Surgery Isn't Really Better for Weight loss

Posted on Mar 6th 2009 1:00PM by Liz Neporent

Liz Neporent is a diet and fitness expert and author of 12 fitness bestsellers. She regularly appears on national TV programs and is the president of Wellness 360, a New-York based wellness provider.

Staring down a number on the scale you feel is more aligned with a small pony than your dream dress size can be devastating, especially if you feel you've tried everything under the sun to lose weight. Perhaps that's why bariatric surgery -- a group of procedures that restricts stomach size or intestinal length in order to reduce the amount of food the patient is able to eat -- is more popular than ever.

Now, I am not hating on bariatric surgery. Obviously it has helped many people. But I do hope that those thinking about going under the knife understand that it is not a free pass to continue eating garbage and building up their TV remote muscles. As any reputable surgeon will tell you, making a post-op commitment to a healthier lifestyle is the key to maintaining weight loss over the long haul. The best surgery programs screen out candidates deemed unlikely or unwilling to make the requisite lifestyle changes. Surgeons are smart; they know that a successful patient is their best advertisement.

Nor must surgery be the last resort of those truly desperate to un-super size. A growing number of studies prove that diet and exercise alone can be every bit as effective as surgery -- and further, people who choose to lose the old fashioned way tend to be healthier and suffer from fewer side effects.

Take for instance, the conclusions of last year's study done at the Miriam Hospital's Centers for Behavioral and Preventive Medicine in Rhode Island, which followed people who had lost an average of 124 pounds and kept it off for at least five years. Both groups ate about the same number of calories and gained back an average of about four pounds per year. However, the surgery group tended to indulge in more high fat foods (37 percent of their diet compared to 27 percent for the health-conscious group) and skipped many more workouts than the group that lost their weight by effort alone (only a third of surgery patients exercised compared to 60 percent of the other group). Surgery patients also reported feeling more depressed and stressed; 20 percent reported serious complications after their procedures.

The take home message? If you want to lose weight, don't give up on the idea that diet and exercise alone can get you there. That said, I won't lie to you. Going this route will take you longer and you will have to work your butt off (studies prove this) but there are fewer side effects and many, many benefits. If you are considering surgery, get real about the changes you'll need to make in order to keep the weight off. However you decide to shrink yourself, you'll be rewarded with a lowered risk of diabetes, high blood pressure, some types of cancer and many other obesity-related conditions.

I'd like to hear from anyone who has lost a bunch of weight and kept it off for at least two years. What tips do you have to share with the rest of us? Whether you've undergone surgery or dedicated your life to tofu and the treadmill, what are your lessons learned?

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Tags: bariatricsurgery, diet, exercise, liz-neporent, weight-loss, weight-loss-surgery, what-really-works

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

u262f 3-06-2009 @ 3:27PM

Ouch. Compared to the 124 lbs in the survey, does the paltry 65 lbs I lost and kept off qualify as "a bunch"? My tip is that becoming fit and healthy doesn't have to be hard work. It can be fun and yummy if you find the right combination for your own body. In retrospect, it wasn't about following doctor-recommended ideals but about coming into myself and figuring out who I really am and what I really enjoy. When I first started trying to lose weight, my efforts to eat rabbit food and sweat at the gym only resulted in gaining more weight because that's just not who I am. I lost weight by letting myself eat fatty foods and play lots of video games. It's easy to stick to a healthy lifestyle when it's this much fun and so very yummy.

Benrl 3-06-2009 @ 3:41PM

I had a wake up call about a year and a half ago, I had High Blood pressure, I was over weight and then I had a slight stroke (i know how can a stroke be light).

I was 340, My doctor recommended the lap band thing, It was simply at that point I decided to get off my butt and do something, I started walking every day first, I cut out all fast food from my diet.

Eventually i moved to weight training as well, in a year and a half, I have managed through diet and exercise to drop 90 pounds, and I am still going.

