Exercise and a healthy, nutritious diet should be on everyone’s daily routine, which can serve as the first line of defense against several ailments. But many patients wake up to the perils of obesity fairly late when their excessive weight has led them to a series of complaints including diabetes and coronary disorders. They get easily dispirited, especially when faced with the rigors of the demanding exercise and diet regimens that won’t give them the fast results they desire, and turn in for gastric bypass surgery.
But is gastric bypass surgery the magic bullet that can provide permanent freedom from the extra pounds?
The bypass surgery, or for that matter any bariatric surgery, is not a quick-fix. As the surgery carries its own risk, the surgery is not for all, but only for those morbidly obese persons whose BMI has crossed 40 and who cannot achieve significant weight through diet and exercise alone. It can be successful only for those who are disciplined and committed to the prescribed diet. People who suffer from depression, bipolar disease, or schizophrenia should consult and be under the care of a psychiatrist before gastric bypass, as weight loss can worsen these conditions.
How the gastric bypass surgery works is simple. The stomach is cut high up so that it is divided into two parts – a small upper part, a one 1 oz pouch, and a large lower part a 39 oz bypassed part. Three rows of staples secure the two pieces so that most of the time they don’t leak. The pouch is then connected to the small intestines bypassing duodenum and part of the intestines (jejunum). The larger lower part of the stomach is just left lying idle. So you end up with a small stomach and a shorter intestines. This means that you will feel full more quickly and that you will absorb less of the food actually eaten (because of the shorter bowel). Food flows directly into the middle section of your small intestine, limiting absorption of calories.
You can begin regular activity within 4 to 6 weeks after your gastric bypass. You should be pain-free after 10 days or so. Fatigue is common, and can last from 3 to 4 weeks after your gastric bypass. The surgery alters your digestive system to make it impossible for you to eat much food at one sitting without suffering unpleasant side effects such as ‘dumping syndrome’ or rapid gastric emptying, which occurs when the undigested contents of your stomach are “dumped” into your small intestine too rapidly. Common symptoms include abdominal cramps and nausea .This digestive side effect acts as a brake on calorie intake, and can lead to significant loss of weight within 2 years after surgery.
