The National Institutes of Health report that about 18 million people can be categorized as obese. In a nation of some 300,000,000 people, that’s a significant number. Of that 300,000,000, about two-thirds are overweight, which means they have a higher-than-optimal body mass.
Whether you fall into the obese or merely overweight category is determined by the Body Mass Index, or BMI. Your BMI is determined based on your weight and height. A person with a BMI of 25 to 29.9 is overweight. Those higher than 30 are obese. And those higher than 40 are severely obese and should be looking at some way to tackle a problem that’s clearly out of control.
Bariatric Surgery
One of the most popular ways to deal with being severely overweight is bariatric surgery (sometimes referred to as gastric bypass). This is an operation that changes the size of the stomach and re-routes the small intestine.
The goal is to reduce the amount of food needed to feel full, the idea being that you will eat less and lose weight by consuming fewer calories. In combination with an exercise and dieting program, it’s proven quite successful, so much so that nearly 200,000 people have tried the surgery in the past few years.
However effective bariatric surgery may be, it is not without risks. It is typically only performed on people who are 100 pounds or higher than their ideal weight and is done because the patient likely will die of weight-related medical complications without reducing. If diet and exercise have failed, then bariatric surgery is the last hope.
But like any surgery, there are complications. Things can go wrong on the operating table; you can pick up a life-threatening infection, suffer a blood clot, extreme blood loss, breathing issues, blockages, or perhaps experience a stroke or heart attack during the operation. About 1 percent of patients die during the surgery.
Worse, it doesn’t necessarily last a lifetime. The patient must follow a strict protocol of diet, exercise and particularly nutrition because the re-routing of the small intestine will mean fewer calories and vitamins will be absorbed. Over the years, if the patient slips back into bad habits, the stomach can expand and become capable of handling more food, with subsequent weight gain.
There are alternatives to this risky surgery. Some are still experimental; others are out in the field and helping others.
Alternatives to Bariatric Surgery
Here are a few of the other methods that scientists and medical researchers are exploring.
1) Bile Diversion – Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center scientists have successfully tested a method that will redirect the flow of bile from the bile duct into the small intestine. The results are similar to regular bariatric surgery, but it is a less invasive process. The Cincinnati researchers believe the bile acid works to increase metabolism and energy. The procedure is still in the experimental stage and not yet generally available.
2) Implants – These are devices that are inserted in the body and help people to eat less. They are inserted through endoscopes and are generally removed when the goal weight is attained. Although the methods vary, and not all have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration, they work to make a patient feel full and eat less.
The brand names include Abiliti, which is already used in Europe and works to send electrical pulses to the stomach and brain to curtail eating; ValenTX, which uses a plastic sleeve in the esophagus to bypass the stomach and send food into the small intestine; and TransPyloric Shuttle, which is put in the bottom of the stomach endoscopically and stretches the stomach to slow down emptying so you feel fuller for a longer period.
There’s also Endobarrier, which is a temporary barrier that stops food from engaging with digestive juices until it’s further along in the small intestine. Another method is Satisphere, an endoscopically implanted device that regulates feelings of fullness.
Finally, there’s i2MOVE, a tiny implant that goes into the vagus nerve in the abdominal cavity, suppressing appetite.
3) Gastric Banding – This is sometimes called a Lap Band. A band is placed around the upper part of the stomach to limit the amount of food you can eat, thereby causing you to feel full with less food.
4) Sleeve Gastrectomy – This places a balloon using an endoscope into your stomach. Once in place, a saline solution is injected, thereby taking up space and limiting the amount of food you can consume before feeling full.
5) Transarterial Embolization – Tiny beads or coils are inserted into a blood vessel known as the left gastric artery. It is used to stop bleeding in the gastrointestinal tract but has the side effect of causing weight loss.
6) Optifast Before Surgery – This is a program that’s a traditional diet using the OPTIFast methodology, which is a meal replacement formula that provides proper nutrition but limited calories. In conjunction with nutrition education and support, it’s been shown to help weight loss. A slimmer person will tolerate any bariatric surgery better than one who is severely overweight.
Keep in mind that any of these procedures only work if the patient is committed to weight loss and follows the recommended diet and exercise protocol after the procedure.
As mentioned, any of these procedures can be circumvented by patients who willingly consume food beyond the limits set by their diet. But the success rate of bariatric surgery and these less-invasive procedures is good, and most who receive it go on to experience a fuller and richer life with fewer health complications.
Keep in mind that your insurance may not cover all of these procedures. Talk to your doctor about which may be right for you and consult your insurance company before beginning any medical weight-loss journey to ensure that it will approve the method and your choices of where the procedure will be performed.