Gastric Bypass Surgery Pros and Cons List

When New Jersey Governor Chris Christie opted for gastric bypass surgery in 2013, questions were raised on why he picked a weight-loss procedure that wasn’t highly recommended by bariatric surgeons and even patients. Basically, Christie’s choice involved putting an adjustable silicone cuff around the upper part of the stomach. This procedure resulted in a much smaller stomach pouch which meant that a patient feels fuller by taking less food. As such, they can lose weight.

But while Christie’s choice of Lap-Band was controversial, there are other kinds that are much more recommended by doctors and some of which have truly helped patients shed unwanted weight. Then again, as much as these kinds of weight-loss surgeries help save lives, they also come with a certain level of risk.

List of Pros of Gastric Bypass Surgery

1. It helps patients shed excess weight.
Shedding extra pounds can do a lot to improve the health of a person. Some may look to more natural and traditional means such as diet and exercise to lose the unwanted pounds, but it always doesn’t work. There has to be a fair amount of discipline and dedication in order to truly get rid of weight that can prove harmful to one’s health.

2. It leads to numerous health benefits.
Weight loss has long been linked with improvements to one’s health. And those who have tried numerous methods of trimming down, surgery might be the next best option for them. With weight-loss surgery, medical conditions that are associated with obesity can improve or go away. These conditions include:

  • type 2 diabetes
  • severe arthritis
  • obstructive sleep apnea
  • high blood pressure

3. It improves the quality of life.
About 95% of people who underwent weight-loss surgery have reported that it improved their lives. With the excess weight gone, people can now do things they never got to do before. For instance, they can now participate in games with their kids without suffering too much.

Some studies have also shown that patients who have undergone weight-loss procedures tend to live longer compared to those who don’t get surgery.

List of Cons of Gastric Bypass Surgery

1. It causes some complications.
About 10% of patients report complications after surgery. The complaints also vary from simple issues to something that would require additional surgery. Among the complaints raised include:

  • nausea, vomiting and diarrhea
  • wound infections
  • abdominal hernias

There are 3% of patients who get more serious complications after surgery. Although rare, these tend to be life threatening:

  • pulmonary embolism
  • leaks in surgical gut connections
  • bleeding ulcers
  • heart attacks

2. It leads to a host of other problem.
Even if weight-loss surgery was declared a success, other issues can crop up and these include:

  • gallstones – requires removal of gallbladder
  • vitamin deficiencies – happens as a result of nutrients not being properly absorbed
  • sagging skin – needs body contouring surgery

Weight-loss surgery can definitely help on various fronts, but it doesn’t mean that one can now relax just because they’ve undergone surgery. Losing weight and keeping it requires hard work and dedication. One must learn how to manage what they eat and watch their habits a bit more. It’s only through this that they can truly get rid of the weight and keep it off.