Last updated on March 17, 2020
Every year in the United States, over 100,000 people choose Gastric-Bypass Surgery (a type of bariatric procedure) to help them lose excess weight. Despite the chance of serious, potentially life-threatening, complications, many people undergo the operation and lose excess body weight, only to slowly gain it back over time. Twenty percent of those who opted for the surgical procedure regained all the lost weight within a few years.
Gastric-Bypass Surgery helps people lose weight because the size of the stomach is decreased, limiting the amount of food a person can eat. However, over time, the size of the stomach gradually stretches, allowing more food to be consumed. Some people ‘test’ how much they can increase their food consumption by increasing their portion sizes gradually over time, thereby stretching the stomach as well.
Consuming large quantities of calorie-filled liquids, such as milkshakes or soda pop, can also lead to weight gain. Not only are the liquids ’empty’ calories that provide little or no nutritional value, but they also pass easily through the stomach without filling it. Since the stomach is empty, the person can consume regular food without having to deal with an overstuffed stomach pouch.
Some people fail to follow the post-surgical diet suggestions, such as consuming protein and avoiding dairy and sugar. In fact, not only is protein recommended, but it is suggested that you eat it first. Surgeons advise drinking a large quantity of water and exercising every day, which some people fail to accomplish. Consuming more calories than you expend not only stalls weight loss, it causes weight gain.
Another reason some people gain back their lost weight is snacking. Some people snack consistently throughout the day, and they compound the problem by picking unhealthy snacks, such as potato chips and candy. Even if the portion size is small, the calories still add up. At the end of the day, several hundred calories can be consumed just from snacking.
While surgery can alter the body, no surgical procedure changes how you feel about food and the plastic surgeon bloomfield that is helpful in knowing the any health issue and makes the body to detoxify any toxin from the body that has been dissolved with medications. People who used food to deal with stress, boredom, or emotional issues prior to the surgery must find new responses to the triggers that cause overeating. If they fall back into old eating habits, they are susceptible to regaining the weight. Some people are unprepared for life as a thinner person. They used their size as a ‘security blanket’, and have difficulty adjusting to their new lives.
Weight loss surgery isn’t for everyone, and it certainly isn’t a ‘quick fix’ to a weight problem. Doctors can deal with the physical aspects of the surgery, but the person must come to terms with the emotional side. In order to be successful, a person must be fully committed to changing not only their body, but their emotional responses to food as well.