About Obesity
A serious health risk in America. Now 80% of adults over the age of 25 are obese. The Surgeon General has declared obesity as an epedemic. It is now the leading cause of preventable death in the United States.
Obesity, specifically morbid obesity, is responsible for a diminished quality of life for all those affected by it. In many cases it is responsible for their death.
For millions of Americans who suffer from the disease, countless and tireless attempts have been made to maintain a healthy weight.
There is hope. Thanks to medical advances and endless support from dedicated physicians, morbidly obese patients can now look toward treatments that have the potential to give them a new, healthy body and lifestyle.
Why Surgery?
Ultimately the health risks associated with morbid obesity are what lead patients to seek surgical alternatives. As a major contributor to diabetes, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, respiratory problems, stroke, certain types of cancer, depression, and a number of other serious disorders-not to mention social and psychological consequences-obesity ranks as one of the leading preventable causes of death in the United States. Morbid obesity is responsible for approximately 300,000 deaths each year.
Preventable yes, but not by most common voluntary, or non-surgical approaches. These alternatives which include diet, exercise, behavior modification, and anti-obesity drugs have proven consistently to fail in the maintenance of significant weight loss for the morbidly obese. With these non-surgical methods, at most a ten percent weight loss can be expected after one to two years. It is most common that after five years most individuals regain to their original weight and in many cases gain additional pounds.
When comparing the high risk of obesity related diseases to the relatively low risk of surgical treatments, Bariatric surgery becomes a viable and hopeful approach to weight control for obese patients. This is why bariatric surgery is recommended by the National Institute of health.