The funny thing is friends have asked me if I had that surgery, My response is no I just stopped being lazy.

Elena 3-13-2009 @ 1:35PM

I was seriously considering the lap band surgery last year and would have gone through with it, except that my insurance company wouldn't pay for it unless I'd waited six months under a dr's care to say that I couldn't lose the weight on my own. After seeing a nutritionist to log my six months, I started losing weight. I feel stronger and healther now than I ever have before. I'm sticking with the old fashion way, and have lost 55lbs in less than a year.

My sister got the lap band and has lost about the same amount of weight as I have in about 7 months, but she still eats crap and only exercises once a week! Her results are faster and most likely more noticeable but I'm ok with her success. I just don't compare it to mine.

DaleK 3-19-2009 @ 10:54PM

Does 75lbs count as a bunch?

And why do I have to choose between surgery and tofu/treadmill? I don't like either option. If those were my only options I'd have to consider the surgery..and is probably why many others do as well....

Not that it would get me what I was after....

I dedicate my life to ME! A part of that is eating a nutritious, balanced and pleasing to my palette diet. I've never eaten anything I didn't like just because it was "good for me". It took work but I was able to find foods I enjoyed that didn't hamper my weight loss goals.

I work with overweight clients and one of the biggest issues they have is figuring out what to eat aside from things like plain broiled chicken breast and salad. HOW BORING! I'm not gonna eat like that for sure! Pfft...gimme the surgery! ;) I LIKE FOOD! That won't ever change - surgery or no surgery!

My number one piece of advice is to cut out as much processed food as possible. It's generally high calorie, low nutritional value, and (important for my insatiable appetite) low volume. I'm an expert at getting in huge quantities of yummy food for as few calories as possible.

While losing weight, I even got to eat things like my fave brownie sundaes every now and then!! In fact, I ate them more while losing than I do now. I just don't want as much junk these days. Food is my fuel. My body craves it. Brownie sundaes tend to make me sleepy. My body doesn't crave that.

I also kick butt at the gym on a regular basis. As a 43 year old woman, there's nothing more empowering than pushing harder, sweating more, and lifting more weight AND looking WAY hotter than the 20 something guy on the bench next to me! ;) No surgery will every give me that feeling!

Granted 75lbs isn't a lot compared to many who have the surgery - but the surgery won't fix how/why people become overweight. That's all in the head. If someone can't lose weight the old fashioned way - what's the point in having the surgery? Unless it's brain surgery! ;) The weight comes back for many who don't make the required changes. Surgery is NOT the magic pill. Out performing 20 somethings IS! ;)

Eating and lifestyle changes must occur either before or after the surgery. Surgery just delays the inevitable.

http://www.thedietskinny.com

Terri 3-20-2009 @ 9:50PM

I had Gastric Bypass Surgery 5/27/04 I lost 165lbs and can't remember ever being this size, actually never was this size... BUT I did it for health reasons, I could not walk and was injured, I have 5 herniated discs, and neuromuscular dises in both legs do to the injury I had...Plus other hereditary arthritis and soft tissue issues...WLS does have complications and some major yes, depending on if you do the right thing when you have it done...The dumping isn't a major thing with me, I get it and am glad, kind of helps especially in the beginning... The major things I have gotten, are Hypoglycemia which takes a little to get a hold on but you can...I had some very major lows but all is good most of the time...Nothing I can't live with...The most major thing is a ulcer, but is managable with meds now after the initial bout that was kind of hairy... But I feel like a whole different person and feel so much better and I can walk now...So would I do it again, yes absolutely in a heartbeat but that is a Personal decision...Everyone really really has to be ready to change their habits and for a lifetime, WLS is a tool not the answer because I have seen many go back to not as bad but close to gaining alot of weight back...I researched it for 3 - 5 years had the top surgeon in my area...It was right for me, I was ready.....If you aren't it is not worth going through all that....
Just my thoughts...Be well and God Bless