Sunday, August 25, 2013

Gastric bypass - the holy grail of weight loss surgery?


The holy grail of weight loss, is hoping that somehow food will not appeal to us so we will lose weight.  A new study states that weight loss long term ( 10 years) is better after gastric bypass than after getting the lap band.  And why is this?  Because food is not as appealing to gastric bypass patients, the researchers found.

Well, true, a good percentage of gastric bypass patients get reactive hypoglycemia which means you feel really crummy after eating a plethora of foods, not just sweet stuff. (The patients refer to this type of becoming ill as "dumping")

The problem is, if you are getting sick after eating and you lose weight, that doesn't really count.  Because cancer patients and terminal AIDS patients also lose weight from being sick, but it's so not worth getting sick to lose weight.

What they are hoping you don't know about is for one, the Roslin study which found that 3 months after a gastric bypass, the appetite comes back worse than before surgery in many patients.

This clinical study of 63 gastric bypass patients (that means the researcher, a gastric bypass surgeon himself, actually examined the patients), also found that many of these patients had "glucose abnormalities" which would, in part, explain their voracious appetites.

Bottom line - to lose weight by getting sick after you eat?  Life is just too short for that one, you may well find.  5% of people on non surgical diet nutritional programs can keep off the weight.  7% of weight loss surgery patients (all surgeries, several studies) can keep off the weight.  But that extra 2% which isn't very much of a differential, is counting those with "glucose abnormalities" and other health problems after weight loss surgery.

Dr Terry Simpson tells us that success with Weight Loss surgery (any procedure) is 10% the surgery and 90% the patient.

So after taking rather serious and sometimes life threatening risks to have one's digestive tract rearranged, you can see that it is not very much more effective in keeping off weight than is a non surgical program.

Looking at things this way, the seeker should also be aware that merely embracing a healthy lifestyle of mostly wise food choices and cardio exercise 5 days a week will keep you healthy at any weight.(Lee CD, Blair SN, Jackson AS. Cardiorespiratory fitness, body composition, and all-cause and cardiovascular disease mortality in men. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 1999 Mar;69(3):373-80)

Ask yourself, in view of the foregoing, is weight loss surgery really worth the risks?

3 comments:

Sue Joan said...

Rebecca Williams posted:
Most of us get attracted towards surgeries due to the glamorous makeover it can give us. But there a lot no not-so-glamorous side effects for these surgeries. But other side effects of weight loss surgery can be dangerous and even life-threatening. Results vary from patient to patient and depend on several factors, including proper positioning of the band, and your commitment to your new lifestyle and eating habits. However, it is important to understand that the surgery is not a miracle cure that will lead to effortless weight loss. The pounds will not come off by themselves. To succeed, you need to be fully committed to changing your lifestyle and eating habits. It’s important to set achievable weight loss goals from the start. A weight loss of 1-2 pounds a week in the first year after the operation is possible, but 1 pound is more likely. 12-18 months after the operation, weekly weight loss will likely be less. Always remember that healthy weight loss happens gradually. Losing weight too quickly can pose a health risk and lead to a number of problems.

Info from:
Credit Valley Clinic (lap banding) in Ontario CA
http://www.creditvalleyclinic.ca/gastric-weight-loss-surgery.aspx

Sue Joan said...

Very true, Rebecca, but those same life changes cause a lot of weight loss without surgery.

Sue Joan said...

Mason Richard wrote:

I always keep looking for the roux-en-y gastric bypass treatment, after effects..and more and more of it..
thanks for that

My answer: glad you found it helpful, Mason. Too many people get this surgery without be prepared for the many repercussions, both short term and long term. The repercussions of gastric bypass are such that 30 percent of patients end up in the hospital needing re surgery etc and long term the picture is even less good. And with all the complications etc, the quick weight loss is mostly NOT fat but to keep off the weight, patients have to do the same things as non surgical weight losers...diet and exercise.