March 28, 2024

I set off a bit of an email flurry a couple of days ago when I suggested that Gastric Bypass surgery is bad and is the wrong way to lose so I thought that I would explain why I do not like the idea of losing using gastric bypass surgery.

Gastric Bypass for those that are not aware of the idea is a surgery that either puts a band around a part of your stomach or staples your stomach so that it is smaller. This smaller stomach of course can hold less food so most people are going to lose a lot of very quickly and because of this Gastric Bypass surgery has become very popular.

OK so it is relatively easy to shed pounds with Gastric Bypass surgery how could I then be against it as a way to lose ?

The truth is that Gastric Bypass surgery does not make you fit or healthy. The day after your gastric bypass you will have the same issues with food that you had the day before but now you will now be able to eat as much food. Also any emotional issues will not be solved with yourweight loss. Most of these issues cause you to overeat although most people that are over think that that is the cause of their emotional problems.

Another more important problem is the nutrition that we all need from our food. If you starve yourself like is going to happen then you will have no way of getting the nutrients that you need and have to rely on supplementation to get everything that you need to live a healthy life. Now that I have broached this subject, how about the health aspect of this kind of loss? Being thin does not make you healthy as I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, in fact being thin can lull you into the false expectation that you are healthy. If you are getting lots of exercise then you need more calories to feed your muscles and after a gastric bypass you are not going to be able to get what you need actually get healthy.

Lastly there is no guarantee with Gastric Bypass. Once you are at the point of needing gastric bypass you can either die on the operating table or die after during recovery as your body is not strong enough for the surgery. Also there is a way that if you do overeat after your gastric bypass surgery that you may be able to stretch your stomach and now you will be in the same place that your were before.

So what can you do instead of Gastric Bypass?

Gastric Bypass used to be the only way that people that are morbidly obese could think of to lose but now that we are in the fourth season of the Biggest Loser anyone can see that there is another option. Sure it may be very difficult and take a long time to lose through diet and exercise but people that are really over can lose 100 pounds in a year and over this time you can become healthier, happier, build incredible self worth and overcome all of those food demons as well.

If you have been thinking about gastric bypass surgery I certainly hope that this has given you pause to reconsider. There is an alternative.

5 thoughts on “Gastric Bypass is the wrong answer

  1. First of all, whoa Eljuk. Isn’t it cold up there on your high pedestal of yours? Dede, thank you for truly giving us an unbiased account. People seem to think that all obese people are just lazy slobs who aren’t trying hard enough. It’s so easy to sit there and ridicule someone when you don’t know what it’s like.

    Seriously, try running or walking for that matter with 350 lbs weighing you down. With healthy food being so darned expensive, it’s no wonder why so many people are facing this issue. Everyone seems to overlook this. Yes it’s possible as the biggest loser has shown, but everyone seems to forget that they have the help of personal trainers, nutritionalists, and they can actually afford the food they need to eat.

    Yes, gastric bypass is expensive as well, but many health insurances cover it now. If my health insurance could afford to by my food, get me a nutritionalist and personal trainer, then yeah I’d definitely do it that way. Because I’ve tried losing for years, and I just can’t seem to cut it on my own.

  2. Gastric bypass surgery basically reduces the stomach size down to a shot glass or tennis ball so that the patient can eat less while feeling full. This is a permanent solution to a temporary problem. Instead, if the patient is so willing to do such a risky surgery, they might as well put all that will power in controlling their portion size instead. Here’s a way. Take a Chinese rice bowl, and fill it up with food for every meal. Finish everything in that bowl and tell yourself, “I’ve had enough calories and this is about how much I would consume if I had a gastric bypass”. Do this for three meals, every four to five hours between each one. Yes, you’ll feel hungry, but you’re doing this for a good cause. Like I’ve said, if you have the will to go through a surgery, why not just feel a little hungry instead, after all, this is about the same portion as you will eat after a gastric bypass. It’s a mystery to me why some obese people cannot just skip one meal, but they can go on a three day water fast that is required before the surgery.

