Bariatric Surgery: Ways to prevent weight gain after weight loss surgery

Leading an inactive lifestyle or eating unhealthy can lead to weight gain even after undergoing bariatric surgery. Here are ways you can maintain weight loss after going under the knife.

Excessive weight can be life-threatening and can lead to an array of lifestyle diseases like type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, infertility problems among others. Managing weight by adding healthy foods to your diet, regular exercising, sleeping among other lifestyle changes are recommended by doctors but at times, people may need surgical procedure to reduce excess weight if diet and exercise turn ineffective in weight loss. Bariatric surgery or weight loss surgery is a surgical procedure done on the stomach or intestines that help obese patients shed excess weight. This surgery is advised only for people who have extreme obesity. People shouldn't treat it as a quick fix and try to lose weight with diet and exercise as weight loss surgeries have their own set of severe side-effects.

"Bariatric Surgery is advised for the patients having body mass index (BMI) 33.5 or higher considered extreme obesity. If your BMI is 30 to 33.5 known obesity and also suffer from severe weight-related health issues, such as type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure or severe sleep apnea, you may be recommended to go under the knife," says Dr. Balkishan Gupta, Director, Minimal Invasive Bariatric GI and HPB Surgery, Marengo QRG Hospital Faridabad.

Dr Gupta says it's common to gain weight after this surgery if people do not give up inactive lifestyle or keep eating high-calorie food.

"Weight loss surgery can’t be considered an easy 'quick fix' as it is commonly seen patients experiencing post-surgical weight regain due to sedentary lifestyle and bad eating habits. Therefore, it is important to maintain your weight loss for your long term success after bariatric surgery," says the expert.

Things to keep in mind to maintain your weight loss after bariatric surgery

Exercise daily

Patients are advised to incorporate exercise in their daily routine after the surgery. To achieve this, you should develop and maintain a consistent exercise program to make your heart and bones strong, burn calories, develop muscles, boost your metabolic rate, improve your mood and relieve stress. Exercising can also help manage your blood sugar. Walking is considered as an excellent exercise to begin immediately after surgery. You can start by stepping 10 minutes a day at a fairly brisk pace. You should increase your walk by one minute every few days. To keep yourself physically active, work up to a minimum of 150 minutes per week (30 minutes/day, five days a week). Consult your doctor before beginning any exercise.

Adhere to a specific post-bariatric surgery diet

Meet your dietician and follow diet-related instructions strictly as overeating is seen as one of the biggest causes of complications like vomiting or diarrhea, discomfort and nausea after bariatric surgery. Therefore, patients are advised to avoid eating and drinking at the same time, eat meals slowly and chew thoroughly, keep smaller meals (six small meals a day, then shift to four, then eventually fall into a more common three-meals-a-day routine), focus on high-protein foods, take recommended vitamin and mineral supplements and stay hydrated.

Cut down calorie intake

Patients should avoid calorie-rich foods such as butter, nuts, fatty meats, fried-spicy foods, pastries, cakes, candy, chips, sugary drinks (such as sodas, milk shakes and some smoothies). You should have between 900 and 1,000 calories a day, with at least 65 to 75 grams of protein after 8 weeks post-surgery. There may be variation in this recommendation based on your doctor’s advice. Patients may be advised to eat fruits, vegetables, protein and grains in adequate amounts.

Get enough sleep

With following diet guidelines, it is equally important to give your body the rest it needs to rest and recover from your new exercise routine and the changes your body is undergoing. Therefore, 7 to 9 hours of sleep daily is recommended for adults. Obesity is a considered sleep interrupter but as you begin to reduce weight, sleep disorders like sleep apnea may start subsiding.

Reduce stress

Often patients who regain weight after bariatric surgery may suffer from a great deal of frustration, anger and even depression. Your body naturally generates more cortisol when you’re under stress. That’s a problem because it may make you prone to weight gain, particularly in the stomach. You should do yoga, meditation and deep breathing to keep your stress levels low.

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