Gastric Bypass Information
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Is a Low-Calorie Diet Safer than LAP-BAND® Surgery?
The LAP-BAND® Adjustable Gastric Banding System is a bariatric
surgery less invasive than gastric bypass. It is a safer and often cheaper
alternative that often is reversible.
The lap band is also adjustable to fit the individuals needs. It requires
the recipient to follow a low calorie diet. Patients can lose up to
60% of their excess weight within two years.
The lap band is an adjustable gastric band that goes around the stomach,
creating a smaller pouch at the top. This makes the patient feel full
when the upper pouch reaches it's food intake limit. It is inserted
laprascopically and adjusted with air through a port located under the
skin at the top of the abdomen. The adjustments can be done in the doctor's
office.
Complications include slippage to a less desirable location as weight
is lost, leakage of air from the band, and the stomach outlet can become
blocked. Sometimes the lap band erodes inward to the stomach's insides.
These complications are rare, but when they happen, they require a second
surgery to correct. Other complications include infections and bleeding.
Lap band surgery has a history of successful outcomes. Typically patients
eat a 500-1000 calorie per day diet depending on the band adjustment.
Patients feel full sooner and have no feelings of starvation. A patient
must have a BMI of 40+ or a BMI of 35 and serious medical conditions
in order to qualify for this surgery. Most insurance companies require
a documented 6 month or more history of failed weight loss attempts.
Many people try alow calorie diet instead of any type of weight loss
surgery, but the results are not usually very positive. A low-calorie
diet consists of eating proteins, fruits and vegetables in small portions.
Liquid intake should be water or unsweetened drinks such as tea. All
food needs to be accounted for in the calorie chart. This diet will
cause hunger pains, and may contribute to food cravings and even clinical
depression (which is also a complication
that may follow gastric bypass surgery).
Low calorie diets should always be supplemented with vitamins to ensure
proper nutritional intake. The biggest complication of a low calorie
diet is the dreaded will power. It takes a strong will to be able to
ignore the urge to eat. Most people cannot sustain long term low calorie
diets due to cheating and accidental overeating of calories, and the
food cravings may persist even after the diet is over, which can cause
increased weight gain.
Studies show that people who did stick to the low calorie diet had
comparable outcomes to the lap band group. However, the success rate
for any low-calorie diet is less than 5%, so the odds are very much
against you if you decide to take this route. For the reasons why low-calorie
diets fail so many people, click
here. (Other types of diets may be very safe and effective alternatives
to gastric bypass surgery).
The gastric lap band is a safer alternative than the gastric bypass,
but still comes with it's share of complications. A low calorie diet
may not be the most effection alternative option because the success
rate is so low. If you have the will power and stamina to maintain a
low calorie diet, you can save yourself a lot of money and the pain
of surgical recovery, but a better alternative is to follow a diet
that has been proven to work better than reduced calorie diets..
Articles on The Alternatives to Gastric Bypass Surgery:
Note: The information given here should
not be taken as medical advice. Be sure to talk to your doctor
about any concerns you may have about gastric bypass surgery.
New Diet
Controls Your Appetite, Naturally - The one diet
that uses satisfying whole foods to control your appetite, stop
food cravings, and help you burn fat faster, all without the hunger
that causes most people to give up their diets.
Stress
Free Weight Loss - Hundreds of original
articles on weight loss. Includes a listing of bariatric surgeons
by state, and a report on health insurance and gastric bypass
surgery.
Beat your sugar
addiction - This is the easy program that has helped
hundreds of people kick the sugar habit, so they can lose weight
and stay committed to a healthy diet.
