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| Obesity News Archives: |
Oprah's talks about gastric bypass surgery! For the
first time, American Idol judge
Randy
Jackson talks about his weight loss  surgery.
He's the latest famous name to go through gastric bypass
surgery. Randy says he's been overweight his entire life,
but it was his recent diagnosis of diabetes that forced
him to take extreme measures. He says on Oprah, "Diabetes
runs in my family. I was afraid that if I didn't really
get healthy and do something drastic that I may not be
around that long. It's funny, diet and exercise really
works, but when you're heavy, you don't want to workout.
Now that I've lost this weight, I want to work out. If
I don't do it, I'm mad, because I have all this energy!"
Images: TM & Copyright 2003 Harpo Productions,
Inc
Noninvasive, Removable Medical Device Results In Substantial Weight Loss And Glucose Normalization In A Preclinical Model Of Obesity: -- GI Dynamics, a medical device company pioneering the development of new approaches to treat obesity and type 2 diabetes, announced today a paper appearing in the advance online publication of the journal Obesity, which demonstrates that implantation of an innovative endoluminal sleeve mimics key, beneficial effects of Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) surgery, inducing substantial weight loss and improved metabolic function in rats with diet-induced obesity. - Read More...
The dramatic effects of the removable device on blood glucose levels in this animal model suggest an important role for the duodenum (the first part of the small intestine) and jejunum (the central part of the small intestine) in the regulation of this metabolic function. GI Dynamics is developing an endoluminal sleeve, known as the EndoBarrier™ Gastrointestinal Liner, and is currently in late-stage clinical trials.
The study authors were recognized by the Obesity Society with The Obesity Awards for Outstanding Journal Research which recognizes exemplary research in basic, clinical, or population manuscripts published in the journal Obesity. This award was presented during a plenary session at the Obesity Society's 2008 Annual Meeting on October 3-7 in Phoenix, AZ.
"We believe the weight loss and normalization of blood glucose levels observed in this study reflect the physiological effects of preventing contact between ingested food and the duodenum, thereby mimicking the effects of gastric bypass surgery. These animal data further support the potential role of endoscopic duodenal exclusion as a new treatment option for patients suffering from obesity and other metabolic conditions and may offer a valuable alternative to more invasive surgical approaches," said Lee M. Kaplan, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, director of the Weight Center at Massachusetts General Hospital, and a co-author of the study.
To evaluate the effect of the EndoBarrier on body weight, the obese and diabetic rats were randomized into two groups; the first group received the device in the duodenum and the second group underwent a sham operation (control group). After seven weeks, the device treated rats weighed an average of 20% (p<0.001) less than those in the sham treatment group, and the difference in the two groups continued through the end of the 16-week follow up period demonstrating that treatment with the EndoBarrier resulted in sustained weight loss over time.
Caloric intake and percentage of calories absorbed by the gastro-intestinal tracts of both groups of rats were also evaluated. Treatment with the EndoBarrier resulted in a 28% (p<0.05) reduction in daily caloric intake. There was no difference in calories absorbed between the two groups, indicating that malabsorption is not a significant contributor to the weight loss. The study also found that the device prevented acute weight gain in lean, obesity-prone rats.
In addition, this study showed that treatment with the EndoBarrier substantially decreased fasting blood glucose (p<0.001) and insulin levels (p<0.02) compared to the sham treatment group, and improved oral glucose tolerance, as evidenced by a 40% decrease in the area under the curve analysis of glucose excursion. Improved peripheral insulin sensitivity was confirmed by calculation of the homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR).
"The sustained weight loss and reduction in blood glucose levels seen in the rats treated with the EndoBarrier underscores what we've seen to date in our human clinical trials," said Stuart A. Randle, chief executive officer of GI Dynamics. "We recently announced new data from a clinical trial indicating that the EndoBarrier is a safe, noninvasive device with excellent short-term weight loss results in severely obese patients and the patients in this trial also experienced reductions in blood glucose levels. We look forward to conducting additional trials to further evaluate the device and are pleased to share these findings."
