Indianapolis Weight Dr

I don't think this article is really "breaking news" but it shows that serious implications that being overweight can have on your overall health.

Obese patients taking medications to lower their blood pressure and cholesterol levels are less likely to reach recommended targets for these cardiovascular disease risk factors than their normal weight counterparts, according to new research presented at the 2009 Canadian Cardiovascular Congress hosted by the Canadian Cardiovascular Society and the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada.

Dr. Vineet Bhan, a resident at the University of Toronto, sought to determine whether there were differences in reaching guideline-recommended targets for blood pressure and cholesterol levels according to body mass index (BMI) in a large number of individuals deemed to be at high risk for heart disease and stroke.

"In Canada, these high risk patients frequently do not reach their blood pressure and cholesterol targets," says Dr. Bhan. "The goal of our study was to see if obesity could be a factor."

To learn more, click here.

A very startling article that I found in the November issue of the Obesity Action Coalition's online newsletter. Childhood obesity is certainly something we need to focus even more attention on in the coming years...we need to stop the cycle!

More than one in five teenagers has at least one risk factor for heart disease such as obesity and high cholesterol, a jump from just six years earlier, suggests new research.

Researchers partnered with a group that has been following the heart health of thousands of teenagers in the Niagara region of Ontario for more than two decades. They found that between the years 2002 and 2008, the number of Grade nine students with one or more cardiovascular risk factors rose to 21 percent from 17 percent. The number of obese teens went from 11 percent to 13 percent, while those with elevated cholesterol almost doubled from 9 percent to 16 percent.

The only figure to buck the trend was the number of students with high blood pressure, which dropped slightly from 19 percent to 17 percent. The figures mirror what's going on in Canadian society overall, said Dr. Brian McCrindle, a pediatric cardiologist at The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto.

To learn more, click here.

Another article from the OAC's e-newsletter. It is rather shocking that obesity has so quickly become such a serious health issue. You can read full text of the article by clicking here.

Already up to one in twelve new cases of the disease are attributed to being overweight or obese and this proportion is set to increase as more quit smoking and stop hormone replacement therapy.

Dr Andrew Renehan, a cancer expert at the University of Manchester, told a medical conference: "Obesity is catching up at a rate that makes it possible it could become the biggest attributable cause of cancer in women within the next decade."
 
Last year, the number of cancer cases in Europe linked to weight jumped to at least 124,050, almost double the number in 2002.

I read this article in the recent edition of the Obesity Action Coalition's e-newsletter. The first few paragraphs are below and you can view full text by clicking here.

Alcohol abuse, obesity and depression seem to go hand in hand for many women, according to the first study to look at how the three relate to one another over time in young adults.

Dr. Carolyn A. McCarty of Seattle Children's Research Institute and her colleagues also found that almost half of the men and women in their study suffered from at least one of these problems between the ages of 21 and 30.

"That's big," McCarty told Reuters Health, and is likely only "the tip of the iceberg," because she and her colleagues used fairly stringent definitions of alcohol abuse, depression and obesity in their study.

This has been such a wonderful summer for outdoor activities!  But I’m already mentally preparing myself for the changing seasons to come.  Just like most people, my activities change significantly with the weather and time of year.  Experts are recognizing this trend as well and in a study shown on www.excusercise.org, Dr. Bruce Cohen questions how the weather and time-of-year affects our motivations and adherence to exercise programs.  Think about how the weather affects your activities.  Do you dread the cold weather?  Are you afraid of falling on the ice?  Do the changes in temperature and time of year make you hibernate and become less active?

I know that as the weather changes…so do my activities.  And over the years I’ve learned that preparation (remember that last blog entry?) is the key to maintaining physical activity when things change.  Sometimes changes happen that we never saw coming, but this is one we can expect every year!  Now is a great time to start thinking about your fall and winter workout sessions. 

I recently joined a new gym that had Les Mills classes.  Those are my favorite workout classes because they are challenging and fun.  Although I don’t go to them much right now because I’m taking advantage of the outdoors, I know that I will utilize them when it is way too cold to be outside.  Is there a gym or class that you’ve wanted to try out?  Maybe now is a great time to research, plan, and save for those programs.

I also use a lot of at-home workout programs during the colder seasons.  I like Exercise TV on digital cable (www.exercisetv.tv too!) or the free Yoga classes on www.yogatoday.com.  I just move the coffee table and turn my living room into my workout studio!  Do you have any workout DVDs or dumbbells at home that you can use this year?  Try to use this season as a way to get started on your new fall/winter workout options, and then you will feel prepared and confident to keep up with your healthy lifestyle no matter what is thrown your way! 

