Obesity is a tough problem to resolve. All said and done surgery is the last hope and the magic fix for those into losing weight.

Team@CMHF

Two recent stories out of Flint’s Hurley Medical Center have showcased the power and hope of the Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery.

The Midland family of Nancy Grau, and her children Chris, Katie and Michael Aeschliman, all have undergone the procedure and to date have lost nearly 450 pounds.

At the MidMichigan Medical Center – Gratiot, more than 1,000 bariatric surgeries have been performed since 2003 with a combined total weight loss of more than 170,000 pounds.

These patients have dramatically improved their health and reduced their risks of diabetes, cardiovascular disease and heart attacks, among others.

To be clear, we routinely endorse more natural, non-surgical methods for weight loss. The television show Biggest Loser is a big proponent of the same prescription of healthy eating, smaller portions and daily exercise for weight loss and lifetime weight control.

These patients have dramatically improved their health and reduced their risks of diabetes, cardiovascular disease and heart attacks, among others.

To be clear, we routinely endorse more natural, non-surgical methods for weight loss. The television show Biggest Loser is a big proponent of the same prescription of healthy eating, smaller portions and daily exercise for weight loss and lifetime weight control.

Weight loss is achievable for most people using those guidelines.
Gastric bypass surgery, even under the best of circumstances and improvements in medical technology, is still a major surgery and carries the risk of death, small though it may be.
But it’s hard to argue with success.

For those people who have tried every other route available, gastric bypass offers hope of overcoming obesity and the health risks, and costs, that come with it.

Katie Aeschliman said it best when she said that after years of struggling, she saw that gastric bypass could be a useful tool for her. It’s not a magic fix and people have to change their behaviors drastically for long

Ref: http://www.ourmidland.com/story_prep/article_7e457529-da58-57f7-b27a-42ee114f4d2c.html