Stomach band surgery reduces the size of stomach:

Obesity is a growing concern in the modern world. Lifestyle modification is the only fix for it, but surgical options are becoming more popular as the problem is getting out of hand. One of the surgical treatments for obesity is called gastric banding, which is also known as lap-band surgery.

What is gastric banding?
Laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) is a surgical procedure which is used to place an adjustable belt around the upper portion of the stomach using a laparoscope. It may help to reduce the size of the stomach to a small pouch. The band used in the surgery is made of silicone and can be tightened by adding saline to it. The band is connected to a port that is placed under the skin of the abdomen which is used to introduce or remove saline.
The surgery is ultimately designed to restrict the size of the stomach and the amount of food it can hold. It has also been helpful to slow the passage of food to the intestines. This process will signal the brain from the gut that will allow for a sensation of fullness with the consumption of less food. This signal is primarily sent from the small pouch created by the band in the upper stomach. When the pouch fills a similar signal may be sent to the brain.

What Are the Results of Gastric Banding?
Gastric banding leads to 35 to 40-pound weight loss in patients.  However, the results may vary from patient to patient. Gastric banding is considered the least invasive weight loss surgery and also the safest. The procedure can be reversed if necessary, and in time, the stomach generally returns to its normal size.
Who is the surgery for?
The surgery is for people with body mass index (BMI) of 40 or more. That would be people who are about 100 pounds overweight. If you have tried everything and failed to lose weight by other means this surgery is for you.
The surgery can prevent you from being able to eat a lot by reducing the size of your stomach. This means that you will feel full more quickly by eating less.
The surgery may change the way that your body handles the food that you eat. The surgery might make the food that you eat bypass part of your intestine so that fewer calories are absorbed by your body.

Benefits of this surgery:
• Type 2 diabetes can be completely reversed or it can be controlled more efficiently.
• Severely obese people, after weight loss surgery, may live longer. The risk of stroke, heart attacks, some types of cancer and liver disease may be reduced greatly.
• Studies have shown that people who have had these surgeries are less likely to develop high blood pressure in the future.
Stomach band surgery can not only reduce your stomach size it can also provide other health benefits. Stomach band surgery has saved the lives of many. However, a strict diet and exercise regime is important to maintain the results.

Liver shrinking diet for Gastric Bypass:
Liver shrinking diet should be started two weeks prior to the scheduled surgery date. You need to start a diet consisting of liquids, and protein shakes. Gastric bypass surgery may be life-saving, but for it to be safe you need to reduce the size of your liver. You will also reduce your co-morbidities with the surgery.
The surgery may sound simple, but it is not. You need to start eating healthy four to five weeks before your surgery. A liver shrinking diet will allow you to reduce the size of your liver and enhance the safety of your procedure. The meal plan should be low in carbohydrates, fat, and calories. A large liver may prevent your surgeon from visualizing certain areas during the procedure. This makes it unsafe to perform gastric bypass surgery. The surgeon may cancel the entire procedure.
Eating the wrong diet can have several negative effects, one of it is undue pressure on your healing stomach. To reduce the amount of fat around the liver and spleen, follow a pre-operative liquid diet fifteen days before the gastric bypass surgery. The surgery may be delayed or canceled if this procedure is not followed.

The pre-op diet can include the following elements:
• Protein shakes or meal replacement shakes should be the primary constituent of the diet.
• Consume only sugar-free beverages.
• Cut down on caffeinated or carbonated beverages completely.
• The patient can consume soup broth with no solid pieces of food.
• Vegetable juice can be extremely beneficial.
• Cream of rice can be consumed.
• Lean meat and vegetables may be consumed on your surgeon's direction.
• Diet tea can be consumed along.
• Fruits are not allowed during the liver reduction diet.
Liquids should be sipped very slowly and should not be consumed with meals. The patient should wait for thirty minutes after consuming a meal to have any type of liquid.

