A New Option For Weight Loss Surgery
|
These days, Jennifer Secrist has little interest in idle activities. The 23-year-old loves to rock climb, hike, ride her mountain bike, and do almost anything that gets her outside and moving.
"I can't stand to sit around," she tells WebMD. "I have so much energy now it's amazing."
Weight Loss Surgery
---------------------------------------------------
Her secret: weight loss surgery that leaves her with a smaller stomach while leaving her with smaller scars than the traditional surgery. What makes Secrist's story truly amazing is that in less than two years she has lost 107 pounds, thanks to adjustable gastric banding, a surgical procedure that is commonly performed in Europe, but has only been recently approved for use the U.S.
The surgery can be performed laparoscopically, which means small tools are guided by a small camera through small incisions in the abdomen. The traditional weight loss procedure in the U.S., gastric bypass, involves a large incision to surgically alter the stomach and make it smaller. The Midland, Mich. woman traveled to Sweden to get the surgery, and her mom and dad later made the trip for the same reason.
Adjustable Gastric Banding
-----------------------------------------
Adjustable gastric banding is far less popular here than gastric bypass surgery. Banding has been done in the U.S., yet previously required open surgery, with all its potential complications.
But two new studies find the laparoscopic approach for banding to be a safe and effective weight loss option for people who are 100 pounds or more overweight. The studies, reported in the latest issue of the journal Annals of Surgery, found that patients who underwent gastric banding surgery lost roughly 50% of their excess body weight within two years.
The procedure involves the implantation of a hollow silicone band placed around the top of the stomach, which is adjusted to determine how much food the stomach can hold. The adjustment is made by inflating or deflating the band using salt water piped in trough a tube attached to a port placed under the skin near the breastbone. Several types of bands are available in Europe, but the FDA has approved only one - the Lap-Band system made by the California firm BioEnterics System.
One of the newly published studies evaluated the Lap-Band device in 500 morbidly obese French patients. Researcher Franck Zinzindohoue, MD, and colleagues reported a 53% excess weight loss at two years, with 10% of patients having to have second operations due to complications. No deaths were reported among the patients. The outcomes were much better than those reported in a recent study finding that more than half of patients abandoned the band in favor of gastric bypass surgery.
The authors attribute their good outcome to a procedure they developed to reduce the incidence of band slippage, one of the most common complications of gastric banding.
Some Patients Are Unhappy Because They Did Not Loose As Much Weight As They Wanted
-------------------------------------
Still, in an accompanying editorial, weight loss surgeon John M. Kellum, MD, says surgeons in America may want to think twice before recommending gastric band surgery over gastric bypass. He no longer performs gastric banding, and says most of his patients who had the banding procedure were unhappy with it because they did not lose as much weight as they had hoped to.
"Some of my patients actually gained weight, which never happens with gastric bypass," he tells WebMD. "We were also troubled by the fairly high number of patients who had complications with the band." Kellum says a newer type of band from Sweden may be safer for patients than the Lap-Band, but it has not been studied in the U.S.
In the second new study, authors claimed a lower rate of band erosion and slippage. But the procedure is not recommended for all patients, especially the heaviest, which Kellum says could restrict its usefulness among American patients.
"American patients tend to be heavier than those in Europe, and the heavier the patient the higher the likelihood that complications will occur," he says.
Jennifer Secrist, who now weighs 140 pounds and is a size 6, says she knows of a few gastric band patients, or "bandsters," who have had trouble losing weight with the procedure. But she would not hesitate to recommend it to anyone whose health is jeopardized by morbid obesity. She publishes a web journal of her process to inspire others.
"I want people to know there are alternatives to being heavy," she says. "This has done so much for me. I can't begin to describe it."
--
You may reprint or publish this article free of charge as long as the bylines are included.
Original URL (The Web version of the article)
------------
A New Option for Weight Loss Surgery
About The Author
----------------
Michael Lewis has been collecting articles and information on Weight Loss and HGH (Human Growth Hormone and related health benefits. He has created and edits numerous websites about this subject. Michael is a staff writer for http://www.ageforce.com and several otherwebsites. If you would like to contact Michael you can e-mail him at Michael@AgeForce.com If you would like to know more about Weight Loss, HGH (Human Growth Hormone) and related health topics please visit us at AgeForce.com.
|
|
|
Water - How Important Is It In Our Daily Diet And With Weight Loss?
