Bariatric surgery is a “variety of procedures performed on people who are obese” (Family Doctor). These different procedures include the gastric sleeve, gastric band, and gastric bypass.
Gastric sleeve – a large part of your stomach is removed so that it is smaller than it was before.
Gastric band – I silicone band placed at the top of the stomach to create a small pouch above the band where food will enter.
Gastric bypass – surgical staples are used to create a small pouch which is your new stomach.
However, the process is used to inevitably help you lose weight, especially when solely changing your diet and exercising doesn’t. There are many reasons why diet and exercise may not work for you.
A lot of bariatric patients have negative associations with food, this is often because a lot of people that are obese have a complex disease. This is impacted by genetics, psychological and environmental factors. This form of disordered eating means they may struggle to stick to a diet and exercise often. For this reason, people who struggle with obesity may need extra help with bariatric procedures. This is because when you have bariatric surgery, regardless of which one, your appetite is suppressed, and your stomach is shrunk to some extent. When we provide patients with the extra help they need, it allows patients to make behavioural changes and the incapability to reduce their appetite. Therefore, in the long term, they can lose their excess weight to help them live a healthier and happier life.
Of course, if you have the correct diet and exercise, you will lose weight. However, psychological factors can majorly prevent people from following a strict diet and exercise routine. For this reason, a lot of people struggle with obesity.
Let’s talk about the effects of obesity…
Studies show that people who are obese often have a higher amount of glycerol, hormones, cytokines and proinflammatory substances. All of these contribute to the development of insulin resistance. Insulin resistance is essentially what causes type 2 diabetes, meaning you are likely to develop this when your weight increases. When you have bariatric surgery, your digestive system essentially changes meaning you eat less. Because of this, the hormones in your guy shift, meaning the way your body makes insulin is affected.
Your joints can often struggle when someone has excess weight. This is because your body may not be able to hold the weight meaning your joints feel more pressure than they can handle. In response, your joints such as your hips and knees may experience pain.
Fat deposits can in your airways limit your muscle activity in this area. Because of this, people who have a high BMI often struggle to breathe, especially at night. Therefore, causing frequent sleepless nights or lower sleep quality.
All these issues can make losing weight extremely difficult. Therefore, options such as weight loss surgery may be ideal for someone experiencing these problems. Furthermore, by having weight loss surgery, a lot of these issues can be reversed.
Depending on your surgery, some may require you to lose weight to be eligible. For example, losing weight helps lower the risk of surgery-related issues. These issues include blood clots, infections, heart attacks and so on. However, if there is a deadline to your weight loss target, having weight loss surgery may be the right option for you.
A lot of the time, the way you achieve your weight loss results is up to you. However, there are situations where weight loss surgery is the best way forward.
Reading Time: 2 minutes November is a time when your life shifts to cosy moments, savouring hot drinks with your favourite films on. For obese patients who have undergone
Reading Time: 2 minutes Bariatric surgery is a life-changing step towards achieving a healthier body and a healthier lifestyle. Whilst it does offer a physical transformation, it’s crucial to