Bariatric surgery – panacea for obesity?

Bariatrische Chirurgie - Allheilmittel gegen krankhaftes Übergewicht?
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Bariatric Surgery Türkiye: Obesity is becoming an increasing problem in Germany too, as one in five people in this country is already overweight. The risks of secondary diseases such as stroke, heart attack, high blood pressure and diabetes are correspondingly high. Alone five percent of all men and eight percent of all women have obesity grade II and are therefore massively overweight. This puts Germany far ahead of its neighboring countries. In recent decades, however, bariatric surgery has made a name for itself here. You can find out exactly what this means below.

The body mass index – Bariatric Surgery Türkiye

The body mass index, or better known to many as just BMI, refers to the body weight in kg, which is divided by the height in m squared. A person who weighs 60 kg and is 1.70 meters tall has a BMI of 20.8 and is therefore within the normal range. Bariatric surgery is aimed at people who have a massive BMI and who are unlikely to be able to lower it on their own.

An overview:

  • Normal weight – BMI 18-24.9
  • Overweight – BMI 25-29.9
  • Obesity grade I – BMI 30-34.5
  • Obesity grade II – BMI 35-39.9
  • Grade III obesity – BMI 40-49.9
  • Obesity grade IV – BMI greater than 50

Bariatric surgery has already proven itself in obesity

Many people affected by obesity are no longer able to control their excess weight and find their way back to normal weight on their own. Sooner or later there will be secondary diseases such as diabetes mellitus. Bariatric surgery therefore relies on surgical interventions such as a gastric sleeve or gastric bypass. In contrast to people of normal weight, there is an increased risk of surgery for people who are very overweight, but bariatric surgery has already proven its worth.

Goal – reduce the volume of the stomach

In bariatric surgeries, the volumes of the stomachs are reduced according to the method chosen. Patients can thus consume significantly less food and experience an early feeling of satiety. After such an operation, the stomach often only has the capacity for a small glass of water. Since the restricted food intake means that sufficient nutrients can no longer be absorbed, those who have been operated on have to take additional tablets, such as vitamin preparations, throughout their lives. Due to the massive reduction in stomach volume, patients lose a lot of weight in a comparatively short period of time, which has positive effects in all areas of health. For example, blood pressure drops, the risk of stroke and heart attack decreases and the sugar metabolism returns to normal.

Bariatric surgery and how it works

Bariatric surgery is always minimally invasive. If the patient is to have a gastric sleeve, the surgeon will completely and irrevocably remove a large part of the stomach. The rest of the stomach usually only has a volume of around 200 milliliters, but the normal digestive functions remain in place.

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