In: Nursing
The medical, social and financial costs of obesity are well known. So is the fact that eating less and moving more will promote weight loss. However, these conventional methods do not always work. When they fail, is surgery a good weight-loss option?
Weight loss surgeries:
Obesity is the state of being obese due to an excess of body fat . Obesity is one of the major risk factor of various chronic diseases like Hypertension, Hyperlipidemia, Diabetes, Coronary artery disease, stroke and heart failure. The medical, financial, social costs are well known . Reports show that 1 in 3 Americans has obesity and national rate is approximately 42% of population is suffering with the condition Obesity. Often most of the people fail in attempting the preventive measures like regular exercise and less eating and they may become frustrated by working on reducing the body weight. For such people Weight loss surgeries came as a promising option.
Weight loss surgeries are the surgeries that are intended to reduce the body weight of an obese individual. The main surgical procedures for weight loss are called Bariatric surgeries. 'Bariatric' refers to the branch of medicine Bariatrics, the treatment of obesity and weight problems. The most common surgical procedures for weight loss are:
* Gastric bypass, Roux -en- Y
* Adjustable Gastric band
* Sleeve gastrectomy.
All these surgeries possess benefits as well as risks.
Benefits of Weight loss Surgeries:
*enables a person to shed many pounds . 60 % of weight loss at the first year after surgery can be achieved by the patient.
* helps to prevent Obesity related medical conditions such as hypertension, CAD , Hyperlipidemia, DM etc.
* Helps to reduce the intake of food as the stomach capacity become less.
Risks or the disadvantages of surgeries for weight loss:
* Short-term surgical complications like excessive bleeding, wound infection and breathing problems.
* Abdominal hernia, malnutrition are the long term complications
* Nuasea , vomiting and diarrhoea , gall stones and vitamin deficiencies are the minor complications that may suffer by most of the clients , who undergone surgeries for weight loss.
* Life threatening complications are leakage in the gut connections, Pulmonary embolism, heart attack and bleeding ulcers etc.
When considering the pros cons of Surgeries for weight loss, the risks are more and it may affect the quality of life of patient. Conventional methods of Regular exercise and healthy eating to control weight gain are the more beneficial measures than surgical procedures for weight loss.