A bit of talk recently in the bars about the procedure known as “Sleeve Gastrectomy” for weight loss.
Yes, weight loss, with the incidence of obesity increasing every year, weight loss is an important feature today. Yes, even those delightful wispy little Thai girls hanging on to chrome poles are larger than they used to be 10 years ago.
Sleeve Gastrectomy is a surgical procedure to reduce the size of the stomach. This will help to limit the amount of food eaten which makes the patients successfully lose weight.
Many but not all overweight people are able to have this surgery. Surgeons use the Body Mass Index (BMI) as a criteria for surgery, with the normal sized people having a BMI 18.5-24.9 kg / m²
People with a BMI over 30 kg / m² or more are considered as overweight. But it is not yet considered as obese. The person with the BMI 35 kg / m² or more is considered as having severe obesity and a BMI 40 kg / m² or more is considered morbid obesity.
The obese person with a BMI 35 or higher is the person who benefits from the surgery. As a result of the study it has been found that people in this group will not lose weight despite diet, exercise or medication. That makes it very difficult to control ailments that go along with obesity, such as Diabetes, for example.
The benefits of surgery to produce a smaller stomach lies from the fact that the patient will eat less without feeling hungry and feel full faster, thereby limiting the amount of food which in turn results in weight loss.
Sleeve Gastrectomy is similar to Gastric Banding but has surgical removal of a large portion of the stomach along the greater curvature. The result is a sleeve like structure making for a smaller stomach and they will eat less.
Because the patients require general anesthesia for this surgery, the risk is the same as any other surgery. Complications can occur in patients with underlying diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, etc. The anesthetic doctor will assess whether or not they are suitable for surgery.
Being done by laparoscope, after care is short (3-4 days) but if patients have complications or need to have additional surgery, it may require a longer stay. After the surgery, the patients are given a diet immediately. They will receive a diet plan from the doctor and need to consult a dietitian.
In general, they should do as follows:
The first week after surgery: the patients may eat liquid food such as soups, beverages, but no sugar, (do not take carbonated drinks) water, vegetable juice. Eat a little at a time, but often.
Two weeks later, the patients are able to eat a small piece of soft food, and then convert into a regular diet. It should be eaten in small amounts. They have to chew food thoroughly before swallowing and longer than usual. Do not drink water with meals. The doctor will arrange the appointments for periodic follow-up.
Here is the usual scenario:
Overweight…
Weight gain becomes a health problem
Diabetes, hypertension, osteoarthritis, back pain…
Tried to diet, exercise and pills, but the weight does not come off.
After successful surgery, the patient should eat three meals a day and limit unnecessary snacks between the meals.
Weight loss is successful or not depending on what you eat. Snacking between meals stops weight loss and may actually cause weight gain due to the calorie intake more than necessary.
Not chewing food thoroughly will cause stomachache, nausea, vomiting and stomach irritation. Chewing thoroughly is very important. You should cut the food into small pieces before eating.
Avoid sugar. Reading food labels is essential to note that the sugar in foods is natural or artificial sweetener. You should limit yourself to only 15 grams of sugar or less for one meal to help control calories.
(Body mass index (BMI) is a value derived from the mass (weight) and height of an individual. The BMI is defined as the body mass divided by the square of the body height, and is universally expressed in units of kg/m2.)
With thanks to the Surgery Center, Bangkok Hospital Pattaya Tel. 1719.
