News, Gastric bypass patients face a greater risk of alcoholism. (stomach, weight loss)
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People looking to lose some weight quickly thanks to procedures like gastric bypass surgery might develop a higher risk of abusing alcohol. Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and the National Institutes of Health discovered that rate of patients of gastric bypass who had alcohol problems increased from 7 percent to 10.7 just two years after surgery. Bariatric surgeon Dr. Mitchell Roslin said the effective shrinking of the stomach increases alcohol absorption rates, which makes alcohol more addictive. The study also showed that lap band surgery didn't pose the same risk of increased alcohol problems.
Anecdotally, I've certainly seen this on the detox where I sometimes work. Besides changing the absorption of alcohol, I think those who were obese from emotional overeating still have that part of the brain yelling for *something*.
I have seen this anecdotally as well, in my best friend and now in my own husband. In addition to the alcohol absorption issue, there is the "transferring of addiction" issue - from food to alcohol (or to sex, drugs, gambling, spending, etc.). Also Google Carnie Wilson's story, and you will see similar issues in her life as well.
The psychological evaluations done preoperatively are woefully inadequate in most cases, in my humble opinion. I would love to see this subject researched further and help offered.
Ironically enough, in my best friend's case, she had the gastric bypass done, lost quite a bit of weight, turned to alcohol, and gained quite a bit of the weight back. She then drank heavily for years. Once she hit "rock bottom," joined AA and pursued sobriety, the most amazing thing happened. The longer she was sober and addressed the drinking, the more the weight started coming off. She started eating healthier and exercising on her own, and now she is a couple of years sober and at her healthiest weight ever as well. Working on the addictive issues "solved" multiple problems...
Ask 1000 people if they would rather have the option for psychological care that would remove risk of overeating or drinking without the risk of surgery; what would they say then?
I honestly don't think people should get that done at all without some sort of professional mental health support.
If you can't control your eating and it is suggested to go the surgical route it really is best to go non-invasive. That is with any type of medical treatment. The less invasive, the safer it is.
I had a friend that had the gastric bypass done last November, right after Thanksgiving. She was 33. She died this past March. She just keeled over. Maybe it was from something else but she seemed pretty healthy until she had the surgery. Then she was sick all the time...nausea, vomiting. Perhaps the surgeon made a mistake. Who knows. I don't think her husband and family are looking into it. But she told me that if she had the chance to do it all over again she wouldn't have the surgery. She also had to follow a very strict diet before and after and it seemed like she could have done that, anyway. It turned out to not be a magic bullet and may have actually killed her. Just my thoughts.
I had a friend get this done and thankfully for her, everything turned out fine. She had a lot of emotional scars, though. An abusive husband who criticised her for her weight really made things hard for her. He was in prison by the time I became friends with this person. After her surgery, she did not change any of her eating habits, she simply ate less because of the reduced capacity inside her stomach. As tactfully as I could, I encouraged her to change these eating habtis. This was met with resistance at first, but over the years she slowly learned to modify her habits. Many years later she is doing fine. She is not skinny, but she is much healthier than ever.
I am happy to report that my friend is a success story. However, I also feel that the risks with this procedure outweigh the benefits. I don't know enough about the numbers to know if my friend is an exception or not, but I do think that the risk of complications are high enough that people should exhaust every other method first before turning to gastric bypass.
I had a friend that had the gastric bypass done last November, right after Thanksgiving. She was 33. She died this past March. She just keeled over. Maybe it was from something else but she seemed pretty healthy until she had the surgery. Then she was sick all the time...nausea, vomiting. Perhaps the surgeon made a mistake. Who knows. I don't think her husband and family are looking into it. But she told me that if she had the chance to do it all over again she wouldn't have the surgery. She also had to follow a very strict diet before and after and it seemed like she could have done that, anyway. It turned out to not be a magic bullet and may have actually killed her. Just my thoughts.
I've heard of similar stories, and it is very sad. I truly am sorry for the loss of your friend.
All that bariatric surgery...is just wrong in my book.
Ridiculous rate of complications.
I can't tell you how many people have problems post-op and for years afterwards.
its called substution. We will exchange once addiction for something else. I have done this with so many things in my life. The trick is to make it a better healthier if possible addiction/ like exercise. At one time it was drugs then at age 28 I quit drugs and and took up basically bodybuilding. However I have been to the dark and gray areas of that too!!! Now its just plain old lifting super heavy weights. Its an addiction but sure better than crack and food!!
All that bariatric surgery...is just wrong in my book. Ridiculous rate of complications.
I can't tell you how many people have problems post-op and for years afterwards.
You've written exactly nothing substantial.
Mortality rate is less than 0.5% (less than 1 in 200).
Weight loss surgery has by far the highest rate of retained weight loss. We're talking 85% vs 10% for conventional methods.
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