Gastric bypass and other weight loss surgeries can have deadly results

• Surgery should always be the last resort for any injury, condition or disease.
• It's a mistake for anyone to abandon -- or, worse, sidestep -- the proven behavioral solutions of exercise and a balanced diet.
• The risks of invasive bariatric surgeries (such as gastric bypass, adjustable gastric banding, duodenal switch, etc.) are substantial.
• Mortality rates for bariatric surgical procedures can be as high as 1 in 100, according to estimates by Virginia Commonwealth University.
• The survivors can expect months of difficult recovery, common complications -- such as vomiting, ulcers, hernias and internal bleeding -- and the surgery's dirty little secret: the cruel irony of a nightmarishly strict diet for the rest of their lives.
• Most patients are restricted from eating certain foods ever again (which vary depending on the person).
• In addition, patients are often required to take a variety of supplements and medications to combat "predictive malabsorption," a serious side-effect that stops the body from digesting crucial nutrients.
• After gastric bypass, naughty indulgences that contain excess fats and sugars can become life-threatening transgressions, because they take up crucial stomach space but have no nutritional value.
• Sadly, many of these patients could lose their extra weight without surgery, given a well-designed fitness program that includes diet, exercise and proven behavior modification techniques.
• In over twenty years of treating obesity, I've rarely recommended bariatric surgery, and when I have, it has only been in the very most extreme cases and with great trepidation.
• Even in the most extreme cases, behavioral therapies can be as effective and rewarding as invasive procedures.
• And behavioral programs are always more flexible -- not to mention safe.
• With a well-planned approach and the help of a medical professional, anyone can lose their excess weight, without losing the freedom of a normal lifestyle.