According to the latest statistics, about 69% of the adult Americans are overweight and struggling with health issues related to it. This condition is not restricted to US. It is a global phenomenon, which demands attention. Aside from the health impacts of obesity, excessive weight also has psychological impacts such as low self esteem and depression etc.
Everyone wishes to lose the extra pounds to have an attractively toned body, but don’t have an idea about how and where to start. In fact, effective weight loss is a long journey and you have to go step by step to achieve the goals one by one. To start with it, you need to do a self evaluation.
- Do you see bulging fat every time you look in the mirror?
- Had you been dieting and exercising unsuccessfully for a long time now?
- Do you look forward to a weight loss support network?
- You get tired so quickly and often go out of breath?
Don’t worry if you answered “yes” to these questions. You are not alone and you do have a way out of it. You can consider a more intensive outpatient obesity procedure and surgery to get effective results. Bariatric procedures have helped thousands of people to achieve their desired weight loss goals.
Taking your first step
To begin with the bariatric weight loss efforts, you need to first fix an appointment for consultation with a leading practitioner. An experienced bariatric surgeon can assess your situation and suggest an adequate procedure to best meet your weight loss goals. The type of the procedures may vary based on your BMI and allied conditions. For each type of procedure, you need to meet certain qualifications.
Body Mass Index (BMI)
In case of adults, obesity ranges are determined with the measure of BMI, which is a fine balance between the weight and height of a human being. BMI directly correlates with the right amount of body fat and a higher BMI can lead to many troublesome health conditions. For a higher BMI implying obesity, along with diet and exercising, any of the outpatient obesity procedure and surgery becomes mandatory.
- A fully-grown person with a BMI of 25 to 30 can be considered as overweight
- An adult with BMI of 30 above is in the high-risk category of obesity
- BMI less than 19 is considered underweight
- Ideal BMI is 19 to 25
- BMI going above 35 means severely obese
BMI is the ideal indicator of potential health hazards. For a more precise assessment for obesity-related diseases and risks, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute had released guidelines with two major predictors as:
- Waist circumference of the individual. Abdominal fat is a sure-shot predictor of obesity-related risk factors.
- Other pointers include type 2 diabetes, high BP, gallstones, breathing problems and certain types of carcinomas.
Most popular bariatric weight loss procedures
The major varieties of new outpatient obesity procedure and surgery include:
- Gastric bypass surgery
- Adjustable gastric banding
- Sleeve gastrectomy
- Laparoscopic vs. open gastrectomy
- Lap band procedure
- Intragastric balloon procedure etc.
Majority of these procedures can be done in an outpatient setting and also incur lesser complications and recovery time.