In September 2008, GI Dynamics announced data from a multi-center, randomized clinical trial of 37 patients - 26 received the EndoBarrier Gastrointestinal Liner and 11 were in the diet control group. The EndoBarrier was implanted for 12 weeks and some of these patients were allowed to continue for an additional 12 weeks. Four patients continued beyond the initial 12 weeks. Results from this recent trial indicate that the EndoBarrier may be a safe, noninvasive device with excellent short-term weight loss results in severely obese patients. These data showed that patients treated with the EndoBarrier lost on average, triple the weight of their diet control group. At three months, EndoBarrier patients experienced a mean excess weight loss of 19.0% versus 6.9% (p<0.001) in the diet control group. In the eight patients with type 2 diabetes, all improved dramatically during the study period as evidenced by the decrease in blood glucose levels and a reduction in diabetic medication. The mean procedure time was 33 minutes for device implants and 15 minutes for device explants. There were no procedure related adverse events.
Online copies of the article can be found at:
Obesity: " An Endoluminal Sleeve Induces Substantial Weight Loss and Normalizes Glucose Homeostasis in Rats with Diet-Induced Obesity," by Aguirre et al., http://www.nature.com (subscription required) --Source: Medical News Today
|| Slide Up Article
Gastric
bypass surgery found to reduce the biochemical risks of
heart disease: -- The most significant
reduction was with C-reactive protein (CRP), which dropped
by a mean of 50%. In addition to the standard panel of
assays, plus CRP, the investigators included lipoprotein-a
(LPa) and homocysteine. - MedPage
Today
| OBESITY THREATENS LIFE
EXPECTANCY: The National Life Expectancy
- Reversing two centuries of uninterrupted progress,
researchers estimate the life-shortening effect
of obesity to be one-third to three-fourths of a
year by century's end, and it easily could rise
to two-to-five years in coming decades according
to a special report in the March 17 issue of
The New England Journal of Medicine. |
Obesity and cigarettes accelerate
the aging process: -- an average nine
years for obese women and seven years for heavy smokers,
London researchers say. United Press International
Important Discovery: In experiments
on rats, Scientists from Switzerland and the United States
used injections of the hormone, leptin, to transform fat-storing
cells into cells that burn fat which could one day help
combat obesity in humans. Within 14 days the average weight
of the rats fell by almost 30 per cent from 280 to 207
grams, and their fat reserves all but...Read More...
disappeared.The
rats continued to eat normally, although their food consumption
also fell by 30 per cent. “It’s a very important
discovery, because it’s a whole new concept of burning
[fat] stocks,” said Jacques Philippe of Geneva University’s
faculty of medicine. Philippe said it would be at least
ten years before such a drug was available for use on
humans. But given the spread of obesity in the western
world it was “clearly an important area of research
and investment for the pharmaceutical industry”.
Source: SwissInfo.org || Slide Up Article
Childhood Obesity has Been Shown to
Cause Heart Abnormalities The study revealed
that in obese children the actual size of the heart muscle
is thicker. In adults, this finding alone has been established
as an independent risk factor for significant cardiovascular
morbidity, including coronary artery disease, congestive
heart failure and sudden death.--ASE
Hunger Hormone could help treat obesity.
It sends signals to the feeding circuits in the brain
that convey a sense of satiety that reduces the urge to
eat. This new study suggests that this hormone,
once controlled, can curb the appetite.
Technology: The Gastric Stimulator, is it for you?
The show “Good Morning America”
examines a new device called the Gastric Stimulator.
This device is an alternative to the lap band device
and can be used prior to undergoing more permanent
procedures like stomach stapling. This experimental
device generates electrical impulses... (Watch
the video on the gastric stimulator) |
A calcium-rich diet may help people lose weight
In a study published in the April, 2004 issue of Obesity
Research, 32 overweight adults were put on modest,
calorie-restricted diets that included varying amounts
of dietary calcium. The high-dairy diet patients lost
the most weight, an average of 24 pounds after 24 weeks,
compared with individuals who also cut calories but consumed
few or no dairy products. The study was funded by the
National Dairy Council. In a study published in February,
2004 in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and
Metabolism, calcium supplements were found
to be useless for weight loss and fat metabolism in adult
women.
