Bariatric Surgery May Offer Help for Obese Teenagers

With the rate of obesity in teenagers in the United States keeping pace with adult obesity, helping youth shed pounds once and for all is a concern for many. With serious health complications, such as Type 2 diabetes, liver disease and certain forms of cancer, all linked to obesity, losing weight is seen as critical. While some teenagers respond well to diet and exercise interventions, those deemed severely overweight may have a harder road ahead. Researchers are finding that bariatric surgery does offer a number of benefits for younger patients.

The latest research supporting the benefits of bariatric surgery to assist with teen obesity comes from the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. Here researchers tracked 242 severely obese adolescents between the ages of 13 and 19 who weighed an average of 325 pounds prior to surgery. Over the course of the study, researchers found that weight loss surgery helped these teens lose, on average, a third of their original body weight. They were able to maintain that loss for three years.

While the dramatic weight loss alone was a positive finding from the study, researchers uncovered a number of other benefits. The development of obesity-linked diseases, they said, was stopped in its tracks. Of the teens who presented with Type 2 diabetes when the study began, about 95 percent of them had no trace of the disease at the three-year mark. What’s more is that the teens also had lower blood pressure, less blood fat and improve kidney function.

Obesity in children and teenagers is fast becoming a major problem in the United States. Serious health complications may arise when weight is allowed to remain unchecked. Bariatric surgery may provide a number of major benefits for teens who cannot shed pounds otherwise. To find out more about the benefits and the potential for weight loss surgery to help a teen, consult with a licensed healthcare provider.

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Abdominal Surgery Specialists, a part of the Nicholson Clinic, is led by Dr. Nick Nicholson, one of the most experienced laparoscopic surgeons in the country.

We are Abdominal Surgery Specialists, a part of the Nicholson Clinic, led by Dr. Nick Nicholson, one of the most experienced laparoscopic surgeons in the country. Dr. Nicholson has performed over 10,000 minimally invasive procedures.