This week we have had two great news stories, which feature Clarian Bariatrics staff members! Below you will find an interview with Dr. Samer Mattar, Indianapolis Bariatric Surgeon and Medical Director of our weight loss surgery program, and Erin Light, Fitness and Health Specialist.

Researchers using pig tissue to help heal human wounds WNDU-TV - South Bend,IN,USA "Pigs have been a very popular or common animal to use," says Dr. Samer Mattar, bariatric surgeon at Clarian Bariatrics in Indianapolis. "Believe it or not, ...

Chair squat Indianapolis Star - Indianapolis,IN,USA Erin Light, fitness coach for Clarian Bariatrics and a certified personal trainer, ... Light trains people taking part in Clarian Bariatrics' supervised ...

Are you a fan of Clarian Bariatrics on Facebook? If not, what are you waiting for? We post a variety of photos, news articles and event reminders on there weekly. It's your "instant" news spot!

A short read from the New York Times that I wanted to share with you all.

Children born to women who had bariatric surgery for obesity may face a lower risk of severe obesity themselves, a study suggests.

The study, of 111 children born to 49 mothers who had a type of weight-loss surgery called biliopancreatic diversion, found that babies born after the operation had lower birth weights than those born before, and their risk of becoming severely obese as children was one-third the risk of those born before. Only 11 percent of the children born after surgery were severely obese, compared with 35 percent of the others.

Children born after the operation also had better cholesterol levels and improved insulin sensitivity, indicating they might be less likely to develop heart disease and diabetes later in life, the researchers found.

Two notes of caution about the paper, to be published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism: The findings are based on observation of the children (the study was not randomized and controlled), and bariatric surgery can lead to complications like anemia, malnutrition, loss of bone density and, rarely, death.

An author of the paper, Dr. John Kral, a professor of surgery and medicine at SUNY Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn, said the benefits to the children might be due to metabolic and hormonal changes in the wombs of women who have had the operation.

Dr. Kessler goes on to say that eating these foods changes our brains making the circuits stronger (how we learn) and this is why diets don’t work.  Deprivation increases the reward value of food, additionally after you lose the weight the old circuitry is still there.  Unless you replace it with new, of course you will gain the weight back.  The way to change this is the same as they did with tobacco.  You need to learn to perceive foods that are not healthy for you as the enemy and as your enemy, you need to avoid them.  This begins the new circuitry.

He also says that food packaging needs to be changed and the industry needs to set responsible portion sizes the reality is we will finish the package once it is in front of us because we have activated our brains.  He said at the cafeteria at Google’s headquarters they have stop light foods;  green eat as much as you like, yellow have a moderate amount and red means you get a taste but be careful how much of it you eat.  Kessler thinks this is a great idea for food packaging as well – you must admit it would simplify the choices and even children can understand them. 

He says he wrote his book - "The End of Overeating" - to explain why we eat or overeat.  How conditioned we are to do so, and how we are not going to be able to stop without retraining.

David A. Kessler, MD, was the commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration from 1990 to 1997.  In and interview with Nutrition Action’s Bonnie Liebman, Dr. Kessler discusses how the food industry leads us to overeat and how we can fight back.

He says that it is not our fault if we overeat, we now have the science to prove it, and there are things we can do to control it.  In tests, they found that sugar was the prime driver, but when fat is added to sugar the drive increases.  Rats will press the lever for sugar (which will give you a dopamine spike) but combine sugar with fat (you stimulate more brain activation) and the rats will work harder to get the food.

Dr. Kessler further states that dopamine spikes and stays elevated in response to cocaine or amphetamines.  It was once believed that food would lose it’s capacity to activate our brains.  When sugar and fat are combined, the activation capacity remains.  As food becomes more multi-sensory i.e.: adding Heath bars to a milk shake,  the dopamine stays elevated. However, for each person the trigger is something different but at the core are fat, sugar and salt.

He says that a food industry executive told him they create dishes to hit the three points of the compass.  Sugar, fat, and salt making food compelling and indulgent, the most palatable foods have two or three of these leading to a roller coaster in the mouth.  (The cycle of cue-activation-arousal-release)  – we get cued by sights, sounds, smells, time of day, location etc. this activates the brain circuits now we have arousal so you either distract yourself with something that’s more important or you consume it and there’s a release.

Mind-blowing statistics in this article from the Obesity Action Coalition newsletter. Teaser below, with full text by following the link.

Obesity-related diseases account for nearly 10 percent of all medical spending in the United States or an estimated $147 billion a year, U.S. researchers said Monday.