"90,000
cancer deaths could be prevented each year if people could
maintain a healthy body weight." The American
Cancer Society just completed a landmark study concluding
that being overweight or obese substantially increases the risk of
dying from cancer.
Holiday
Weight Gain Slight, But May Last A Lifetime A
new study by the NICHD suggests that Americans probably
gain about a pound during the winter holiday season-but
this extra weight accumulates through the years and may
be a major contributor to obesity later in life. This
finding runs contrary to the popular belief that most
people gain from five to ten pounds between Thanksgiving
and New Year's Day.
 Star Jones Reynolds admitted to having had gastric bypass surgery -- Reynolds said her "out-of-control" eating was the worst in 2002, near her 40th birthday, when she felt lonely and gained 75 lbs over 17 months.
"I pretended not to see how big I was getting - but not only did I see it, I was disgusted by it," wrote Reynolds. "I'd gradually gone from full-figured to morbidly obese."
"Through it all, food was there to comfort me," wrote Reynolds. "Food never judged me - even when I judged myself."
 Back pain is often caused by obesity -- The spine is designed to carry the entire weight of the upper body and distribute the loads encountered throughout your life. When excess weight is carried, the spine is forced to assimilate the burden, the consequence is that the spine can prematurely wear out. Learn more at LASpineInstitute.com |
| Looking
for a physician? |
Check out our new nationwide
obesity care directory. Every doctor is a member
of the American Society for Metabolic & Bariatric Surgery. You will
see a picture of their web site and pertinent information
and links to help you choose a doctor and weight loss
surgery treatment center that will ultimately determine
whether you are a candidate for such treatments as the
lap band or stomach stapling. It's quick and free! Find
a weight loss surgeon now!
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Obesity Related News:
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2016 10 Fattest American Cities - Forbes:  Cities with the highest obesity rate were led by Huntington, W.Va. Two other cities in the state, Charleston and Martinsburg, were also in the top 10 cities ranks by high obesity rate. (Folks with a Body Mass Index (BMI)—a ratio of weight to height—of 30 or higher are considered obese.)
Here are the top 10 obese cities:
| 1. Huntington-Ashland, W.Va: Obesity rate: 39.5% |
6. Charleston, W.Va. Obesity rate: 34.6% |
| 2. McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, Texas: Obesity rate: 38.3% |
7. Toledo, Ohio Obesity rate: 34.2% |
| 3. Hagerstown-Martinsburg, Maryland W. Va: Obesity rate: 36.7% |
8.Clarksville, Tenn.-Ky.: Obesity rate: 33.8% |
| 4.Yakima, Wash.: Obesity rate: 35.7% |
9. Jackson, Miss.: Obesity rate: 33.8% |
| 5. Little Rock-N. Little Rock-Conway, Ark.: Obesity rate: 35.1% |
10.Green Bay, Wis.: Obesity rate: 33.0% |
 On the flip side... Boulder, Colo., ranked as the city least plagued by obesity, according to StateofObesity.org.
Here are the top 10 lowest adult obesity rates:
| 1. Colorado: Obesity rate: 20.2% |
6. Massachusetts: Obesity rate: 24.3% |
| 2. District of Columbia: Obesity rate: 22.1% |
7. Utah: Obesity rate: 24.5% |
| 3. Hawaii: Obesity rate: 22.7% |
8. New York: Obesity rate: 25% |
| 4. Montana: Obesity rate: 23.6% |
9. Vermont: Obesity rate: 25.1% |
| 5. California: Obesity rate: 24.2% |
10. Connecticut: Obesity rate: 25.3% |
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Physicians! |
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help potential patients find you.  From
keyword search traffic to banner advertisements to
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| Obesity Information |
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Weight Loss Surgery
Severe obesity is a long term condition that is very
difficult to treat. Surgery to promote weight loss by
restricting food intake or interrupting the digestive
process (lap band -laparoscopic adjustable banding and
gastric bypass surgery -commonly known as stomach stapling)
are only documented long term weight loss options for severely obese people. Read More...
