Understanding Bariatric

By itself the word bariatric is not one you see very often. But when it is used as an adjective before words such as surgery or medicine, then it becomes more commonplace. It comes from bariatrics which is the part of medicine that deals with treating obesity. Many times this treatment includes weight loss surgery, such as liposuction procedures, if a doctor feels it is necessary.

Obesity is a serious disease with symptoms that build slowly over an extended period of time. There are some surgeries that are specifically recommended for patients with morbid obesity. The National Institute of Health defines morbid obesity as being 100 pounds or more overweight, or having a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 40 or greater, or having a BMI of 35 or greater with one or more co-morbid (meaning the presence of one or more disorders in addition to the primary disorder) condition. After your doctor gets a complete medical history from you and perhaps runs some tests, he or she will determine if you meet the criteria and conditions and will talk with you to see if having the surgery for weight loss is right for you.

Did you know that right now there are over 24 million adults in the US who are living with morbid obesity and that by the year 2010 it is predicted that there will be over 31 million adult sufferers. Bariatric medicine has shown how obvious it is that morbid obesity interferes with all basic functions such as breathing and walking, with long term implications that may include a shorter life expectancy, heart disease and diabetes. The National Industry of Health tells us that people in this range will all qualify for some form of surgery in weight control, such as a liposuction procedure.

A BMI of 40 or greater is said to be a sign of morbid obesity OR a BMI of 35 or greater along with a co-morbid condition. There are many conditions that could fit this description. Some of the more common ones include: heart disease requiring heart surgery, high blood pressure, sleep apnea, type 2 diabetes, acid reflux or GERD, Cancer, Depression along with several others. Mortality rates from many of these conditions are higher among people with morbid obesity.

If you need further proof that there is a lasting benefit of having elective surgery for weight loss, then consider a 5 year study that was done comparing 3 weight loss strategies. One strategy was diet and exercise resulting in only 2 to 5% of the people maintaining a weight loss of at least 10%. The second one was prescribed weight loss medication, but this resulted in 0%, as no one was able to maintain any weight loss. The third was bariatric surgery that resulted in 50 to 70% of the people being able to lose at least 50% of the excess weight and keep it off.

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