They said obese people spend 40 percent more -- or $1,429 more per year -- in healthcare costs than people of normal weight.

"It is critical that we take effective steps to contain and reduce the enormous burden of obesity on our nation," Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told a news conference at a CDC obesity meeting where the study was presented.

"Reversing obesity is not going to be done successfully with individual effort," Frieden said. "It will be done successfully as a society."

To view this article, click here.

This is part two of several on the questions that should be considered when looking into a weight loss program. The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney lists the following questions they feel you should ask as you search for a weight loss program.

What are the staff qualifications?
Because Clarian Bariatrics is a surgical weight loss program, this is not as big an issue as it would be in a weight loss clinic.  You can be sure here that you are followed by qualified, board certified medical doctors and nurses who are well trained and have a great deal of experience in surgical weigh loss.   

Who supervises the program?
Terri Hohlt, MSN, RN, is the Program Administrator. Terri has 30 years of nursing experience with Clarian Health.  Her role is to keep an overview of the whole program.  She hires the staff, keeps the program on budget, makes sure the physicians and staff have what they need provide top of the line care to our Indiana bariatric patients.  Terri continually monitors all aspects of the program to assure we provide the quality care each person deserves.

The medical director of the program is Samer Mattar, MD, who is board certified surgeon.  Dr. Mattar has received special training in advanced laparoscopy surgery at Emory University Hospital.  He is also a member of the American College of Surgeons, the American Society of Bariatric Surgeons, and several other professional organizations.  The medical director's role is to ensure that all patients receive the highest quality medical care available.

In addition to the above, the Clarian Bariatrics surgery program provides a “complete package” program with weight loss support provided by a full staff of highly trained, licensed, board certified Dietitians who specialize in weight loss and the health problems caused by obesity.  We also have a Bariatrics Behavioral Medicine department headed up by Clinical Psychologist William Hilgendorf, PhD, HSPP.  His staff helps to support your surgical weight loss effort with a variety of group sessions geared specifically to bariatric patients.

What type of weight-management training, experience, education, and certifications does the staff have?
You can see from the list above that this program is serious about providing you top of the line quality care.  In addition to the above highly trained staff, other members of the team are patients of this bariatric surgery center with the deepest understanding of the program, and patients concerns, and struggles.  They have insights that only someone who has been there can provide, that adds to their qualifications for the position they have at this Indianapolis Weight loss clinic.

Want to learn more? Then join us at a FREE informational seminar. Dates can be found by clicking on the image at the right of this post.

Are you struggling with cravings?  Do you know you shouldn’t eat certain foods, but struggle to say no?  If you do, this group if for you!

Managing Cravings
Speaker:  Dr. William Hilgendorf
When:  Tuesdasy, August 4
Time: 6 p.m.

Location: Clarian Bariatrics outpatient clinic

See you there!

We sent out this information earlier in the week, and I wanted to share it with you. We are thrilled at all the changes coming to Clarian Bariatrics, and we realize it would not be possible without your continued support! You guys are the best!

Exciting changes are in store for Clarian Bariatrics this summer as the program announced the addition of two full-time surgeons and a move to a new 30,000 square foot outpatient clinic to better accommodate the rapidly growing program, which has experienced double digit growth the past three years.

Dr. Daniel T. McKenna will join the surgical team of Clarian Bariatrics, a designated Center of Excellence by the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS), on August 10. Dr. McKenna joins the programs five other bariatric surgeons who completed nearly 400 surgeries at Clarian North Medical Center in 2008.

A Wisconsin native, McKenna comes to Clarian Bariatrics from Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, N.H., where he completed his minimally invasive surgery fellowship. He is a graduate of Creighton University in Omaha, Neb., where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in American Studies and his Doctor of Medicine. McKenna was a categorical resident in general surgery at the University of Utah and the University of Wisconsin.

In April, Dr. Jack Ditslear joined the Clarian Bariatrics staff full-time after working on a part-time basis with the program since its launch in 2004. A Noblesville native, Dr. Ditslear graduated with honors in chemistry at Miami University of Ohio and then graduated from the Indiana University School of Medicine. He completed his general surgery residency at Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis. Dr. Ditslear carries a vast amount of experience in bariatric surgery. He is a member of the American Society of Bariatric and Metabolic Surgeons, and is also accredited as a Bariatric Center of Excellence Surgeon by the Surgical Review Corporation. Additionally, Dr. Ditslear is certified by the American Board of Surgery and is on the teaching staff for the Indiana University General Surgery Residence program. 

