Gastric Bypass Surgery Specialist

What is gastric bypass surgery?

Gastric bypass surgery is a bariatric procedure to change how your digestive system manages the food you eat. The goals of surgery are to create a small, new pouch from your stomach and connect the pouch directly to your small intestine.

This type of weight loss surgery allows the food you eat to go into the smaller pouch and then directly into your small intestine, bypassing the usual digestive processes, so you absorb less calories from your meals. Having the smaller stomach pouch also means you can eat less food and feel full faster.

Am I a candidate for gastric bypass surgery?

Gastric bypass surgery might be right for you if you can’t lose weight on your own through a healthy diet and regular exercise.

The Houston Weight Loss providers might recommend gastric bypass surgery if you have a body mass index (BMI) of 40 or higher, or if you have a BMI above 35 with obesity-related health issues like high blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes, or severe sleep apnea.

What happens during gastric bypass surgery?

The bariatric surgeons at Houston Weight Loss can use minimally invasive laparoscopic techniques to alter the size of your stomach without causing unnecessary trauma to your body.

Your surgeon makes small incisions around your abdomen and inserts a slender laparoscope into an incision to access your stomach.

Through the laparoscope, they can pass specialized surgical tools to cut across the top of your stomach and form a small, walnut-sized pouch. They then connect the new pouch to your small intestine.

How long does it take to recover from gastric bypass surgery?

Soon after your gastric bypass surgery is complete, you begin a liquid diet that helps your stomach and intestines heal. You gradually move up to a diet of pureed foods followed by soft foods as you can tolerate them.

You will need to take vitamins and other supplements because your stomach won’t be able to absorb the nutrients from your diet like it could before.

As you continue to heal, you can expect to lose weight rapidly in the first 3-6 months. You also need to remain committed to the lifestyle and diet changes required after gastric bypass surgery so you reach and maintain your weight loss results.

What are the benefits of gastric bypass surgery?

By losing a significant amount of weight under the supervision of the Houston Weight Loss providers, you can enjoy more energy and can participate in more physical activity.

This type of weight loss surgery can also reduce your risk for chronic, obesity-related diseases like:

• Stroke
• Heart disease
• Type 2 diabetes
• High cholesterol
• High blood pressure
• Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)

Get Moving with Laparoscopic Gastric Bypass Surgery

Laparoscopic gastric bypass surgery can be your opportunity to turn the tables on obesity, giving yourself an advantage you’ve never had before. Laparoscopic gastric bypass surgery drastically reduces the size of your stomach, helping you feel full faster so you can eat less. Bariatric surgery can do what willpower can’t do—reduce your cravings and help you feel truly satisfied with smaller portions.

To find out if gastric bypass surgery is right for you, call Houston Weight Loss or book an appointment online today.