Problems Caused By Obesity

Self-Healer Stories: Blogger LYN's Fight for Quality of Life

Friday, March 12, 2010 by Abigail Fulton

Lyn isn't associated in any way with Clarian North, or Clarian Health, so I might get in trouble for posting her story (blame this ignorance on me being an intern and a huge supporter of personal blogs). But, she's an award-winning blogger---who is also a mom fighting obesity. She's got grit, she's real, and she's working really, really hard to make herself healthy. That alone should give her words the right to be reposted here for you to read them.

In her controversial March 3rd post entitled, "Why Not Stay Fat?" she shared her most powerful motivation for losing the weight:

"Every so often, I get an email or a comment from a distraught reader who believes that the key to my happiness lies in accepting my body as it is right now, and not trying to lose anymore weight. 'Stop dieting!' they say. 'You are beautiful just the way you are!'

"They're right, in part. I *am* beautiful just the way I am. Oh, I have my days where I look at my naked thighs and feel disappointed that I let myself get this way; naked obesity is not always pretty to ME. I can see the beauty in my body when I am bathing or getting dressed; the Rubenesque curves, the womanly softness. I like it. But this is not about looks for me. It is about quality of life. It is about as far from vanity as you can get.

"About a year ago, I wrote a post on Fat Acceptance explaining why I am trying to lose weight. I wrote about how, at 278 pounds and 38 years old, I was barely able to walk to the mailbox and back. How I couldn't even bring laundry upstairs to fold it and had to get my kids to carry everything up and downstairs. I've described the horror of watching my toddler daughter run, laughing, towards a busy street as I tried desperately to catch up to her but was unable to do more than hobble and stumble, screaming to a stranger to please grab her just before she got to the road. I've talked about how for years I did not go downstairs to kiss my children goodnight because, frankly, I couldn't. I was getting very close to having to use a wheelchair before I lost weight. And then, at 214 pounds, I climbed a mountain. What a huge difference a 64-pound loss made in my life!

"And yet, over the past year and a half I have struggled to stay around 225-230 pounds. And so I am asked, 'You're so much better off now. Why not just stay 230 pounds? You are eating so healthy, exercising, living a healthy lifestyle. Why not just accept your body as it is? Surely you are healthy enough now.'

"And I respond: I do not want to lose my mobility. I do not want to be like my mother, hobbling around with a cane by the time I am 50. And my orthopedic surgeon has said that I need to get more weight off these knees or I will be crippled EARLIER than my mother was. Maybe I will still need total knee replacements EVEN IF I lose all the excess weight. But maybe not. I am *so much* more mobile now than I was 50 pounds heavier that I have to believe losing another 50 will benefit me even more.

"I am in pain on a daily basis. When I don't eat sugar, the pain is FAR less severe. I take supplements, I do exercises. And the best thing I can do to improve my quality of life is to lose weight.

"...You can't know whether any one person would be happier, sadder, healthier, or sicker if they gained or lost weight. It is PERSONAL. Every person gets to decide what they want to do about their body and whether or not they are satisfied with their weight and health.

"Yes, I am healthier after eating the way I have for the last two and a half years. Yes, I am fitter after biking, walking, and strength training as I have. Yes, I am wiser in my choices. And yes, I am still too fat for my own health, comfort, and happiness.

"And that, I believe, is about to change."

To read more of Lyn's amazingly honest blog, go here.

Preventing Foodborne Illness after Bariatric Surgery

Tuesday, March 9, 2010 by Alvin Furiya

After bariatric surgery, eating and drinking can be challenge for a few days, and for some, a few weeks. Preventing foodborne illness or food poisoning is critical. Symptoms of food poisonings--vomiting and diarrhea--increase the risk of dehydration and damage to your newly-formed pouch or the placement of the gastric band.

You can prevent food poisoning from bacteria and viruses by following four simple steps when you prepare food:

Clean: Wash your hands and clean surfaces that touch food often.
Separate: Do not cross-contaminate food by using the same cutting boards, knives, stirring spoons, etc. for raw meats and vegetables.
3. Cook Thoroughly: Cook your food to proper preparation temperature. Go to FoodSafety.gov for recommended cooking temperatures of food.
4. Chill: Refrigerate any leftovers immediately after each meal.

