Is Gastric Bypass Surgery The Right Solution For Obese Children?

By: Donald Saunders
Submitted: 2008-08-05 15:16:28
Print this article | Tell a friend | For publisher | Social Bookmarking
Rating:
 

While the number of gastric bypass surgeries being performed each year is going up as obesity rates continue to rise in most western countries, a lot of people still believe that surgery is not the right solution for obesity in teens. Nonetheless, this could be changing and, although numbers are still relatively small, teenage gastric bypass surgeries increased by 300% between 2000 and 2003.

There are presently two considerations for most surgeons when it comes to surgery as an answer to the problem of obesity in teenagers. The first issue is whether or not surgery is safe in this age group and the second issue is how adolescent patients will fare in the long term.

The question of the long term effects of weight loss surgery is of course one which will only be answered with time, when a large enough group of teenagers has had surgery and we have produced some meaningful statistics. During 2003 in excess of 105,000 gastric bypass operations were performed but fewer than 800 of these operations were carried out on teenage patients. Even if we consider this to be a meaningful sample size from which we can draw conclusions about the long term effects of surgery, we still have to wait many years before drawing such conclusions.

As far as the success of the procedure itself is concerned, teenagers have proved to be excellent candidates for surgery, requiring shorter hospitalization, recovering quickly and demonstrating fewer problems both during and following surgery. This is not surprising when you think that most teenagers go into surgery without the many medical conditions that are frequently seen in adults. Perhaps most important of all, the death rate from gastric bypass surgery among teenagers is a lot less than that seen in adults.

As well as those concerns related to surgery itself there is also the wider question of whether or not we should be looking at surgery at all with adolescents. Patients having gastric bypass surgery have to make considerable changes to their lifestyle and have to deal with a number of psychological issues both prior to and following surgery. It is hard enough to ask adults to tackle these issues, but a lot of people are asking whether or not this a burden that we should be putting on teenagers.

The evidence to hand at this point suggests that weight loss surgery is an effective answer to the problem of obesity in teenagers but more time is needed to assess the long term effects of surgery and to study the psychological aspects of surgery before this can become a widespread solution to the problem of obesity in youngsters.

GastricBypassFacts.info provides information on all aspects of gastric bypass surgery and will even show you how to calculate BMI

Article source: Expert Articles

Most Recent Articles in Weight Loss category

  • The Only Dieting Guide You'll Ever Need - 7 Effortless Steps to Weight Loss and Much More - By: Burt Goldman
    With a million and one diets under the sun, each claiming to be the ultimate quick fix to a perfect body, who's to say what your real solution is? So instead of getting lost in a sea of fads, let's go back to the basics - to understand why people end up overweight, and exactly what we can do about it.
  • Acai Berry 500: A Revolution in Personal Wellness - By: Eli Wyre
    Acai Berry 500 is a new diet plan that focuses on the benefits of the acai berry from Brazil. The acai berry is exactly that, a berry from a palm tree that is found in the floodplains of the Amazon River.
  • The die is cast (not machined) - By: John Scott
    The article proves the point that the first step in any cure is taking the decision that you want your life to go on. If you give up, you die. Thinking about going back to work, is making a commitment to life.
  • The morning after the night before - By: John Scott
    The article describes a second heart attack with a different set of symptoms to the first. The result sees the victim back in hospital and then in a nursing home where his addiction to nictotine and alcohol can be more easily controlled until Acomplia comes along to help.
  • In which I talk seriously with myself - By: John Scott
    The article reflects the fact that people who have almost died can hide away from the truth about the changes they have to make if they want to keep on living. Fear can paralyse them into inactivity. They need counselling if they are to break through the wall of fear and see what needs to be done.
  • Kicking my heels - By: John Scott
    The article considers the real level of effectiveness of a medication like Acomplia. It concludes that Acomplia can do no than offer support. The human being is always responsible for actually eatmore ing less and continuing the decision not to smoke.
  • Weight Loss Options... Hundreds on the Internet Alone - By: Crizza Reyes
    Hypnosis weight loss in your town is probable as it is more popular and one of the top three things a hypnotist / hypnotherapist does for work, weight loss, smoking cessation and stress reduction. The cool part about making the healthy behavior changes we need in the area of weight loss, a weight loss tape, or audio CD or digital download, is a great way to start.
  • Weight Loss Options Using Hypnosis and other Methods - By: Crizza Reyes
    There are easier ways to get healthy by losing weight and one is to program weight loss hypnosis into your subconscious. It's not about what we do but why we do what we do and that is all emotional and mind / thought based.
  • Weight Loss using Hypnosis CDs and MP3s - By: Crizza Reyes
    There are a lot of misconceptions about a very helpful way to release fat and that is weight loss hypnosis. The simple and most important thing to know and keep in mind is that hypnosis does not lose weight.
  • Is weight loss ever easy? - By: John Scott
    The article advises people to stop making excuses for themselves and take responsibility for dieting to lose weight. Combining diet, exercise and acomplia gives the best chance of significant weight loss.