Gastric Bypass Can Have Nutritional Consequences

As obesity reaches epidemic proportions in the United States and people who are overweight scramble to shed pounds to avoid potential health complications, gastric bypass surgery has become a popular solution. While this highly effective surgical procedure can help patients shed pounds and keep them off, there are potential pitfalls patients should be well aware of before they proceed.

Gastric bypass surgery involves the permanent reworking of the stomach and digestive system. During the procedure the stomach is made smaller and is connected directly to the middle of the small intestine. This effectively limits food intake and food absorption abilities post-surgery. The end result is an effective means for losing weight and helping keep it off.

Since the digestive process is dramatically changed during the gastric bypass, however, patients need to be very mindful of nutritional consequences that may arise if they don’t follow doctor recommendations closely after this procedure. Gastric bypass patients may suffer from malnutrition, anemia and a host of other concerns if they do not stick to their prescribed diets and take nutritional supplements as recommended. Those who don’t will find deficiencies of B12, D, iron, zinc and B1 are common. It’s also possible the body will have a low level of albumin that is essential for transporting hormones.

With these consequences in mind, doctors recommend gastric bypass patients undergo nutritional counseling for at least their first year post-surgery. It is, however, often recommended that counseling continue longer. Patients need to carefully balance their weight-loss needs with the overall nutritional health of their bodies.

Weight loss surgery has proven effective for helping prevent or lessen symptoms of such conditions as high blood pressure and diabetes. Rushing into any permanent procedure, however, isn’t advised. Those who are interested in learning more about bariatric surgery are urged to discuss the options with their healthcare providers.

About Author:-

One of the most experienced weight loss surgeons in the country – Dr. Nick Nicholson

• along with a full staff of surgeons, nurses and other experienced clinicians, help patients reverse obesity with LAP-BAND, Gastric Bypass, Sleeve Gastrectomy and Revisions.