Weight loss surgery

You must have heard about weight loss surgery as an alternative to dieting. Many more women (especially) are choosing to lose weight by going under the surgeons knife.

Weight loss surgery is a serious step to consider as it can have dramatic effects, but it is also a major medical procedure with potential risks and complications. Is this something you have considered?

For those considering weight loss surgery, the first step is to talk to your GP.

They are likely to discuss all options you have for losing weight including exercise (GP Referral), diets and alternative options. They will evaluate whether such a procedure is viable for you, then recommend you to a bariatric surgeon for a more detailed evaluation.

There are two basic approaches to this type of operation:

• Restrictive procedures :
  
  Restrictive Procedures work on the principle that when you feel full, you will have reduced feelings of hunger and will therefore not feel deprived when you eat less. In this procedure, the surgeon simply creates a smaller upper stomach pouch, thus reducing stomach capacity. When combined with certain behavioral changes, this can result in reduced food intake.
  
  To see the best results form this procedure, patients must also learn to eat slowly, eat less, and avoid drinking too much, in particularly carbonated drinks. Failure to follow these guidelines can stretch the stomach back out and thus defeat the purpose of the procedure.
  
  
• Malabsorptive procedures :
  
  Malabsorptive procedures alter digestion by creating a bypass of the small intestine, thus limiting the absorption of calories. This type of surgery is the more effective of the two, though the risk of complications and side effects increases as the size of the bypass increases.
  
  

Some surgeons also offer combination operations which take advantage of both restriction and malabsorption. Which you choose is a decision you will make with your bariatric surgeon based on the risks and benefits of each.