After many years of discussion we are finally coming around to the inescapable conclusion that surgery is the only really successful and lasting solution to the problem of morbid obesity. And not before time! Right now obesity is possibly the leading health problem in the Western world and in the United States alone about 60 percent of the population is overweight, with nearly 24 percent being obese and 3 percent extremely obese. Now 3 percent may not seem like a large figure but when you consider that it represents in excess of 9 million severely obese people that is a pretty major problem. Despite the fact that more and more attention is being focused on the problem of obesity and its cure, it is surprising how much we are still learning about the condition, including the affect that alcohol can have on individuals who have undergone weight loss surgery. For some considerable time now there has been a reasonable amount of anecdotal evidence that individuals who have undergone weight loss surgery are more susceptible to the affects of alcohol than others but it was not until late last year that any real attempt was made to assess the extent or otherwise of the problem. In a quite small-scale study the affects of alcohol on 19 individuals who had undergone weight loss surgery was compared to the affects on 17 control subjects. The people taking part in the study were each given a 5 ounce glass of red wine and their breath alcohol level was then analyzed at 5 minute intervals until it had fallen back to zero. The study revelaed that alcohol levels reached a higher level in the weight loss patients and also took far longer to return to zero. But, most interestingly, the study also found that just }a single|one} small glass of wine was sufficient to put the breath alcohol level in several weight loss surgery patients over the legal alcohol level for driving in several states. The reason for the heightened affects of alcohol on weight loss surgery patients is quite simple to understand as surgery reduces the volume of the stomach and bypasses part of the intestine, both areas of the body which are responsible for breaking down alcohol before it gets into the bloodstream. So exactly what does this mean for weight loss surgery patients? Well, aside from the obvious need to take care and certainly to refrain from driving after drinking even small amounts of alcohol, the implications for weight loss surgery patients do in fact go a little deeper. A major problem is that alcohol acts as a relaxant and this results in difficulties with post-surgical weight loss and to the maintenance of weight loss. As alcohol relaxes the stomach, including the lower esophageal sphincter, and the intestine, patients who enjoy a drink are able to eat more and alcohol effectively counteracts the affects of surgery. As if this were not bad enough a significant number of individuals are more socially active following surgery and this often means an increasing intake of alcohol. There still needs to be considerably more research carried out of course but, in the end, the fact is that individuals who have undergone weight loss surgery must be aware of the risks of alcohol and watch their consumption accordingly.
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