Approved diet chart before Gastric Bypass surgery:
• One meal daily can consist of:
1. 3-4 oz lean meat – once a day
Lean meat may include fish, beef, chicken, pork, lamb. However, no fried meat would be allowed.
Seasonings such as garlic, pepper, old bay, and salt may be allowed.
2. Two to three cups of non –starchy vegetables.
They should be cooked or eaten raw.  Bread, beans, corn,  pasta, potatoes, rice,  and peas are not allowed. Vegetables like asparagus, broccoli, carrots, carrots, cauliflower, cucumber, peppers, eggplant squash, tomatoes, green beans,  mushrooms,  zucchini, onions, spinach, greens, Brussels sprouts, etc.
3. Vegetables can be cooked or consumed as salads.
• Snack - once a day
Any low-fat dairy serving that contains 2 oz of low-fat cheese, 6 oz of Greek yogurt, and 4 oz of 2% cottage cheese.

Any beverage or powder the patient consumes should contain:
• 20 grams or less of carbohydrate
• 10 grams or less of fat
• 15 grams or more of protein
• Less than 230 calories.
It is important to follow a strict diet weeks before the surgery. You can contact a dietician or your surgeon for specific dietary, vitamins, minerals, and medicine suggestions.

Obesity: It’s time to ring the Alarm

Delightful juicy pieces of fried chicken or double burgers might be a pleasure to the taste buds but regular intake of such food may cause obesity. Obesity has hit India hard and almost 5 per cent of the Indian population is obese, according to a survey conducted by National family health survey.

Obesity, in simple terms means, an excess amount of body fat. It is usually determined by the Body Mass Index or BMI. A person is considered to be obese, if he/she has a BMI of 30 or above.
This condition mostly affects people between the age group of 24-39. Young people living in big metros or fast growing cities are mostly victims of sedentary lifestyle. They would rather spend time on their gaming portals  and computers instead of going out and having a good game of football. While India is one of the biggest beneficiaries of globalization, passive lifestyle and obesity is growing almost hand in hand.

Diet is also a problem area. High calorie diets, processed and junk food make it even more difficult. Intake of alcohol and aerated colas has also gone up. Obesity can cause high blood pressure, cholesterol and diabetes. It could even lead to a stroke.

Exercise and diet are the best ways to tackle obesity. However, if these options fail, one can opt for bariatric surgery or weight loss surgery. Surgeries like Laparoscopic Gastric Banding and Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy are proving to be very effective these days. With the Gastric lap band surgery one can expect to lose about 50 per cent of excess weight in the first one year of the surgery. And with laparoscopic Sleeve surgery one can shed about 60 per cent excess weight in 6-12 months time.

Earlier, there used to be this misconception that weight loss might have an adverse effect on the patient’s health. People who have undergone this surgery had to go back to treat surgical defects. Many were said to have regained weight after couple of years of the surgery. With advancement of research these surgeries have minimal risk and the success rate has gone up steeply. Controlled medication and postoperative supervision has minimized side effects. However, the patient has to follow a strict diet and exercise routine throughout his/her life post this surgery.

Obesity is one of the biggest health challenges that the world is facing today. Studies show that obese people have reduced longevity of life. Hence, it is time that we take charge and prevent this condition from taking shape of an epidemic.

Dieting May Not Be A Good Choice For Weight Loss Among Adolescents

Adolescence is an age of body and hormone change. Teenagers tend to become more irritated and anxious during this age. The fact is that in this age, body develops its organs due to which working, sleeping and eating habits of teenagers undergo major changes. Children are more prone to get obese during these years of teenage which last from 11-13 to 17-19. Young children develop a craze of following popular celebs and imitating them and their ways. In the world of social media, kids start trying to imitate their newly found idols. These idols which comprise actors, singers, pop stars and sportspersons usually have a perfect body shape which they flaunt every now and then. As a result, children in their adolescence start dieting and copying their favorite stars by hitting the gyms.

A survey was conducted where children in their adolescents were asked how happy they were about their body shape. A whopping 50% of the teens purported that they were not happy with their physique and wanted to change it. As a result of this striking dissatisfaction, teenagers start dieting with an intention of looking thin. Now, while dieting, these growing kids should focus on eating more raw fruits and vegetables, avoid processed foods, fat, and sugar based eatables. Additionally, they should engage in workouts and other physical activities through which they can accentuate the dieting process. Workout also should be moderated by an adult. However, a common myth that not eating helps in getting thin does not let them reach their ultimate aim. The teenagers resort to advice given by their peers and completely cut off their food intake, especially breakfast, or make it minimal. This is rather harmful and reverses the dieting process. This leads to unhealthy weight loss process. Teenagers usually diet with short-term goal and leave it soon as it is difficult to stay away from food. Thus, when they quit the diet, the temptation to eat the food they were craving for, increases. In fact, people who do not diet have a greater chance of staying away from obesity in the later years of their lives; it is proven!

