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Obesity
Surgery
It's evident that
obesity is on the incline all over the world and its affecting our
society. Hundreds of thousands of people are losing their lives to
obesity every year. Around one third of the population of America is
obese whilst around 1 in 10 young people are suffering from obesity,
setting them up for a life full of obesity linked health problems.
It's
a sad fact that companies are cashing in on this obesity epidemic
touting their products that claim to magically remove the pounds in a
short period of time. The fact is there is no miraculous cure for
diabetes, but there are options. One of the options of losing the
excess weight from obesity is surgery, however it does have it's own
side effects.
Obesity
surgery is not for every one, in fact it is only prescribed for people
who have a body mass index (BMI) of 40kg/m2 or more, basically people
who suffer from morbid obesity. It is also prescribed to people who
suffer from a disabling condition due to their excess weight. Obesity
surgery is usually a last resort for morbidly obese people who are
unable to lose weight using any other method.
There
are short term and longterm side effects to obesity surgery and some of
them are unknown, as a result surgeons are reluctant to perform obesity
surgery on patients under the age of 18. However at the time of writing
the minimum age recommended for obesity surgery is 13 years of age for
girls and 15 years of age for boys.
Over
170,000 cases of obesity surgery are carried out every year with a
notable increase in teenage obesity surgery year in year out. The cost
of obesity surgery can go up to $50,000 depending on the type, but the
average cost is around the $30,000 mark. Obesity surgery may rise to
$65,000 or more if any complications arise. It is expensive, but if it
all goes well patients tend to feel that they are getting good value
for their money. Especially when you consider that the average adult
patient can lose up to 70% of their excess weight, and the average
teenager can lose even more at 82% of their excess weight being
removed. Unfortunately some patients lose weight as a result of obesity
surgery,but they regain it again over a period of time.
There
are two main types of obesity surgery and they both serve different
purposes. The purpose of these two types of surgery are to (i) reduce
the size of the stomach and (ii) reduce the absorption of calories in
the small intestine. But surgery is not enough, the patient must also
incorporate healthy eating habits and lead an active lifestyle in order
not to regain the excess weight again.
The
most common type of surgery is gastric bypass, it is a combination of
the two types of surgery mentioned previously.
As
I mentioned previously obesity surgery has several negative side
effects. Young people run the risk of stunted growth, whilst 2 out of
every 100 people die from surgery and another 4 out of 10 people
develop complications within six months of surgery.
Complications
that patients may face include bleeding, infection, respiratory
problems, hernias, vomiting and stomach obstruction. A high percentage
develop anemia or osteoporosis as a longterm side effect, and as a
result they have to take supplements to ease the condition.
The
success of obesity surgery depends on finding an experienced surgeon as
well as following his/her recommendations after surgery. Obesity
surgery has improved over the years and will continue to improve. There
are many people who are leading better lives as a result of obesity
surgery.
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