Comments on: The Zone Diet

By: spacedcowgirl

spacedcowgirl — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 16:39:50 +0000

I think the body adapts enough that some people maintain or gain even on the starvation rations they are giving themselves. For some it could be changes in eating habits returning, but others seem to just keep doing what they are doing and still find they can’t lose any more.

By: Meghan

Meghan — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 19:35:43 +0000

You know how valuable anecdotal evidence is. Two years ago WLS was all the rage at my workplace and several people had it done. Each dropped some amount of weight, some more than others. Every last one has gained at least 25% of her weight back at the two year mark, and gaining. I think it is great as a weight LOSS tool. The maintenance (diet and exercise) is no different from someone who did it without surgery, at least amongst my limited, unscientific (and unaware) research pool. I think in the long run, it relies on the dramatic loss itself as a motivator to maintain a lower weight. Physically, the body adapts enough to allow for unhealthy, ultimately fattening eating habits to creep back in.

By: Dagny

Dagny — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 22:19:09 +0000

The first questions I asked my doctor were about the long-term research data and long-term prognosis for WLS. She explained to me that WLS had evolved from decades of surgical procedures performed to treat stomach and intestinal cancers and diseases after which patients lived long healthy lives. She referred me to a surgeon whose specialty is abdominal laparoscopic surgery, NOT bariatrics. I did my homework, I have a wonderful, very knowledgeable doctor, an awesome surgeon, I did everything they both told me to do. I’ve had zero complications and came off SEVEN daily medications including Avandia and the same blood pressure med taken by my 96-year-old aunt. I feel fortunate and grateful every day of my life.

By: Susan

Susan — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 18:35:45 +0000

Sony – thanks for explaining your situation. That sucks! I hope it all works out well for you.

This is a very thought-provoking thread.

I guess my feeling about this surgery is the same as my feeling about any elective surgery – including non-reconstructive plastic surgery. Somehow I think, maybe naively, that doing stuff to your body when it’s working fine can’t do anything but upset its natural equilibrium.

Just thinking about this comment in relation to my plastic surgery. I guess my tummy tuck could be described as reconstructive, as it included a muscle repair. As is the case with many obese people who carry a lot of extra weight in their belly (and some women after pregnancy) my abdominal muscles had separated. I didn’t even realise this until my consult with the second plastic surgeon. He made an offhand remark about how the tummy tuck would strengthen my back. It’s been a godsend – I was plagued with lower back pain and now, not only am I pain-free, but I can do things (like deadlifting) that I wouldn’t have dared to do before. I wish I’d had the operation earlier.

But getting back to the cosmetic aspect, yeah it’s vain, but it’s done wonders for my self-esteem. I can’t tell you how disheartening it is to lose weight through diet and exercise yet still end up looking “fat” due to loose skin and, as the surgeon put it, “fat cells which have shed their contents”.

I can understand why people wouldn’t want to have cosmetic surgery after losing weight, but for me, it’s just finishing off the job.

By: Brenda

Brenda — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 14:04:58 +0000

My husband & I both had RNY on the same day, one of the best things we’ve ever done. We did massive research on all types of WLS available, about our surgeon and his program, and spent a lot of time consulting with our PCP who was the one who advocated for us to have the surgery. I would do it again in a heartbeat. I own it and I will never be ashamed of it. As far as this being a recent phenomenon and time will tell…this surgery has been around since the 60s and I had a friend who did it in the 70s and she’s still alive and happy. I do not advise anyone have the surgery until they’ve done everything they can to lose weight by diet and exercise AND who have decided (after thought and research) that it’s the right thing for them to do.
We have not had one complication and we both feel very good 6 mos. out, but then again we are following the instructions of the surgeon, PCP, nutritionist and the program staff to the letter. I know that we could experience problems in the future, and we will deal with it if it happens. That’s a risk I was willing to take and I stand by that. We have and will continue to work on our heads and strive to understand why we overate and became morbidly obese. We went through months of classes and psychiatric evaluations so we were full prepared for this change of lifestyle and body. I don’t believe it’s been a cop out or the easy way out. It’s hard and worth every minute to me. I eat the small portions of good healthy food that I could not control in the past. It’s not right for everyone, but for those who do the homework and have come to this very personal decision, it can be a wonderful thing.

By: ginag

ginag — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 13:28:14 +0000

My husband has said he thinks surgery is a ‘copout’ but as I’ve known someone who’s died from complications from WLS, I can’t see it that way.

The fact that one is made to feel inadequate for attempting to be exactly what society wants him/her to be — thin — is just another example of how deeply ingrained fat hatred is in our society. We’re damned if we do, damned if we don’t.

By: Rebecca

Rebecca — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 09:06:58 +0000

Hey all, you know – I read all of these posts with a great deal of interest. I guess my feeling about this surgery is the same as my feeling about any elective surgery – including non-reconstructive plastic surgery. Somehow I think, maybe naively, that doing stuff to your body when it’s working fine can’t do anything but upset its natural equilibrium. So it’s great to hear other people’s opinions to the contrary and testimonials.

But the post that made me stop and get upset was Sony’s second one. That really hurts (and I’m not even the person who’s gone through this). I can’t believe that the break, and the eventual removal of the lapband, wouldn’t be considered/predicted in the initial cost as follow-up care. To make a crap analogy, remember when you get braces and what your parents pay at the outset covers anything that will ever, ever, ever happen – even a million years later? Perhaps that information should be included in the literature on pros and cons of the surgery – that, beyond complications, some people just want the thing removed after a time. And they will have to pay dearly.

By: Sony

Sony — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 06:50:35 +0000

Susan – I paid cash, and chose not to go to Mexico to do it. I also had a break and had to have the port replaced a couple of years ago. Between the two surgeries I’ve sunk 40K into the band, and had a lawsuit since Allergen (who now owns Inamed) refused to pay the inflated fee the hospital asked for. Removing it isn’t covered by insurance either, unless it becomes life threatening. It has destroyed me financially. It will be several years before I can recover that to the point that I can consider paying to have it removed.

By: superblondgirl

superblondgirl — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 04:13:51 +0000

I’m in the “green zone”, too, I guess. I am debating WLS right now, and I go back and forth. I feel ashamed that I can’t lose weight the regular way, that my willpower is shit and I am lazy and it’s just not working for me, and I feel like surgery is a cop-out — but only for me, for anyone else I applaud them. This is because my self-image is totally healthy and appropriate.
Anyway, my take is that it’s one of those personal choices – it’s not for everyone, it has risks and benefits, and it all boils down to you alone, to what you personally think and feel and believe. It’s not something you can try to convince someone to do or not to do, it’s something you have to decide all by yourself, because it’s your body and it’s your choice.

By: Bronwen

Bronwen — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 03:56:31 +0000

I had one of the several flavors of WLS there are available, and it was indeed the best thing I’ve ever done. I’d do it again in a heartbeat.

However, there are certain Weight Loss Surgeries that I consider barbaric, too.

I think the key for anyone even wavering on the brink of considering WLS is to research ALL of the available surgeries. There is the BPD/DS (Biliopancreatic Diversion with Duodenal Switch), the RNY (Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass – the one that Al Roker & Carnie Wilson had), the Lap Band, the VBG (Vertically Banded Gastroplasty), and the VSG (Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy).

There are very different rules associated with each of these surgeries, governing things like diet, exercise, and vitamin supplementation. They are definitely not done for vanity reasons, and the vast majority of those having WLS are having it for true health concerns, like diabetes, sleep apnea, and hypertension.