“We are thrilled to have Drs. McKenna and Ditslear join the surgery staff at Clarian Bariatrics on a full-time basis,” Jonathan Goble, FACHE, President & CEO of Clarian North Medical Center, said. “The addition of these two skilled surgeons will aid in the successful implementation of many exciting programs.”

Among those initiatives is the launch of a non-surgical division for the weight loss program and an adolescent bariatric program. In addition, an exercise program championed by Erin Light, a certified personal trainer, will begin in August and provide patients an educational approach to personally-tailored exercise programs. Also, William Hilgendorf, PhD, Manager of Bariatric Behavioral Health, has implemented a behavioral program that will increase the coping skills of post-operative patients and improve patient outcomes.

These new patient support opportunities fit with the already established and popular weekly support groups and quarterly cooking classes. Programs like these have led Clarian Bariatrics to be nationally recognized as a robust program that enjoys some of the best weight loss outcomes in effectiveness and durability.

Due to the ongoing program growth, the Clarian Bariatrics outpatient clinic will move from its current location in building 11 of Intech Park to a 30,000 square foot space in building 10 of Intech Park, located on the northwest side of Indianapolis. This move will provide staff with more exam rooms, dedicated exercise rooms and additional meeting space for support groups and the non-surgical weight loss program.

“The growth our program has experienced over the past five years has been remarkable and humbling,” Samer Mattar, MD, FACS, Medical Director of Clarian Bariatrics, said. “Our staff, surgeons and patients have helped us create a unique program that is only beginning to reach its full potential.”

I see post bariatric surgery patients several times a week at Clarian Bariatrics as a physician assistant to Dr. Samer Mattar, and Dr. Don Selzer.  During my visits, I have the privilege of hearing how we have changed our patients’ lives.  I wanted to share with you a few of the things I hear from our weight loss patients all the time!

The most frequently made comment is about the increase in energy that almost all of our patients have.  Prior to obesity surgery the majority of our patients’, complain about how fatigued they are.  They have no energy to get through day-to-day life.  Cooking, cleaning, chasing children all of it is more exhausting than their energy allows.

Post surgical patients are amazed, thrilled, and grateful for the change in their energy levels.  Not only are they now able to do all the day-to-day chores of life but since they have had their bariatric surgery they have an abundance of energy for all of the fun and entertaining things they missed out on before. 

Are you ready to reclaim your life with weight loss surgery? Then join us at a FREE informational session where you can learn about Indianapolis bariatric treatment options and meet with Indiana surgeons. Click on the image at the right of this post for more information.

The month of May does a great job celebrating women everywhere!  The week of May 10-16th was National Women’s Health Week dedicated to raising awareness of the importance for women to take care of themselves through regular doctor visits, check-ups, and much more.  One important aspect of good health for women is eating a nutritious diet and getting regular physical activity.  Just like everyone else, women must focus on these two important lifestyle practices to make sure they keep their bodies healthy and active! 

Since men and women have a tendency to take care of these things with different approaches, many organizations have focused on building programs that focus specifically for each gender.  Here are two of my favorite healthy resources dedicated to all the women out there!
American Heart Association’s free Choose to Move Program www.choosetomove.org or pick-up
Body for Life for Women by Dr. Pam Peeke.

Following up on a post from Wednesday, below are the benefits of weight loss surgery discussed by Dr. Gonzalez in a recent news article in a medical journal.

Cardiovascular Benefits
Compared to patients undergoing conventional dietary regimens, patients undergoing bariatric surgery have lower incidence rates of high blood pressure, coronary artery disease, and high blood triglyceride and cholesterol levels.

Type 2 Diabetes
The first reports that weight loss through bariatric surgery improves type 2 diabetes were published in 1982. Improvement occurs in over 80 percent of patients, depending on the type of bariatric operation performed. An interesting phenomenon was described following gastric bypass surgery: diabetes disappears even before substantial weight loss is achieved. This triggered investigations regarding hormonal changes occurring following the intestinal disconnection, one of the most promising fields in the search for the cure of diabetes even in non-obese people.  

Obstructive Sleep Apnea
Obesity is the single most important factor for developing obstructive sleep apnea, a disease characterized by limited oxygen supply and diminished pulmonary ventilation resulting in pulmonary hypertension and respiratory insufficiency. Bariatric surgery reduces the incidence of sleep apnea to less than one third before surgery.

Risk of Developing Cancer
Obesity is responsible for at least 20 percent of cancer-related deaths in women and 14 percent in men, which represents over 90,000 people every year. A recently published study showed that patients undergoing weight loss surgery reduce the risk for developing cancer in up to 80 percent of the times. The benefits were greatest in breast cancer (85 percent) and colon cancer (75 percent). Others significantly reduced were pancreas, skin, uterus, and non-hodgkin lymphoma.

