In the latest issue of the AARP Bulletin, there is an article extolling the virtues of bariatric surgery, either gastric bypass or banding. Of course they glossed over the failure rate and the fatality rate; although they did say that in a group of band patients studied over a period of years, almost half had to have the bands removed because of complications. Of four people that I know have tried it, three are as big or bigger than they were before and the 4th died from complications arising from the surgery.
The article states, “. . . .and changes the way the body absorbs nutrients”. How can this be good for you? The body was designed to operate a certain way and changing that system by artificial means is counterproductive. The article talks about the experiences of a typical patient. They have 2 protein shakes every day and have to take vitamin and mineral supplements, of which they only get about 20% of the value anyway. In addition, they have to schedule liquid intake very carefully to make sure the digestive tract absorbs all the nutrients. By eating 2 smoothies every day made from whole foods with live enzymes that have been concentrated and dehydrated, I get all the nutrients I need and save the cost of all those vitamin and mineral supplements and, because they are whole foods with live enzymes, they are absorbed directly and not dependent on my digestive tract. In addition, I drink a gallon of liquid everyday and can eat whatever I choose, obviously avoiding those that are bad for me.
One of the reasons given for having the surgery is, “When dieting fails to work, we need to try something else that does.” We already know why dieting does not work (see previous blogs) but we keep looking for the silver bullet. There is none, but getting the nutrients your body needs does work. As cravings go away, and the body gets into balance, the fat is flushed away and the weight comes down and stays down as long I continue to eat properly and get a little exercise. Remember. “A healthy body does not maintain fat.” To learn more about how to lose weight without having to face surgery go to www.healthangelsnutrition.com