Bariatric Surgery

Obesity is known to be one of the serious epidemics of the modern era.

It has a detrimental effect on the patient’s health and wellbeing, putting them at risk of developing serious, chronic conditions that may shorten their lifespan.

Severe obesity is extremely hard to treat by diet and exercise alone, and that’s when Surgical intervention is necessary.

Weight-loss surgeries, known as bariatric surgery involve making changes to your digestive system to help you lose weight.

Weight Loss Surgery

There are a number of surgical procedures (of the stomach and/ or colon) that may put an end to the disease.

The type of surgery that may be best to help a person lose weight depends on a number of factors. You should discuss the options with your treating doctor-

• Gastric Sleeve Surgery
• Gastric Band Surgery
• Gastric Bypass Surgery
• Gastric Mini Bypass Surgery

Weight loss surgery is conducted by constricting the stomach, resection or bypassing a part of the stomach. The result of most of these surgeries is that a person can no longer consume as much food as before; this surgery drastically reduces the actual physical amount of food consumed, the patient feels fuller faster.

Bariatric surgery can be complicated (pre- and post-surgery) and the patient will have to make indefinite lifestyle habits, but the results of the surgery in general, drastically improve the patient’s health and influence their weight loss.

What is my BMI?

Overweight and obesity deviation is determined mainly by a person’s Body Mass Index (BMI) and is calculated by a person’s weight and height. Calculate your BMI below:

• A BMI between 20-25 is considered a normal weight
• BMI 35-40 is considered obese and is linked with related health issues like type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and/ or cholesterol, sleep apnea and cardiovascular damage (to name a few)
• BMI of 40, severely obese

However, it should be noted that obesity is also defined by the percentage of abnormal body fat tissue.

This is in accordance with an international table that determines the recommended weight.

Requirements for Bariatric Surgery

Doctors who specialize in bariatric surgery in Israel state that a patient is suitable for weight loss surgery if they have an exceptionally high personal BMI of 40 or higher – this a situation that requires urgent surgery. Incidentally, there are patients with a BMI index of 60, which is already an extreme case that may lead to death.

However, patients with a BMI of 35 or less can also request treatment. Especially if they suffer from other diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, abnormal cholesterol level and more.

In this situation, a patient must undergo extensive screening to determine whether they are eligible for any of the weight loss procedures.

Following this, a consultation with the specialist will advise the best-suited, appropriate surgery to the patient.

What To Expect Before Surgery?

Before surgery, you will meet with several health care providers.

Among them are dietitian, a psychiatrist or psychologist, and a bariatric surgeon.

They will give you therapeutic casing in order to increase the success rate.

What To Expect After Surgery?

In the first days, it is recommended to rest and recover. Prescribe Supplements are a must, in order to get enough vitamins and minerals.

 According to the doctor’s advice and your ability, you will gradually start to do physical activity.

Most patients move from a liquid diet to so to soft food diet (soup, yogurt, etc.). After several weeks you will be able to start with small portions of solid food.

The Bariatric Department at Herzliya Medical Center operates professionally and responsibly, dedicating all its energy in achieving a successful outcome for each patient. Following bariatric surgery in Israel, the patient can continue to maintain a normal, healthier lifestyle by adapting to various lifestyle changes and following a strict, controlled program of diet and exercise. Weight loss surgery has become one of the most popular surgeries in the Western World.