The goal after weight loss surgery is to have a safe recovery, which includes being able to drink enough liquids to prevent dehydration, to eat enough protein, to take your vitamins, and to get back on your feet as quickly as possible. Safe food handling will eliminate one potential problem that may slow down recovery after surgery.

Your Weight Matters

Friday, February 26, 2010 by Traci Baker

Weight and health go hand-in-hand, but many Americans do not always consider their weight and the impact it has on their health. Many individuals walk around each day and do not even know their weight or how it is affecting their health. To get the American public talking about excess weight, the Obesity Action Coalition (OAC), a nonprofit charity, has developed the "Your Weight Matters" Campaign, a National initiative aimed to get the public to measure their weight and talk to their doctor.

This Web-based campaign, located at www.yourweightmatters.org, has set the goal to open the conversation up between individuals and their doctors about weight and how it impacts/may impact their health. On the "Your Weight Matters" Web site, visitors can receive a step-by-step guide to measuring their weight and get educated on many weight-related topics.

Visitors are also issued the "Your Weight Matters" Campaign Challenge – to pledge to talk to their doctor about their weight. Once individuals take the challenge, they will be able to download the free e-toolkit, a helpful guide to use when talking to their doctor about their weight. The e-toolkit contains sample questions to ask when talking to your doctor, questions your doctor may ask you, a food log, helpful wellness tips, additional resources and much more!

Visit the "Your Weight Matters" Campaign Web site today at www.yourweightmatters.org and learn more about this National awareness initiative as well as how you can get involved and take the challenge. If you have questions about this campaign and how else you can be involved, feel free to contact the OAC at (800) 717-3117 or info@yourweightmatters.org.

News article: Recession weighs on Americans' waistlines

Friday, January 15, 2010 by Terri Hohlt

Another interesting read from the Obesity Action Coalition newsletter. You can read full text of the article here.

The economic downturn is busting wallets and bursting waistlines as consumers shift their eating habits to help their budgets.

With unemployment in the double digits, consumers who find themselves increasingly strapped have turned to cheaper means to feed their families. And those who have jobs are working longer hours, forgoing exercise and searching for foods that are economical and convenient.

As a result, more consumers are turning to processed foods, either prepared, frozen or canned and often filled with fat-generating calories, refined grains and sugars. Experts said that's making more Americans chubbier and prone to obesity-related illnesses such as diabetes in what has been dubbed "recession fat."

"Eating healthy has been one of the big casualties of this economic downturn," said Harry Balzer, chief industry analyst at the NPD Group and author of the research company's annual Eating Patterns in America report. "Last year, consumers cut back on eating better-for-you and organic foods."

News article: Drop calories by cutting TV time

Tuesday, January 12, 2010 by Terri Hohlt

I thought this was an interesting article from the Obesity Action Coalition newsletter. I was most surprised by the statistics on adult TV watching! Read full text here.

A new report discovers a reduction in television time among adults leads to burning more calories.

Although caloric intake did not change, the increased energy burn and replacement of a sedentary behavior with an active lifestyle bodes well for a sustainable long-term approach to combat obesity.

The study is reported in the current issue of Archives of Internal Medicine.

The average adult watches almost five hours of television per day, according to background information in the article.

News article: College Life May Lead to Weight Gain

Monday, December 28, 2009 by Andy Pollen

This article hit home for me as I gained 40 pounds my freshman year of college. It was the first time I was out on my own and was responsible for my own meals. That resulted in me eating at the dining hall buffet for breakfast, lunch and dinner for a full year with exercising once a week. It took me more than two years to get back to my pre-college weight and it taught me a valuable lesson about portion control and exercise!

Researchers who presented studies at a meeting of The Obesity Society on Oct. 22, which were released by CNN.com, concerning weight gain among college students have found that the "freshman 15" can continue throughout the years a student spends at college and most likely into post-college life.

Lisa Eberhart, dietitian for University Dining, said consuming just 150 more calories a day leads to a 15.6 pound yearly weight gain. She also said just one more soft drink per day can cause the weight increase.

