly what you can and can't eat. You follow the rules and you get results...it's as simple as that with no harmful surgery or other side effects. I would highly recommend it.
Simple common sense: You cannot be overweight without a lifestyle that supports it.
It's so true – most people who have never been obese simply don't get it. Weight loss surgery is a last resort, an extreme measure, but a necessary one in many cases. If a man comes into the ER in the middle of a heart attack from a blocked artery, you don't sit him down in a quiet corner and counsel him about healthy eating and why his lifelong smoking habit is so harmful. You don't hand him pamphlets about heart-healthy diets and how much exercise he should be getting a week. You do what is necessary to save his life and THEN give him the advice he needs to live healthier.
It's the same in many cases of weight loss surgery. A person who has reached an extreme level of obesity got there NOT because of laziness or stupidity, but because of psychological issues that can take a long time to resolve. This is without exception! Morbid obesity among educated people is ALWAYS either the result of a medical condition (thyroid, PCOS etc.) or a psychological condition (addiction, depression, abuse history, etc.). There are NO exceptions. Such a person's life may be in relatively immediate danger. It would take much more time to lose the weight "correctly" than the person may have left on their clock. It's not ideal, but in these cases you do whatever it takes to save the life and deal with the other stuff later on.
Wow! I would avoid disparaging the FDA. The decision on the Lap-Band was based on science.
This device has a 20+ year track record. It was approved in EU years before being approved in the U.S.
I don't need to defend the FDA.
Just visit the largest online community at:
http://lapbandtalk.com
There are hundreds of thousands of members who've successfully undergone the Lap Band surgery.
They're people who got their life back because of the lap Band Surgery.
There is a lot of dis-information that is just so far from the truth in this comment section and all over the place.
goeie begin