Now this has a scientific theory as to why dieting leads to weight gain, or at a later stage, obesity. When one starts to diet, his mind knows that he is dieting, but the body organs don’t. When the body does not get the adequate amount of food as it normally does, the body transmutes into a survival mode and the craving for food escalates. This is the reason that people who diet, end up depressed and leave dieting feeling that they have lost in the process. So, what’s the solution?

Teenagers suffer from peer pressure, emotional breakdowns and tend to become more sensitive, Out of anxiousness and boredness, they munch occasionally. The solution is, cut short those extra meals when you are not ‘actually’ hungry. Reduce the junk food amount, but always welcome the healthy food. Keep physical exercise pouring in your schedule. This is the only mantra to fitness and weight regulation!

Ways Obesity And Hypertension Are Co-related

Obesity is highly linked with cardiovascular disease and hypertension. It is very essential to have both hypertension and weight under control in order to be healthy.

As per survey, excessive body weight is the main reason of around twenty eight percent cases of hypertension in women and twenty six percent in men. Obesity can also lead to coronary heart disease both in women and men. Obese persons tend to have increased fatty tissue which enhances their vascular resistance.
What is hypertension?

Hypertension indicates the pressure, which blood flow applies on the inner parts of the arteries. The disease of high blood pressure cannot be treated if the victim is not in good health.
Several kinds of hypertension:

Generally, there are two kinds of hypertension such as primary or essential hypertension and secondary hypertension. Mostly, people tend to be affected with essential hypertension.

Health care providers often fail to describe the specific reasons of essential hypertension. This condition can be caused by kidney problems, nutritional deficiency, infections, malnutrition, and consuming drugs.

The cases of secondary hypertension are quite common when compared to essential hypertension. This condition is a fusion of pheochromocytoma, kidney disease, sleep apnea syndrome, oral contraceptives, coarctation of the aorta and Cushing’s syndrome.
How to treat hypertension?

People affected by hypertension need to opt for regular health check up. They need to be on medications which are prescribed by the physicians to achieve normal blood pressure level. But it is essential to understand that every individual reacts separately to these medicines and therefore following a healthy lifestyle is a must.

Some common examples of high blood pressure medicine include Low dose diuretic, ACE inhibitors and calcium channel blocker.
Low dose diuretic is less costly when compared to the other types of medications of high blood pressure. This treatment has little or zero impact on lipid metabolism or glucose when compared to other drugs.
What are the risk factors of hypertension?

Abnormal obesity is one of the major risk factors of hypertension. Obesity can be measured by the BMI rate which uses height and weight as a parameter. Generally, the basic BMI rate is between 20 to 25 but an obese person is more likely to have a BMI rate which is more than 30. Apart from the BMI rate, the issue of fat distribution is also important for determining the factors of hypertension. Fat distribution in the abdominal trunk is termed as abdominal obesity. This condition is defined by a waist circumference greater than 102 cm.

However, the issues of hypertension can be treated by seeking the proper medical advice.

5 Simple Steps to Prevent Hypertension

Hypertension is a long term medical condition in which the blood exerts excessive pressure against the artery walls, leading to several possible complications. Also known as High Blood Pressure, hypertension is a major risk factor for coronary artery disease, stroke, heart failure, peripheral vascular disease, vision loss, and chronic kidney disease.  Studies estimate that over 20% of the world’s adults suffer from hypertension and one in every 3 people will the condition are not yet diagnosed. The disease often goes undetected for several years as it exhibits no symptoms until it damages another function of the body. For this year, hypertension is often known as a “silent killer”. Hypertension can often be controlled and even prevented with simple lifestyle modifications and healthy habits.