"If people do it on a consistent basis -- don't exercise as much or take in a little more food, they're going to gain some weight," Eberhart said. Eberhart said the cafeteria setting of the dining halls "is not conducive to weight-loss."

"The all-you-can-eat part makes it very hard for people to maintain their body weight," Eberhart said.

Diabetes Prevalence Expected to Double in Next 25 Years

Wednesday, December 23, 2009 by Andy Pollen

Another alarming study found in the December issue of the Obesity Action Coalition newsletter.

By 2034, the number of Americans living with diabetes will nearly double and diabetes spending will nearly triple to $336 billion, even if the prevalence of obesity in this country remains stable, according to a study published in the November issue of Diabetes Care.

A team of researchers led by the University of Chicago constructed a model of diabetes costs accounting for trends in risk factors (such as obesity), the natural history of the disease and the effects of treatments, all of which helped to improve upon forecasts previously used by government budget analysts, who had not previously taken such factors into account. The study was done to help forecast the impact of alternative policy scenarios as Congress debates changes in the healthcare system, particularly to Medicare.

To learn more, click here.

How to Cope With a Love of Food During the Holidays, Part I

Tuesday, December 22, 2009 by Traci Baker

This time of year can be especially hard on all of us who have a love of food. I can honestly say that my love of food is an addiction. How do we cope each day with this type of love? What do we do right now when this time of year focuses around food? Life is hard and food is easy which can be detrimental to those of us who are addicted to food.

Have you ever stepped back and thought “what is the real purpose of food?” The normal response might be that food is used to fuel our bodies. We all need nourishment and sustenance for energy so we can live right?

My personal response would start by saying that food is pleasurable and my escape from the everyday struggles in life. I would eat because I was happy, bored, depressed, lonely, scared, anxious, disappointed, hurting and angry or just because I could. I deserved to treat myself because of ................ fill in the blank!

Once I had a reason to eat why stop with just one? One cookie turned into an entire row of cookies. One handful of peanut M&M’s turned into four handfuls (which really do melt in your hands). One helping of pasta turned into two bowls of pasta. Food had the most euphoric/warm fuzzy feeling that nothing else could give me. I had no clue that I was only sabotaging myself. I was setting myself up for weight gain, potential heart problems, hypertension, diabetes, and a shortened life span. Did I deserve to treat myself this way?

News article: Benefits of Bariatric Surgery in Adolescents Persist After 2 Years: Presented at AHA

Monday, December 21, 2009 by Terri Hohlt

Clarian Bariatrics has recently embarked on working with adolescents that are struggling with weight issues. We have seen improvement in the health of our adult patients and are excited about helping the younger population. As this article states the rapid improvement in the cardiac risk factors alone is impressive. Obviously there are many other positive gains when an adolescent losses 100 lbs or more. If you know an adolescent that would benefit from our help have them talk to their primary care physician about a referral to Clarian Bariatrics.

Beneficial changes in heart structure are observed in adolescents as early as 6 months after undergoing bariatric surgery, and benefits persist for up to at least 2 years, researchers said here at the American Heart Association (AHA) Scientific Sessions 2009.

In a study, adolescents lost a mean of 50 kg (110 lbs), and the weight loss showed up in imaging of their hearts, according to Holly Ippisch, MD, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio.

"Increased cardiac risk factors are present in morbidly obese adolescents but can improve rapidly, within 6 months, following profound weight loss," said Dr. Ippisch during an oral presentation on November 17. "These improvements persist for at least 2 years following profound weight loss."

Study: H1N1 Poses 'Special Threat' to Obese People

Friday, December 18, 2009 by Andy Pollen

The following is from the December Obesity Action Coalition newsletter.

H1N1 can cause severe disease in people of all ages and appears to pose a special threat to those who are obese, according to an analysis of H1N1 cases in California. Public health researchers analyzed the state's first 1,088 hospitalized and fatal cases of H1N1 infection between April 23 and August 1.

Like other studies, they found the average patient who was hospitalized with H1N1 flu was younger than what is commonly seen with seasonal flu, but they also found severe disease at both ends of the age spectrum.

