Gastric bypass is the sort of surgery you think about when you’re
seated at a table with a triple tier burger, a plate of fries, a
can of aerated something; and know that even when you’re done
eating it all, you’ll probably have room for more. The simpler term
for gastric bypass is ‘stomach stapling’, and its purpose is to
make you eat less. It works to achieve extreme weight loss by
creating a small pouch in the stomach through stapling up parts of
it, in order to reduce the amount of food you can consume. If you
could earlier consume the big triple burger meal, post-stomach
stapling you will probably only manage a cup of tea. Your body is
consuming less calories and the pouch allows digestive processes to
bypass the small intestine, so that nutrients from food aren’t
absorbed.
Is it for you?
If you’re just looking to lose weight in specific areas, you could
try liposuction or a tummy tuck; a gastric bypass is for those
100-pounds-overweight who have unsuccessfully tried to diet.
Patients are typically between 15 and 65 and need to understand the
psychological risks involved in coping with what could be an
entirely changed body image. Obesity can be dangerous and this
makes the gastric bypass an essential surgery for many people, not
just a cosmetic one.
No pain, no gain
Stomach stapling, although simple-sounding, is a complex surgery
and you need to be prepared for possible pain, major swelling and
post-operation hospitalization. Many of the nutrients that you take
in with your food are not absorbed after stomach stapling; in the
long run this could make you anemic. Later, it could put you at
risk for osteoporosis and bone diseases. You might need to
regularly take pills or dietary supplements. Many patients of
gastric bypass need to stay on special diets through their lives.
After your stomach stapling surgery, foods rich in sugar and fat
are likely to make you feel uncomfortable.
Small and constant
Gastric bypass will change the way you eat pretty permanently.
Instead of the few big meals that you might have been used to,
after stomach stapling you will find yourself needing to eat
perhaps eight or nine small meals a day. The surgically created
pouch doesn’t allow you to eat food and drink a liquid at the same
time: you can do one or the other.
Things that could go wrong
There are additional risks as well, one of which is the possibility
that the pouch could stretch and expand to the original size of the
stomach. The food pouch grows to twice its capacity in just two
months and it’s possible that it might stretch further. The stomach
stapling could come apart, having the same effect: stomach
expansion to original size. If there are leakages, the acid content
from the stomach could leak onto other organs, damaging them
seriously. Also, if the contents of the stomach move too quickly
through the small intestine, you might find yourself reeling from
nausea, perspiration, diarrhea and so on. Patients sometimes
develop gall stones and develop complications such as hernia which
need further follow-up operations; remember that corrective
procedures come with their own risks.
Chiseling away
After the extreme weight loss surgery, you might be 100-200 pounds
lighter, but you’ll still have skin enough for the big size that
you once were. Gastric bypass usually needs to be followed by some
kind of body contouring procedure for excess skin removal. This is
an additional cost that you might not have factored in when
considering stomach stapling, but it’s likely to crop up. The body
contouring surgery also has some risks and requirements needed, so
before deciding on the gastric bypass, you should probably consider
the body contouring too.
Stomach stapling facts you ought to consider
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