Overall Mortality and Quality of Life
Obesity is second only to smoking as the most common preventable cause of death. It is estimated that life expectancy in obese patients is shortened between 10 and 20 years. Quality of life is also significantly affected. Resolution of obesity-associated diseases following bariatric surgery not only improves the quality of life, but also lengthens patients’ survival.

Join the staff at Clarian Bariatrics at a FREE informational seminar and find out how weight loss surgery can help improve your life. Visit our Web site to view upcoming dates. We look forward to meeting you! 

I was reading an article from January 2009 this year written by Dr. Phil and wanted to share these questions with you. Think about where you are at in your life. Are you considering weight loss surgery?  Perhaps you are currently in the pre-op stages. Maybe you are a newly post-op or a three year post-op patient.  Possibly you are just browsing due to interest!

Take a minute to read the question and answer honestly.

1.    Is what you’re doing in your life working?  Check every area of your life, and when you find one that isn’t working, tell yourself, This may have been my habit, but now’s the time to change it.

2.    Are your payoffs healthy? Sitting on the sidelines or putting up with less than you deserve is not a healthy pay off.

3.    Are you getting in the way of your own success? Ask yourself whether your decisions are carrying you toward what you want.  If you don’t know what that is sit down and make a list of what you truly want.

4.    Are you making everyone happy EXCEPT yourself? You need to look at why you are unwilling to stand up for who you are, what you want and start working to change.

5.    Is the cost of what you’re doing too high? No matter the circumstance, you’ve got to weigh the price you’re paying and decide whether it’s worth it.

I saw this article in the Obesity Action Coalition newsletter and thought the informaiton was too important not to share.

Overweight and obese women are less likely to receive an accurate reading from ultrasound screenings aimed at identifying fetal abnormalities, new research reveals. Such screenings also seem to be less effective among women who are diabetic prior to their pregnancy.

"We were asking the question, 'Are birth defects less likely to be detectable with prenatal ultrasound in women who are overweight or obese, compared with women of normal body-mass index,'" explained study author Dr. Jodi S. Dashe, who works in the department of obstetrics & gynecology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas.

For more information, please click here.

In a recent post, I described diabetes as a glucose metabolism disorder.  The winter 2008-2009 version of Weight Loss Success Lifestyles magazine describes how weight loss can improve this condition in individuals afflicted:

“Type 2 diabetes currently affects 24 million Americans and up to 25% or 6 million don’t even know it yet.  What’s worse is that 57 million more have prediabetes which studies show will develop into Type 2 diabetes within 10 years unless the patient is diagnosed and makes necessary lifestyle changes.

“The epidemic growth of Type 2 diabetes has created a race against time to find new approaches to understand and treat the disease” says Dr. Francesco Rubino of the 1st World Congress on Interventional Therapies for Type 2 Diabetes."

The World Congress, a gathering of nearly 1,000 medical professionals from 46 countries, determined that bariatric surgery dramatically improves diabetes.  This conclusion was based upon a study of 22,000 bariatric surgery patients whereby 84 percent of gastric bypass and 48 percent of gastric banding patient had resolution of their type 2 diabetes after surgery. Although the exact mechanism of how this occurs in not entirely known, the data is indeed compelling.

Please come and visit us at Clarian Bariatrics to learn more!

I was flipping through the television channels late on Monday evening and a program on the Discovery channel caught my attention.  The show was talking about the ways we “beat” ourselves up. 

It made me stop and evaluate our daily processes. Clarian Bariatrics has a multidisciplinary team that can help with many issues that are not visible to the average person.  I have spoken several times about the way a weight loss surgery patient is viewed before and after the surgery. Dr William Hilgendorf is leading several pre and post-operative classes with varied topics from body image to addictions and several in between. 

It is hard sometimes to deal with reality and what we view as reality.  The people to handle the situation are here, and all you have to do is ask. We pride ourselves in leading the way in the the Bariatric field. The difference between our program and others is we are dealing with more than a person’s stomach. 

For you to be successful you must look at all layers of who you are and why we are the way we are.  Programs such as the one on the Discovery Channel give out misinformation that I (not psychologically trained) find frustrating.  These people need help on several levels and do not know where to turn.   

Do not be one of the many individuals that does not seek out the appropriate professional to help you with a very difficult decision, problem or treatment plan for these issues.  Clarian Bariatrics staff are professionally trained and leaders in their given field of study.  Do not let anything sabotage you on your road to success.  Seek out the help, and view Clarian Bariatrics' mental health team is one more leg to help support you.