To learn more, click here.

News article: Obesity and Diabetes

Wednesday, December 16, 2009 by Terri Hohlt

The following is from the Chicago Daily Herald.

Local researchers have found an alarming increase in the rate of obesity among people with diabetes. A Loyola University Health System study found that one out of five people with Type 2 diabetes is 100 pounds or more overweight.

Among African-Americans with Type 2 diabetes, the morbid obesity rate is one out of three. People with a body mass index greater than 40 are considered to be morbidly obese. Between the survey periods of 1976-1980 and 2005-2006, the rate of morbid obesity increased 141 percent for Type 2 diabetes patients.

Beyond those extreme cases, almost two-thirds of adults with Type 2 diabetes are just plain obese. Obesity increases the risk of complications from diabetes, such as cardiovascular disease, kidney disease and sleep-disordered breathing.

If you would like to learn more about how weight loss surgery can help with causes and symptoms of obesity, please join us at a FREE informational seminar to meet with Indiana bariatric surgeons and staff and ask questions about bariatric procedures and insurance approval. Click on the icon to the right to get started.

Did You Know? Part I

Tuesday, December 15, 2009 by Tina Carmichael

They way you use garlic can have vastly different health benefits? I sure did not know this!

Clinical trials have shown that eating about two cloves of garlic per day may help prevent platelets in blood from clumping, which may help keep your arteries unobstructed and reduce your risk of heart attack. Lab studies have linked those benefits to thiosulfinates,
compounds that also give garlic and onions their pungent smell.

To test how different preparation and cooking methods affected thiosulfinates, plant geneticist Philipp Simon, PhD, of the University of Wisconsin, Madison and a group of researchers at Cuyo University in Argentina gathered four pounds of garlic and crushed half with a garlic press. They let all the garlic sit at room temperature for 10 minutes and then cooked batches of each sample in a 400 degree oven, in a microwave, or in boiling water for up to 20 minutes.

Next, they tested whether each batch of garlic could alter how well blood platelets clumped. Garlic cooked whole had no anti-clumping ability, but crushed, lightly cooked garlic had a significant effect in reducing platelet clumping.

News article: Fad Diets May Fuel the Obesity Crisis

Monday, December 14, 2009 by Terri Hohlt

In my time with Clarian Bariatrics, I have heard patients say many times that they have tried this diet or that diet with no success. For some people eating smaller portions and exercise (the only proven "diet") still yields no results and that is where weight loss surgery can help. If you are interested in learning more, please join us for a FREE informational seminar by clicking the icon to the right. Full text of the article can be found here.

According to a survey commissioned by the British Society of Gastroenterology (BSG), the temptation of svelte figures compels the masses to blindly follow the crazy crash diets touted by celebrities, which can cause health problems like obsessive behavior and obesity.

The doctors caution that though the so called “super” diets techniques offer a quick fix for fast weight loss
the results are short-term.

People find it difficult to adhere to the diets for extended periods of time and start eating nutritionally unbalanced food which brings the pounds bouncing back.

In addition, many fad diets don’t work at all, and some can be dangerous because they’re based on bad or strange ideas.

News article: Pa. university students upset about fitness class

Friday, December 4, 2009 by Terri Hohlt

Another entry into the ongoing debate about BMI and how far an employer, university or other public entity can go to try and get its constituents 0 Comments »

Happy Birthday to Us!

Tuesday, December 1, 2009 by Andy Pollen

Many of you may know that all weight loss surgeries for Clarian Bariatrics patients are

performed at Clarian North Medical Center in Carmel. Well today, December 1, marks our fourth birthday!

I was lucky enough to be one of the individuals that helped open the hospital, and every year on this date I cannot help but think about how far we have come in just four short years.

One of the things that makes this birthday so great is that we have helped almost 600 individuals overcome obesity problems with the help of our Indiana weight loss doctors and staff at Clarian North.

Thank you for your continued support of Clarian North and our Indiana bariatric center!

