Nearly one in three Americans is clinically obese. The dramatic rise in obesity since the 1950’s has led to an increase in weight-related complications as well. Conditions such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease are more and more common, even among young patients. Compounding the difficulty of carrying excess weight is the social stigma that obesity carries. Countless studies show that those extra pounds can affect one’s love life, fertility, and even job prospects. Fortunately, advances in bariatric surgery offer great promise to those who are struggling to shed pounds. New studies suggest more than a cosmetic advantage; according to data presented at the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, patients who underwent bariatric surgery had a significantly improved rate of survival at five and ten years post-procedure.
Morbidly obese patients know that they run an amplified risk of cardiac arrests and strokes. Yet, few consider the after effects of such major medical events. Paralysis, aphasia, and other common remnants of heart attacks and strokes leave patients gravely disabled, and frequently dependent on outside medical assistance. Bariatric surgery offers hope of escaping that fate. In a 12 year study of 9,140 patients, those who underwent bariatric surgery had a medical event-free survival rate that was 13-15% better than control groups. That bariatric obesity surgery can have such a measurable effect on not only survival, but quality of life is reason to celebrate. It also points to the need to explore additional benefits that may come at the hands of a skilled weight loss surgeon.
With a gifted weight loss surgeon in nearly every major urban area, including Carrollton, bariatric surgery’s tremendous potential to restore your health and appearance is more accessible than ever. Even more encouraging is the fact that most morbidly obese patients can lose 30-50% of their weight within six months after surgery. Some lose as much as 77% of their weight before the first year has passed. With rapid, life enhancing effects like these, the best time to look into bariatric surgery is right now.