Home Remedies to Treat Obesity

Obesity is a medical condition which occurs due to excessive accumulation of body fat and may have negative effects on your health. It is one of the complex disorders which is affecting a lot of people in India. A survey says that 70% people living in metros are fat or obese. Hence, it is high time to fight the disorder by understanding its causes and treatment options:

Common causes of obesity are:

Lifestyle
Too much of fatty foods
Spacing of meals
Hormones
Metabolism
Genetic factors
There are numerous treatment options available for obesity. However, if you can easily control obesity with home remedies then why to go for the medical procedure.

Few of the home remedies for obesity management are:

Add tomatoes, carrots, and dark leafy vegetables to your daily diet and keep your stomach full throughout the day. These vegetables are low in calories and good for your health.
Green tea is one of the most effective remedies for weight loss. Include 2-3 cups of green tea in your daily routine to fight obesity.
Many of us avoid exercising on a daily basis. Lack of exercise can lead to obesity or over-weight. However, exercise helps burn up extra body fat and keeps you healthy. So, it is time to start doing exercise on a daily basis.
Make a mixture of 1 teaspoon of honey and lemon juice in a glass of warm water and have this mixture every day in the morning.
Mint leaves are very useful in order to lose weight. Add them into your daily diet in the form of peppermint tea. You can also chew them after your meals.
Apple cider vinegar is very effective in breaking down body fat. Make a mixture of 1 teaspoon of lemon juice and 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar in a glass of warm water and take it every day on empty stomach.

Worried about being FAT? You Need A Liposuction!

Obesity is a disorder involving excessive body fat that increases the risk of health problems. Obesity is strongly associated with the development of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, cancer, arthritis and many other serious chronic diseases. Obesity in itself is a chronic disorder, which has now taken epidemic proportions. Controlling your weight and size can often go that extra mile to save you from these deadly diseases.

Physicians advise to keep your weight under control and prescribe weight loss and regular exercise for a good health. The second line management includes treatment with non-surgical methods such as pharmacological weight reduction using medicine like octreotide. Cryolipolysis is a non-invasive procedure where adipose tissues are cooled down, breaking the fat cells without damage to other tissues. But when all else fails, a technique called liposuction is performed.

What is Liposuction?

Liposuction or lipoplasty is a cosmetic surgery that removes fat from the human body and in the process, changes the shape of the body. The procedure slims and reshapes certain areas of the body that have been resistant to diet and exercise. It may not affect obesity related problems and is used more frequently for better appearances and tighter bodies than for health problems. This surgery can be performed on different body parts including arms, abdomen, buttocks and thighs or flanks. While it does not improve cellulite, stretch marks or aesthetics, it is used to change the basic contour of the body. Depending on the extent of Liposuction, the recovery can be between two days to two weeks. It has a fast recovery with faster return to work.

Who is it for?

Not everyone can be recommended to go in for liposuction. It is generally performed on adults above the age of 18 years with a good overall health. Liposuction is more successful in candidates with certain fatty pockets on the body and a good elastic skin that can tighten around the new shape. It may be performed in older patients as well, where disease-limiting benefits outweigh the risks involved in the procedure. However, liposuction should never be combined with other surgical procedures such as tummy tuck, as it may increase complications. It is ideal for patients who were unable to achieve satisfactory results with exercise, diet and adequate sleep.

How does liposuction help?

Liposuction does not help in obesity related issues like insulin resistance. It also cannot outweigh diet and exercise. Without following a strict diet regime or physical workout, you are most likely to regain the lost fat. However, liposuction does improve a person’s looks. It can also be used to treat the following medical conditions:

Lymphedema: Liposuction is used to reduce swelling, discomfort and pain. It is only performed on patients with severe symptoms. The patients are required to wear compression bandages for at least one year after the procedure.
Gynecomastia: Development of male breasts due to increased pectoral fat. Liposuction can reduce the fat and swelling.
Lipodystrophy syndrome: A condition where the fat accumulates in one part debarring others. Liposuction helps to give a better shape and a more natural and equal fat distribution.
Extreme weight loss after obesity or reducing over 40% of your BMI can cause your skin to sag lose. Liposuction can be used to treat such abnormalities and tighten the skin.

