Overweight & Obesity: Explained

Weight Loss Surgery

Weight loss surgery may be an option for people with extreme obesity (BMI of 40 or greater) when other treatments have failed. It’s also an option for people with a BMI of 35 or greater who have life-threatening conditions such as:

Severe sleep apnea (a condition in which your breathing stops or gets very shallow while you’re sleeping)
Obesity-related cardiomyopathy (diseases of the heart muscle)
Severe type 2 diabetes

Two common weight loss surgeries include:

Banded gastroplasty. For this surgery, a band or staples are used to create a small pouch at the top of your stomach. This surgery limits the amount of food and liquids the stomach can hold.
Roux-en-Y gastric bypass. For this surgery, a small stomach pouch is created with a bypass around part of the small intestine where most of the calories you eat are absorbed. This surgery limits food intake and reduces the calories your body absorbs.

Weight loss surgery can improve your health and weight. However, the surgery can be risky depending on your overall health. There are few long-term side effects with gastroplasty; however, you must limit your food intake dramatically. Roux-en-Y gastric bypass has more side effects. These include nausea, bloating, diarrhea, and faintness (which are all part of a condition called dumping syndrome). After Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, multivitamins and minerals may be needed to prevent nutrient deficiencies.

Lifelong medical followup is needed after both surgeries. A monitoring program both before and after surgery also is advised to help you with diet, physical activity, and coping skills.

If you think you would benefit from weight loss surgery, talk to your doctor. Ask whether you’re a candidate for the surgery and discuss the risks, benefits, and what to expect.

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Last modified: June 8, 2010