That Health Rules

The rising obesity epidemic and the need for better and safer drugs for weight loss, has made a lot of doctors and patients in need for better alternatives.  As a result, you hear a lot of patients going after alternative forms of therapy and herbal preparations devoid of any scientific proofs and opt to try medications advertised on TV with image models like Judy Ann Santos claiming weight loss in front of all of us!

The truth of the matter is… weight loss depends solely on YOU!  One’s discipline to achieve the goal of weight loss depends solely on ones will to do it and achieve that goal.  There is no easy way out or a magic pill that will allow us to eat and yet lose weight! PERIOD! I have made some recommendations in this website that are deemed safe, effective and practical.  If you are willing to follow the rules of the game, then you should make it big time in weight loss. Am sure we all know how to lose weight BUT we just cant bring ourselves to cut the meat and the fat, or to bring ourselves outside to run or walk because the comfort of the bed and TV is so tempting match it with chips and soda! HOLA…. more fat is welcome and less energy is utilized!

The magic formula for the year 2007 if you want to lose weight big time is SURGERY!  There’s no other MAGIC way at the present time.  The only one procedure I will recommend to my patients at the present time if they are deemed candidates to it is the so called LAP BAnd.  It is now the widely accepted procedure in the US and in our country.  But IS IT SAFE?

A small pouch in the upper part of the stomach is created with a controlled and adjustable stoma, without stapling, thus limiting food intake.  A gastric band device is introduced through tiny (1cm) incisions laparoscopically without making a big cut in the abdomen and is placed around the upper part of the stomach.  The whole procedure can be done in 30 minutes to 1 hour and the band that is fitted in the stomach and be inflated or deflated reversibly.  Within 48 hours…you are discharged from the hospital.

In a recent article published in March 2007, Surgery for Obesity and Related Diseases,

…a 5-year study of the safety of laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) was compared to laparoscopic Roux-en Y gastric bypass (LRYGB), two bariatric surgical procedures performed in the United States for the treatment of morbid obesity. All patients undergoing LAGB received the LAP-BAND(R) System, which is the only FDA-approved adjustable implant device for individualized weight loss. found it to have a significantly fewer complications, shorter operative times, and shorter hospital stays when compared with LRYGB….

In that study the patients who were advised surgery were categorized a morbidly with either a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 40 or more or a lower BMI of 35 or more with at least one obesity-related co-morbidity, such as sleep apnea, diabetes, or hypertension. 

Weight loss from these procedure can be dramatic.  But again, you should be ready enough to stop eating once you feel full.  Since your stomach is now literally small… you feel full easily and therefore, the WANT to eat should take a back seat and the NEED to stop eating because your ” small” stomach is now full to its capacity should supersede the WANT!

A Magic Pill definitely is better…but there is still NONE available… and definitely NOT the ones advertised on TV! The ads just take advantage of the people’s despair to lose weight fast!

I still and will continuously recommend and promote the safest way to lose weight … through discipline, determination and will to eat what is right and what is healthy!

Eat Right and Bright To Stay Light!

Read My Other Related Posts:

• Is Weight Loss Surgery Right For You?
• Check Your Numbers: Are You Obese?
• The Risk Of Being Obese

This entry was posted on April 23, 2007 at 8:10 am and is filed under General Health Tips, Medical News Bits, The Truths on Obesity, Weight Loss Tips.