Obesity Can Increase Your Risk Of Life Threatening Diseases

Obesity is the accumulation of excessive fat in the body, which cannot be used. Obesity can be calculated using BMI. Values lying between 25 and 29.9 are categorised as overweight, while those lying above 30 are obese. Values above 40 are considered to morbidly obese and are associated with high mortality and various comorbid conditions. Obesity has now taken on epidemic proportions. It is a result of sedentary lifestyle, lack of physical activity or certain therapeutic medications. Obesity adversely affects thyroid functions, reproductive hormonal levels, insulin levels and causes arthritis. These conditions further potentiate the problem of obesity, thus, creating a vicious cycle.

Health problems associated with obesity are:

Coronary heart disease: Obesity is often found alongside hypertension and high cholesterol. Both of these contribute to fatty plaque formation in the vessels and damage to coronary vessels. This interrupts the flow of oxygen-rich blood to the heart muscles. It can lead to heart attack or heart failure.
Stroke: When these plaques form in blood vessels of the brain and coalesce to form clots, they disrupt the blood supply to the brain leading to stroke and paralysis.
Type-2 Diabetes: Obesity is associated with high insulin resistance and high blood sugar. This can later on lead to blindness, nerve damage or kidney failure.
Cancer: Of late researchers have time and again proven that obesity-induced inflammation and high hormonal levels make patients more prone to develop certain cancers.
Sleep apnea: Overweight individuals tend to score more heavily while sleeping. It is due to blockade of air passages causing infrequent breathing. It may increase chances of heart disease and stroke in sleep.
Respiratory diseases: The accumulation of abdominal and visceral fat limits the diaphragmatic descent. It reduces chest wall flexibility, saps out the respiratory muscle strength, narrow airways and inflammatory proteins damage airways. This can lead to disorders like asthma and emphysema.
Reproductive functions are hampered due to hormonal resistance and imbalances. PCOs are extremely popular in obese females.


Obesity treatment

Obesity is like a disease that needs to be managed in time to prevent its vast multitude of complications. To promote weight loss and shed off extra kilos these methods have been implicated:

Sweat it out: Increased physical workout with a special emphasis on cardiovascular exercises helps to lose weight effectively. Adding in muscle training exercises helps to strengthen muscles.
Kerb down the carbs: A diet rich in protein and complex sugars, vitamins and minerals with low quantities of processed and simple carbohydrates and trans fats goes a long way to keeping your weight in check. Remember that you can never outrun a bad diet.
Medical therapy: Certain drugs like growth hormone analogues like octreotide are used for weight loss treatment. This is used only in obese patients with proven resistance to diet and exercise.
Surgical weight loss:
Liposuction: It is a cosmetic surgery that has more to do with changing the body contours rather than treating obesity. High number if complications make it less preferable.
Bariatric surgery or stomach stapling is a highly effective method, which reduces the size of the stomach. It also removes the hunger hormone known as ghrelin. This helps to kerb appetite.


The bottom line is that obesity harms every aspect of life, from shortening the lifespan and contributing to life-threatening diseases to hampering sexual life and interfering with breathing, cognitive functions and mood. But it isn’t a permanent condition. It can be treated effectively with diet, exercise, medications or surgery. Prevention of obesity at earlier stages can lead to vast improvement in personal and public health and save billions of dollars spent on treating diseases.

Causes Of Obesity And Overweight

Can’t figure out the exact reasons and the remedies for your overweight and the obesity? Well, this post will definitely add a colour to your solution. First of all, we all need to accept our physical appearances as it is a gift from the god and we must be proud of it. However staying fit is the need of a healthy life. With those extra kilos, you will face many hassles in your everyday life.


Overweight and Obesity bring depression in life and affects one’s performance as well. For a hale and hearty body, you must achieve the balance of energy. The more you consume calories, the more workouts you need to do to for a successful Weight Loss. If the energy balance deviates, either you become underweight or you turn overweight and both the conditions are pretty harmful to your health. It is not just your Pizza or Coke that is welcoming the extra kilos. You need to understand the causes of obesity and overweight comprehensively. The various causes of obesity and overweight have been mentioned below.

