Surgical Weight Loss
Surgical weight loss is a drastic measure to lose weight quickly, especially if your weight is causing your health to deteriorate. However, these procedures should not be undertaken lightly, as they are associated with a number of risks and side effects. Before making your decision, you should be well informed.
Surgical weight loss procedures are divided into three categories:
- Restrictive procedures which make the stomach smaller and limit the amount of food you can eat.
- Malabsorptive operations which reduce the amount of time that food comes in contact with the intestines, thereby reducing the number of calories that can be absorbed into the system.
- Combination procedures which utilize both restrictive and malabsorption strategies.
Restrictive Surgical Weight Loss Procedures: Gastric Banding
The restrictive surgical weight loss procedure aims to restrict the amount of food that can be consumed at any given time. There are numerous types of gastric banding procedures such as Vertical Banded Gastroplasty (VBG) and Laparoscopic Adjustable Gastric Banding. In gastric banding, the food that is eaten passes through the digestive system and is absorbed normally into the body. However, a band is placed around a portion of the stomach that restricts the amount of food that the stomach can hold. This type of surgery can be adjusted over time to increase or decrease restriction. It can also be reversed.
The risks associated with gastric banding surgery include perforation or tearing in the stomach, leakage or twisting around the band, digestive obstruction, band migration or slippage and pouch dilation. Side effects include nausea, vomiting, and a condition called “dumping” syndrome when too much food is consumed at one time. Dumping syndrome involved symptoms such as diarrhea, rapid heartbeat, shallow breathing, and vomiting.
Malabsorptive Surgical Weight Loss Procedures
The malabsorptive procedure aims to alter the anatomy of the small intestine, diverting the bile and pancreatic enzymes so that they meet the ingested food closer to the middle or the end of the small intestine. This reduces the absorption of nutrients and calories. Types of malabsorptive weight loss surgery include Biliopancreatic Diversion (BPD) and Extended (Distal) Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass (RYGBP-E).
The level of satisfaction is greater for patients who undergo these types of procedures as compared to restrictive surgical weight loss procedures as the amount of food that can be eaten and enjoyed is much closer to normal levels. However, there are also a number of risks and side effects associated with malabsorption procedures. These include diarrhea, intestinal irritation, stomach ulcers, abdominal bloating, protein malnutrition, anemia, gallstones, and bone disease.
Choosing a Surgical Weight Loss Procedure
The most important step in choosing a weight loss surgery is to educate yourself on the various types of surgery and surgeons that are available. Your health care provider can offer you plenty of information about the procedure that he or she may recommend to you for your particular condition. However, you should be sure to do your homework and get answers to any questions that you may have.
Do not hesitate to ask your health care provider for more information or a clearer explanation about a particular issue. It’s also a good idea to ask your doctor if any of their patients who have had similar weight loss surgeries that would be willing to discuss their experiences. These people would be able to give you a better understanding of the pros and cons of the procedure.
Like any type of surgical procedure, weight loss operations are associated with a number of risks and side effects. Before you undergo this type of procedure, be sure that you are well educated about the surgery’s post-operative recovery and care. Surgical weight loss procedures are best reserved for the most extreme cases in which all other solutions have failed. I do not recommend these procedures unless all other options have failed.
About the Author
Dr. Edward F. Group III continues to develop, sell and evaluate exclusively high-end natural and organic healthcare products to support a wide range of health conditions. The products we promote are free of toxic tag-along herbicides, insecticides, pesticides, heavy metals, fumigants, irradiation, liver-toxic glues, binders, or gelatin capsules with animal-source risk and toxic preservatives.
For more information please visit www.weightlossobesity.com or www.slimirex.com.