Questions to help me decide

[BarbaraG]

OK, I'm doing my research about different ops, can someone answer these Q's which I haven't been able to find in general info:

Band: I've seen several websites advertising bands with unlimited fills for 2 years.... is there still a need for fills after 2 years, and if so why?

If you need to vomit (norovirus or something) - what happens?

I've seen stats that the typical weight loss with a band is 50% of excess weight, but are there any figures about how variable it is? What % of people completely fail to lose weight, only lose 10% etc etc.



Bypass: How much sugar results in dumping, e.g. Would you get away with the sugar in a standard low-fat yogurt or a square of chocolate, or do you basically have to go sugar-free?

Does everyone have to take supplements forever?

Anyone got any stats on the incidence of gallstones following bypass?

Same question as the last one above re % of people that don't lose/lose only a modest amount with a bypass

Thanks for any input,
Barbara

 

[Big an Bouncy]

I can only speak from my experience of rny.I dont dump on sugar,I can eat sweets,chocs,cakes,biscuits and puds!The worst side affect is flushing as the insulin spikes.So I have to watch it,I have also developed a sweet tooth post bypass.
Yes you take supplements for life,do that and eat a varied diet and you should have no probs.
Dont have stats on gallstones but its an individual thing,your doc will advise you on.Some get gall stones some dont.
The percentages for losses are 65/75% of excess body weight,that can be made up of fat,muscle and water,muscle wastage is common.Dont know of anyone who hasnt lost significant amounts and kept them off.

 

[safc_chick]

Hiya everyone is different with regards to dumping, I havent went daft but I have ate a snacksize chocolate bar a few times over christmas and I've drank 500ml bottles of oasis pop and I've tried 1 500ml sports drink which is really high in sugar and so far I've not experienced dumping I've been perfectly fine but it seems everyone is different.
I will be on vitamins for life xx

 

[wannabeminime]

Just wanted to say to consider the sleeve gastrectomy, its a halfway house between the two!

 

[SARAH S]

I personally dump on fats which is good for me as I have a savoury palatte and my downfall has always been creamy sauces, garlic butters etc. Sugars aren't quite so bad although I havent tried to push it to any limits...the occasional sweet or being in the catering trade trying a dessert ( small mouthful only) I get hat flushes only. But I have to monitor fats carefully as I have dumped twice and come close a couple of other times....not recommended at all.

My surgical team expect me to lose 75% of my excess weight (for me six and a half stone) and if I maintain for two years that is classed as a success. I aim/wish to lose a further 2 stones to get to my own target...I have lost five and a half stones already.

As for being sick it appears to be harder post op. If I eat a little too fast I have some frothing, not pleasant, but have never been sick although I know some suffer from projectile vomiting if they eat too much/fast.

Weight lose is inevitable if you reduce your intake...the main benefit of bypass for me is I have no appetite (at the moment) so no hunger and I am able to readjust what I want to eat.

Everyone is different though and you are very wise to do as much research as possible. If it helps my decision to have a bypass included the fact that I didn't want to have to keep going back for refills. It was one hit and that was it....I had no pain and have had a very easy straight forward ride...but again everyone's different and I know I have been very fortunate.

Good luck with your research and your decision making

 

[Mazza]

You will find hundreds of studies on estimated loss, regain and failure for both forms of surgery.

How succesful a patient is in the main is down to the individual and how determined they are to committ to a healthy eating and exercise regime.

On this site we have many,many success stories with the bypass (the majority of the members here have had the bypass) but we also have succesful sleevers and banders. More recently we also have some wrappers who are doing really well too.

Statistics are just that and many of us buck the trend.

In my humble opinion the choice of surgery should be based on eating habbits, weight to lose and the level of commitment.

Good luck with your research! x

 

[Sharonimo]

I've seen stats that the typical weight loss with a band is 50% of excess weight, but are there any figures about how variable it is? What % of people completely fail to lose weight, only lose 10% etc etc.

As Mazza says the statistics are variable, on every website and every research study.

I did find one website previously that had tried to amalgamate a number of studies and hope that Mazza won't mind me posting this link: Types of Bariatric Surgery - The 16 Primary Established & Experimental Procedures (the $ prices are US prices for surgery -- ignore them -- but the individual info for each op is still useful).

You will see that for a band, although it says the "average" weight loss is 50%, it admits it can range from 25% to 80% (i think Mazza and a few on here have even achieved 100% EWL with a band).

With all ops, it does depend to a large extent how compliant the patient is with the dietary rules for *that* particular operation.

Bypass: How much sugar results in dumping, e.g. Would you get away with the sugar in a standard low-fat yogurt or a square of chocolate, or do you basically have to go sugar-free?