    And all those studies about how skipping meals only causes your body to lose muscle and no fat is all bullshit. There have been people who lost body fat via gastric bypass (bad way). The reason why they lost body fat is because they simply were not able to eat as much food and therefore, cutting the calorie intake. Similarly, if someone just eats a light breakfast and light lunch, and skips dinner for about a week, they would lose , and it would be fat, not muscle as most studies claim it would be. These scientists only get the results that would be beneficial to the medical industry. By saying that eating less burns muscle and not fat, obese people would not want to do this, and keep eating until they get heart attacks or diabetes. Then the medical industry can get its money. The only time skipping meals will cause muscle loss is when you’ve starved to the point where there is no significant body fat left, and then your body starts breaking down muscle cells for energy. But for over and obese people, they will be far from this.

    Losing body fat is not rocket science. If you eat less calories than what your body burns, your body turns to the extra fat cells and gets energy from there and you’d lose body fat. Simple. Of course, there are foods that can actually slow down your body’s metabolism or influence your body’s hormone to store more fat like corn syrup. Try whole foods like fresh fruits, vegetables, and limited amounts of grains. Grains limited because they have a lot of calories per gram.

    The current food pyramid in reality only applies to someone like a Chinese rice farmer who is working intensively. For the over and obese, it’s different and should be like this:
    6-11 servings of non-starchy vegetables(excludes peas, carrots, corn, or potatoes)
    3-5 servings of less sugary fruits (apples, oranges, pears)
    1 servings of grain
    1 serving of protein
    1 serving of fat

    Remember: EAT LESS CALORIES, LOSE BODY FAT.

    1. ^exactly! Well said Eljuk. I was just thinking the exact same thing. Instead of getting surgery to reduce your food intake, just reduce it yourself without the risk or cost. Theres also so much else in messing with your digestive tract that will get irrepairably ruined. People forget about their intestinal flora balance and just the bodies natural and fine balance that it maintains to keep everyday health and well being all ofwhich will be horribly disrupted by such a surgery.

      In response to Robbie above, I eat cheaper than anyone I know and I eat only healthy food. Actually poor food choices and processed things are more expensive. Its a common misconception that healthy food is expensive. I’ll give you a breakdown to prove my point: This is exactly what I eat everyday and is all I eat everyday – beef heart 192grams per meal @ $1.89/pound (pretty cheap eh? for a food that is higher in nutrients than almost any other meat out there and one of the leanest meats you can buy) – chicken rear quarters 170grams of meat per meal @ $1.49/pound – eggs 6 per meal (stock up when they’re on sale) @ $2.89/18 pack – throw in some kefir and yogurt here and there with few glasses of milk a day for healthy intestinal flora eat every two hours and eat a few blue corn chips or whatever here and there for carbs thats all there is to it. Costs me approximately $200 a month. Pretty cheap if you ask me. And there that basic look at my diet plan took me two months to work out for maximum nutrients and minimum calories and there you have it for free, so theres your nutritionist 🙂 If you eat those meals i have mentioned 5 times a day you can keep your caloric intake at under 2700 calories! thats phenomenal to me and what you are forgetting is its muscle to fat ratio that determines health as far as build goes, not just being skinny, you must aim for a larger amount of muscle than fat and then your body naturally starts to take care of itself wise, people seem to completely ignore that.

  3. I am so proud of the accomplishments of the contestants on the Biggest Loser and as someone who has lost 110 lbs (who needs to lose 35 more) and I will be watching again in January to see the couples compete. But to be balanced about comparing stats – Holllie said it best – 90% of people who lose though diet and exercise will gain that back and then some whereas with the Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, (considered by many to be the gold standard), many patients maintain a loss of 60 to 70 percent of their excess for 10 years or more. I am not advocating one approach over another, I just wish that people would be honest and say that for some, obesity surgery not only is the answer, but it represents a life altering change for the better. If you can do it and keep it off without it – congrats, God truly bless you, you should be proud and I am proud of you. But if surgery is what you need to get to your next level, do it and be proud of your life choice as well. I know for me, it saved my life. Keeping my off now is my choice and I do it though diet, discipline and exercise, things that I was taught before I had my surgery. It will be 3 years soon and I thank God. For anyone involved in the struggle you have my respect and love – keep on fighting, however you choose to do it.

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