OBESITY
Surgery and medication are used only in cases where people are suffering severe health issues
committed to change, and then have to engage in a year-long programme before surgery. Even then, however, it can be diffi cult to assess who’ll do well and who won’t, according to consultant bariatric surgeon at Nuffi eld Health Leeds hospital Simon Baxter. “It’s not a magic bullet, but it can
kickstart a healthy lifestyle. The benefi ts last for around three months, so people have to change their lifestyles to achieve long-term weight loss and health benefi ts,” says Baxter. Studies show bariatric procedures
cause signifi cant long-term loss of weight, recovery in diabetes, improvement in cardiovascular risk factors and a reduction in mortality of 23 per cent from 40 per cent. Baxter says studies are showing
bariatric surgery shows a rapid return on healthcare costs. “If someone has a co-morbidity such as diabetes, it can be cheaper to operate on them than pay for the ongoing medical support,” he explains. “The other thing is that severely obese people often don’t work, whereas after surgery they may go back to meaningful work, pay taxes and contribute to the economy.” While it can help, Baxter adds that
this approach is only scratching the surface of the problem of obesity.
MEDICATION Obesity medication can lessen appetite, make people feel full sooner, or make it harder for the body to absorb the fat from food. However, these drugs are known to have some undesirable side-effects, including stomach pain, diarrhoea, constipation, headaches, dizziness and insomnia. The chance that the side-effects may outweigh the benefits is of great concern and the medical profession only prescribes them for serious health issues. However, if a pill could be found that
was effective in bringing about weight loss without side-effects, it could provide a solution that most people – and GPs – would prefer to use. Whatever the answer, the clock is
ticking. Food and drinks companies will continue to keep pumping glucose syrup into products until governments fi nd they are spending more on treating obesity than they recoup from taxes and other economic benefi ts from these companies. Nations will continue to get fatter and health services will fi nd it increasingly diffi cult to cope. In the meantime, any help in terms of
education and the promotion of healthy lifestyles is of value, as many people are worryingly ignorant about the causes and dangers of obesity.
74 Read Health Club Management online at
healthclubmanagement.co.uk/digital October 2014 © Cybertrek 2014
According to research by Nuffi eld
Health, which questioned 3,100 UK adults, many obese people think they are just overweight and don’t realise they’re putting their health at risk. Of those questioned, 44 per cent said they had no concerns that they were putting themselves at risk of serious illness or premature death as a result of their weight issues. ●
This feature fi rst appeared in Leisure Management, issue 3 2014.
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