According to the National Center for Health Statistics, more than 67 million Americans are obese, which means they have a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or higher. The American Diabetes Association reports that nearly 18 million children and adults in the United States have diabetes. These twin epidemics of obesity and diabetes have seen an increase in recent years because the rate of obesity among adults has doubled since 1980 and being overweight is one of the primary changeable risk factors for type 2 diabetes.
Carrying excess body weight raises the risk of developing diabetes because it increases the body’s resistance to insulin, making it harder to lower blood glucose. Over an extended period of time, people with elevated blood sugar levels and diabetes may experience heart disease, stroke, blindness, kidney failure, leg and foot amputations, and complications during pregnancy.
Many people who are obese or morbidly obese (have a BMI that is over 40) turn to bariatric surgery to help them lose weight when other weight loss efforts fail. The popularity of weight loss surgery has jumped from more than 13,000 procedures in 1998, to nearly 72,000 in 2002, to about 220,000 in 2008. Bariatric surgery helps achieve long-term weight loss by either reducing the size of the stomach to decrease food intake, or by shortening the small intestine to reduce the amount of nutrient absorption.
In addition to helping patients lose weight, bariatric surgery also has shown to decrease the incidence of type 2 diabetes. A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association showed that obese patients with type 2 diabetes who underwent gastric banding were five times more likely to have their diabetes go into complete remission compared with patients who followed conventional weight loss therapies.
Other studies have reported similar results. Researchers at Johns Hopkins University found that nearly 75 percent of patients that had surgery to reduce the size of their stomachs eliminated their diabetes medications within six months. However, studies have not been conducted on patients with diabetes who are not overweight or obese to evaluate whether they would experience the same outcomes. This is because these patients do not have a BMI greater than 35 that would qualify them for bariatric surgery.
Improvement in diabetes following bariatric surgery happens prior to substantial weight loss. Research has shown this occurs because hormones in the stomach that has been altered by surgery can manage blood glucose levels better than just weight loss by itself. These hormones help control food intake and improve insulin secretion and insulin sensitivity, resulting in a stabilization of blood sugar levels.
In addition to improving diabetes, those who undergo weight loss surgery also experience positive effects on other conditions associated with obesity, including hypertension, high cholesterol, sleep apnea, joint disease, asthma and infertility.
For more information about the benefits and risks associated with bariatric surgery, talk with your doctor or call 1-888-457-5203 for a free referral to a physician who specializes in weight loss surgery. You can also visit MyNewSelf, Des Peres Hospital's surgical weight loss program.