A body mass index
(BMI) above 40 - most often means about 100 pounds overweight
for men and about 80 pounds for women - indicates that
a person is severely obese and therefore is a possible
candidate for the lap band or stomach stapling surgery (if you have comorbidities your BMI can be less and you would still be a candidate).
New less invasive weight loss surgery procedures use
laparoscopic (lap) tools and provide new alternatives
to stomach stapling operations.
The number of stomach
stapling or lap band type operations has nearly tripled
since 1997 to 63,100 last year. The Lap Band and the
gastric stimulator (once FDA approved) may be available
to patients with BMI's from 25 and up based on their
doctors recommendation. The Lap Band is reversible if
necessary making the lap band a good initial weight
loss solution to consider. Gastric
Bypass Surgery or stomach stapling may also be an option
for people with a BMI between 35 and 40 who suffer from
life-threatening problems...Learn more>>
|| Slide Up Article
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Pancreatic CancerRisk Rises With Excess Weight - NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Individuals who are overweight in early adulthood have an increased risk of pancreatic cancer, while obesity in older age is associated with lower survival rates among patients with this difficult to treat malignancy, new research shows.
Being overweight or obese at younger age had a stronger association with pancreatic cancer risk than did subsequent weight gain at an older age, lead author Dr. Donghui Li, from M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, told Reuters Health. Read More...
"The second major finding," Dr. Li added, "was that individuals who were overweight or obese from the ages of 20 to 49 years had an earlier onset of pancreatic cancer by 2 to 6 years."
The findings, reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association for June 24, stem from a case-control study of 841 patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma and a control group of 754 healthy subjects without cancer who were matched to the patients by age, race, and gender. Height and weight histories were obtained during personal interviews.
Subjects who were overweight from the ages of 14 to 39 years or obese from 20 to 49 years had a 1.67- and 2.58-fold higher risk of pancreatic cancer, respectively. The risk leveled off for those who were overweight or obese after age 40 and became statistically insignificant after age 50.
The link between elevated body mass index (BMI), a frequently used weight to height ratio, and pancreatic cancer was stronger in men than in women and in current or former smokers than in those who never smoked, the report indicates.
The researchers also found that obesity at an older age had its own disadvantages - it was tied to reduced survival of pancreatic cancer. The average length of survival in this population was 18 months for those with a normal body weight the year before pancreatic cancer diagnosis, while the average survival time declined to 13 months for overweight and obese patients, Li said.
In a related editorial, Dr. Robert R. McWilliams and Dr. Gloria M. Petersen, from the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, note that increased weight or obesity is associated with acceleration of the disease process -- from the risk of developing cancer to its ultimate outcome - and "may provide biological insight into why pancreatic cancer portends such a poor prognosis."
This study, they add, "represents an incremental advance in the understanding of clinical factors contributing to pancreatic cancer development and progression."
SOURCE: Journal of the American Medical Association, June 24, 2009.
|| Slide Up Article
Stomach Stapling may cure Type 2 diabetes Gastric bypass surgery better known as stomach
stapling, a well-established treatment for morbid obesity,
may also cure Type 2 diabetes, even in individuals who
are not overweight, according to a groundbreaking new
study from IRCAD/The European Institute of Telesurgery
being published in the January 2004 issue of the Annals
of Surgery. The article did not mention whether the same
result was experienced by weight loss patients with the
lap band technology.—NewsWise Related: New
State Data Show Obesity and Diabetes Still On the Rise
| Video
Newscasts |
 Medical
Diary:
This two part “Medical Diary” video follows
Jennifer Revel as she considers gastric bypass surgery
as a solution to having a BMI of 54 and being more than
180 lbs over weight. Part 2 continues this “Medical
Diary” video following Jennifer as she goes through
with stomach stapling and her experience's after surgery.
Watch
Jennifer's video diary of her stomach stapling weight
loss solution. |
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