The importance of drinking water is mentioned in almost every article on weight loss. It is a very important fact that we need to drink water whether we are dieting or not. It is water that assists with the dissolving and transporting of nutrients such as oxygen and minerals to the organs of the body.I know many people will say YUK to water but drinking other fluids may hydrate your body but you will need to consider the extra calories and sugar in them if trying to lose weight. Also it maybe time to learn to like to drink water due to the health benefits water provides. If water is not your thing, try flavouring it with a slice of lemon or start with mixing half apple/orange or cranberry juice with water.Here are 8 reasons to drink 8 x 250ml glasses of wate...(related: Weight Loss)
No One Ever Got Fat Eating Broccoli!
Diet tips for losing weight abound. Some are good, some questionable and some are just plain crazy. At the risk of joining the ever growing list of diet tips here is probably the most important diet key both to weight loss and and excellent health."No one ever got fat eating broccoli."When you eat carbohydrates this stimulates the release of a hormone called insulin. Insulin stimulates an enzyme called lipoprotein lipa...(related: Weight Loss)
Trans Fat: Whats That!?
Learning the jargon is part of the weight loss journey. Depending on the weight loss or healthy eating program you are on, you will learn lots of things about food and their ingredients.Even after 2 years of being in the weight loss/healthy eating path, I still learn something new everyday.One term I became aware of recently is: Trans Fat.Trans fat is short for "trans fatty acid".You can find it naturally in milk and animal fat, but in relatively small amounts. But most of the trans fat we consume is actually manufactured. It is made by partially hydrogenating vegetable fat.Food manufacturers use trans fat because products last longer, and the flavour stability of foods, and there is no legal duty in countries like Australia for manufacturers to disclose ...(related: Weight Loss)
Why You Should Burn Body Fat
Are you overweight? Then you probably want to lose some weight. It is obvious that you'll burn body fat by increasing your metabolism. But be sure that what you burn is fat, not muscles.Some statistic...(related: Weight Loss)
Can Water Really Help You Lose Weight?
I believe that water not only helps with weight loss, but is also one of the most important things to keep in mind when trying to lose weight. Here are just some of the reasons why everyone should be drinking at least eight glasses of water day.- Naturally suppresses appetite- Increases metabolism- Reduces stored fat deposits- Improves kidney function- Decreases fluid retention- Helps muscles maintain their tone- Aids in the prevention of sagging skin after weight loss- R...(related: Weight Loss)
Avoid These Five Common Weight Loss Mistakes
Mistake 1: Not changing your calorie plan as you lose weight. The fallacy of the "1200 calorie diet" plans and the like.Most people set their calorie intake at a given number and expect to keep losing weight at the same constant rate over a period of weeks. Therefore dieters look for 1000 calorie or 1800 calorie diet plans on web.<...(related: Weight Loss)
Top 10 Questions And Answers On Atkins Diet
1. What is Atkins Diet?
Dr. Atkins diet, first introduced in 1972, is strictly
focused on limiting carbohydrate consumption.
That is why it is called a low-carb, high-protein diet or
sometimes simply a low-carb diet, together with other
diets such as South Beach Diet, Power Protein Diet etc...
2. What are carbohydrates, and where can they be found?
Carbohydrates provide your body with its basic fuel, very
much like a car engine and gasoline. Glucose goes directly
into the cells, which convert it into the energy they need.
There are two types of carbohydrates:
Simple carbohydrates (also called "suga...(related: Weight Loss)
Diet Plans For A Low Carb Diet
One of the most popular diets is the low carb one. But because of its popularity the number of diet plans is growing, and growing and growing. When you have to decide it is so difficult: the very large amount of information freezes you. You're blocked and you have to find a way to continue what you have begun: a low carb diet. That's why I have decided to present you some diet plans for a low carb diet.One of the most known is the Atkins diet. It mainly consists of four phases: first phase has the purpose to induce "benign dietary ketosis" that will help the body to produce the fat mobilization substance; once this substance is being produced the body is forced to disgorge and burn up deposited body fat; this is the time when you start loosing...(related: Weight Loss)
site-map - Copyright © 2007 | Contact Webmaster - shukra1111 [AT] yahoo.com | All Rights Reserved | Weight Loss