From what I have read, Barbara, including real life experiences of bypassers on here the amount really varies from person to person. A few bypassers don't dump, or very very rarely. The amount of sugar, carbs and fats each person can tolerate post-op varies ..... any post op bariatric patient should only try things out in moderation after their op and find out what your own limits are.

 

[Fashionably Late]

Bypass: How much sugar results in dumping, e.g. Would you get away with the sugar in a standard low-fat yogurt or a square of chocolate, or do you basically have to go sugar-free? I don't dump normally on sugar (with a few notable exceptions). I do struggle with fats though.

Does everyone have to take supplements forever? I take just normal vitamins like most other non-op's out there and my bloods are perfect.

Anyone got any stats on the incidence of gallstones following bypass? I had my gallbladder out numerous years prior to my bypass.

I have lost over 100% of my EWL. The op is nothing more than a tool. I still have to eat right and exercise. If you eat junk and rarely exercise you will lose some weight but the chances of a regain are huge. I have the occasional treat but if I were to eat them daily, like pre-bypass, I would become fat again.

 

[BarbaraG]

I have lost over 100% of my EWL. The op is nothing more than a tool. I still have to eat right and exercise. If you eat junk and rarely exercise you will lose some weight but the chances of a regain are huge. I have the occasional treat but if I were to eat them daily, like pre-bypass, I would become fat again.

I would guess that if you were long term obese before your op, that you already knew that treats should ideally be an occasional thing rather than a daily staple food. I have known this for a long long time - but knowing it and being able to do it are two different things.

Has the op made it easier to keep treats occasional, or is that something you have done yourself? And if the latter, why do you think you've managed it now when you couldn't before?

Barbara

 

[stuckinafatsuit]

Hi barbara
I posted some info on here a few weeks ago, its in general weight loss discussion, under
"new data on weight gain" It should be on page 2 or 3 now i think.
have a look its really interesting.
Kim

 

[wannabeminime]

http://www.wlsurgery.com/general-surgical-weight-loss-discussion/143440-new-data-weight-gain-2.html

 

[Big an Bouncy]

Its so much easier to control your eating post op as you cant binge,tum too small.I have not been hungry once in the past year like preop.I dont get hunger pangs or rumbly tum!

 

[Fashionably Late]

The op definitely made it easier to control my eating. If I had not of then the op would have been a failure for me.

 

[mariew]

I don't think I dump. I can eat a biscuit or 2 and have tried a kids jelly sweet with no effect. I haven't tried anything fatty but I did have a teaspoon of low fat soured cream earlier in the week with the chicken and peppers from a fajita, I was fine. However, milky drinks make me feel very sick. I have only been sick a bit once, and that was when I just swallowed 2 canned meatballs! I forgot I'd had a bypass and just ate them normally. I eat quite quickly still and don't chew everything to a paste but have never had food stuck, and I can manage chicken, beef, lamb etc I can still only manage very small amounts though, and I find my restiction greatest in the morning. 3/4 weetabix is the maximum I can get in, sometimes I can only manage half of that. I am never hungry and I don't experience cravings.

 

[Big an Bouncy]

I can eat two weetabix or two shredded wheat at 11 months.
1 poached egg on 1 toast,
2 tbsp beans on 1 toast.
1 rasher bacon,1 egg,2 tin toms.
1 cheese on toast 1 tom.
1 egg scrambled with grated cheese.
1 tin mackerel,side salad.
Half lg tin soup,small roll

 

[Ruthiep]

I agree; think about the sleeve gastrectomy too. It's not as drastic as the bypass but eliminates the faffing around you have to do with the band. And the weight loss is better. But as has been said, ANY WLS is only a tool..anyone who wants to cheat it can do so and they will fail. It makes it much easier to make the right choices, but you still have to be the one to make them.

 

[BarbaraG]

I agree; think about the sleeve gastrectomy too. It's not as drastic as the bypass but eliminates the faffing around you have to do with the band. And the weight loss is better. But as has been said, ANY WLS is only a tool..anyone who wants to cheat it can do so and they will fail. It makes it much easier to make the right choices, but you still have to be the one to make them.

Some really helpful responses, thank you all. I have been looking at the sleeve, which I didn't realise existed, and certainly I can see it as having some advantages over the band (which was all I was thinking of before).

But first, I want to give lifestyle change one last chance. I know the odds are not good (less than 1%), but now that I've reached the point of accepting the idea of surgery, and understanding that it still means lifestyle change, I want to give it a good go.

Does that make sense? Maybe not, but I know what I mean. Even if I do end up with a band/sleeve/bypass a few months down the line, I will be lighter and fitter than if I go for it straight away (easier op, less risk of complications), AND I will know, without the shadow of a doubt, that WLS is the only thing which will make enough difference to my weight to deal with all my health problems.

Now... back to work, with a plan for a tasty low fat meal this evening and then a trip to the gym later on.

Barbara

 

[Tray3004]

Good luck Hun x

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