Inclination Towards Inactiveness – The modern lifestyle is a bane rather than a boon. The more comfort you buy to make your life easy, the more you crawl towards diseases. Be it the long corporate hours or constant television watching sitting at the same place for a long while; all the activities that restrict your activeness are the reason for your obesity.
The Obesity Encouraging Environment – The urbanisation of the world is causing a scarcity of parks and playgrounds where people can easily spend few hours doing healthy workouts. The big fitness niche companies fascinate people to take their monthly subscriptions but due to the high prices and lack of leisure time, most people avoid such places and let their lives continue as it is. The increment in the junk food sectors is also a threat to obesity. Not only the children but also the young and middle-aged folks are falling in the traps and becoming addicted to the junk food that ultimately welcomes obesity.
Medical Issues – There are many medical issues that cause obesity even if you are an active and healthy food loving person. Thyroid and PCOS are the examples of such medical conditions. In such cases, it is not important that your whole body will suffer from obesity. The excess generation of certain hormones causes such medical issues.
Genetic Factors – Many times, even if you don’t eat much junk food or eat too much, you see the obesity ruling your body. How come this? Well, genes also play a vital role in encouraging obesity. If your parents have suffered from obesity, there is a huge probability that the same genes may hinder the fat-fighting capability of your internal system. Apart from the genes, if your family is a junk food addict or obsessed with food then there are lots of chances that you will carry on the legacy further.
The Age Factor – With age, people become less active and lose the capability to reduce fat at a faster rate. Health experts suggest lower intake after the 40s. In women, menopause also causes excess weight gain but it is not necessary in all the cases.
Insufficient Sleep – People who do night shift jobs, overtimes or are night-owls are at more risk of obesity. According to some medical researchers, sufficient sleep helps in burning the extra calories and keeps the Ghrelin and Leptin hormones balanced.
Pregnancy – Obesity or overweight condition is pretty normal during pregnancy. Well, this can’t be taken as a totally negative health condition as more calorie intake by a pregnant woman will help in the proper nutrition of the child. However, few basic workouts should be included in the regimen to avoid any further health risk due to obesity.
More or less, obesity is your enemy and you need to continue the combat it. Obesity is the root of several severe health issues. From heart attack to high blood pressure or blood sugar issues happen due to the overweight condition. Stay active and eat healthy for a better life.

Obesity Treatment to Stay at a Healthy weight

What is Obesity?

Obesity is the state of being extremely overweight with Body mass index (BMI) above 28. Body Mass Index (BMI) is an index to classify underweight, overweight and obese individuals. It is calculated as the weight in kilograms divided by the square of the height in metres (kg/m2).

Why is obesity important to be treated?

Firstly, being over-weight or obese makes a person feel unattractive. Secondly, there are a host of medical problems directly related to obesity and many others which are worsened by being obese like Diabetes, high BP, high lipids in serum, Obstructive Sleep Apnea, Heart Disease, Knee Osteoarthritis, Stress Urinary Incontinence and Fatty Liver. These are a few diseases which are either directly due to or are worsened by obesity

How do we lose weight?

The first and most important way to lose weight is by modification of diet and increasing physical activity. Dietary changes include reduction of total calorie intake and modification of composition of diet

Diet should include reduction of carbohydrates and fats and increase in proteins and fibre. It is helpful to be in touch with a qualified nutritionist for planning of a diet according to your requirements.

Regular exercise, at least 4-5 days a week, is essential to lose weight. It also improves general fitness level and well-being. A trainer can guide you to exercise properly in order to get maximum benefits and at the same time avoid injuries.

Diet and exercise have been shown to cause a 5-10% weight loss over a period of time. To maintain the weight loss it is important to continue the healthy diet and exercise, otherwise you are likely to gain the lost weight.

What is the weight loss programme at Manipal Hospital?

There is a comprehensive weight loss programme in place at The Manipal Centre for Weight Management. There is a dedicated space for consultation which is geared up to cater to all the needs of people who come for consultation. There is a multi-disciplinary team to take care of all the aspects of weight control. There are dedicated nutrition experts, exercise therapists and nurses to evaluate your diet and exercise needs. A Specialist Bariatric Surgeon and Physician are available for consultation and advice. Whenever required other specialists are made available to manage diabetes, high BP, breathing problems, knee joint problems etc

Once a thorough evaluation is done, a plan is prepared which involves dietary changes, exercise (at Manipal Hospital or at your home) and treatment of associated illnesses. For suitable patients, surgery is offered and planned after detailed discussion. Surgery is performed after detailed and thorough evaluation of the medical conditions and fitness for anaesthesia.