Low-Stress Thanksgiving for Bariatric Surgery Patients, Part I

Tuesday, November 24, 2009 by Traci Baker

Here are 10 Tips for a Low-Stress Thanksgiving, by Cathy Wilson, ACC,CLC, Director of Obesity Help Support Group Leader Program

As weight loss surgery patients, some of our stress comes from all the food choices that we aren't faced with normally. Here are a few tips to help lower stress and make this Thanksgiving holiday one that you will not see reflected on the scale.

1. Plan ahead. If you are hosting the Thanksgiving get-together, include some healthy dishes that you will be able to enjoy. If you are a guest, bring your own weight loss surgery friendly dish. You'll know there will be a dish and a protein that will be available for you to enjoy.

2. Rally the troops. Make this year's Thanksgiving get-together a potluck and let each guest bring a dish of their own. The guests can bring the traditional meal items.

3. Move it or lose it. Take part in some type of physical activity before and after the meal.

4. Clean it up. Offer to help clear the table and clean up the kitchen. No bites during the clean up process. Burn some calories.

5. Just say NO to leftovers. Don't accept any of the leftovers that will have survived the Thanksgiving meal. Resist temptation!

News article: Study Foresees an Increase in Obesity and Its Costs

Thursday, November 19, 2009 by Andy Pollen

I came across this article in the New York Times and found some very startling statistics that worth repeating. The first few paragraphs are below and the full text can be found by clicking the link.

While Congress searches for ways to slow the growth of health care spending, a new study suggests that its efforts may be overwhelmed by the surging prevalence of obesity.

The report, to be issued Tuesday, projects that if current trends continue 103 million American adults will be considered obese by 2018. That would be 43 percent of adults, compared to 31 percent in 2008, according to the research by Kenneth E. Thorpe of Emory University, an authority on the cost of treating chronic disease.

Mr. Thorpe concluded that the prevalence of obesity is growing faster than that of any other public health condition in the country’s history. Health care costs related to obesity — which is associated with conditions like hypertension and diabetes — would total $344 billion in 2018, or more than one in five dollars spent on health care, if the trends continue. If the obesity rate were held to its current level, the country would save nearly $200 billion a year by 2018, according to the study.

News article: Obesity Programmed in the Womb?

Saturday, November 14, 2009 by Andy Pollen

Okay, this title immediately stuck out at me. After reading the article, I think the theory makes perfect sense. It's similar to the studies that prove talking to a fetus or listening to classical music can make a profound impact on learning later in life. What do you think? The first few paragraphs are below and full text can be found by clicking here.

When Kathy Perusse had weight-loss surgery and shed 120 pounds, she may have done more than make her own life easier.

She went on to have two daughters, and she may have boosted their chances of avoiding becoming obese, like her two older children are.

That's the implication of research suggesting that something in an obese woman's womb can program her fetus toward becoming a fat child and adult. It's not about simply passing along genes that promote obesity; it's some sort of still-mysterious signal.

The idea has only recently entered conversations between doctors and female patients, and scientists are scrambling to track down a biological explanation. That knowledge, in turn, may provide new ways to block obesity from crossing generations.

News article: It's time fruit juice loses its wholesome image, some experts say

Wednesday, November 11, 2009 by Terri Hohlt

Another article in the never ending debate about what's good for you and what's not. This one tackles juice and the "is it or isn't" debate about popular fruit drinks. The first few paragraphs are below and full text can be found here. Remember, if you ever have a question about what you should or shouldn't be eating, please call one of our dieticians at 317-275-7010.

To many people, it's a health food. To others, it's simply soda in disguise.

That virtuous glass of juice is feeling the squeeze as doctors, scientists and public health authorities step up their efforts to reduce the nation's girth.

It's an awkward issue for the schools that peddle fruit juice in their cafeterias and vending machines. It's uncomfortable for advocates of a junk-food tax who say they can't afford to target juice and alienate its legions of fans. It's confusing for consumers who think they're doing something good when they chug their morning OJ, sip 22-ounce smoothies or pack apple juice in their children's lunches.

The inconvenient truth, many experts say, is that 100% fruit juice poses the same obesity-related health risks as Coke, Pepsi and other widely vilified beverages.