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Life Goes On

After bariatric surgery, a patient's life changes significantly. Adopting a healthier lifestyle is crucial, involving a balanced diet and regular exercise to maintain long-term weight loss. Nutritional supplementation becomes a daily routine to prevent deficiencies. Moreover, regular medical follow-up is essential to monitor overall health and emotional well-being, ensuring the surgery's results are sustainable and improve quality of life indefinitely.

In this phase, new challenges arise, such as dumping syndrome, a reaction to certain foods that requires careful dietary attention. Weight regain is an ongoing concern, countered with healthy habits and constant vigilance. Reconstructive plastic surgery may be needed to remove excess skin, while nutritional supplements become indispensable allies to maintain the vital nutritional balance for the patient's new life. The following sections will explore each of these points in detail.

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Dumping Syndrome

What is it?

Dumping syndrome, also known as rapid gastric emptying, occurs when food, especially sugar, moves too quickly from the stomach to the small intestine. This can happen in patients who have undergone bariatric surgery, especially those that alter the stomach's anatomy and its connection to the small intestine, such as gastric bypass surgery.

Early dumping happens soon after eating, usually within an hour. Symptoms may include nausea, vomiting, palpitations, sweating, weakness, dizziness, flushing, and even diarrhea. Late dumping occurs 1 to 3 hours after eating and is associated with a drop in blood sugar levels (hypoglycemia), resulting in symptoms such as weakness, sweating, confusion, and, in severe cases, fainting.

TREATMENT

The treatment for dumping syndrome generally involves dietary and eating pattern changes, such as eating smaller, more frequent meals, avoiding high-sugar foods, and consuming foods that slow gastric emptying.

Weight Regain

Weight regain after bariatric surgery occurs when a patient, initially successful in losing weight post-surgery, starts to regain the lost weight. This can be due to various factors, including a lack of adherence to recommended dietary and lifestyle changes, such as maintaining a balanced diet and engaging in regular exercise. Additionally, factors that may contribute to weight regain include Psychological, Metabolic & Hormonal factors.

Weight regain can occur months or years after surgery and varies from patient to patient. The key to preventing weight regain is to strictly follow nutritional guidelines and physical activity recommendations, maintain regular medical follow-ups, and seek support for behavioral and emotional issues related to eating. In both cases, continuous medical monitoring and support from a multidisciplinary team are essential for effective management and maintenance of the surgery's results.

Reconstructive Plastic Surgery

Reconstructive plastic surgeries after bariatric surgery are surgical procedures performed to remove excess skin and adipose tissue that often remain after significant and rapid weight loss. These surgeries help improve body contour and adjust the skin to the patient's new body shape. Beyond aesthetic benefits, reconstructive plastic surgeries can also offer functional advantages, such as reducing skin infections and irritations caused by excess skin, and boosting self-esteem.

Most Common Types

These surgeries, when necessary, are generally recommended after the patient's weight has stabilized, typically 12 to 18 months following bariatric surgery. This timing allows the body to adjust to the new body mass and minimizes the risk of complications. Moreover, it is important for patients to maintain healthy lifestyle habits to ensure lasting results.

Post-Bariatric Supplementation

The Foundation of Your New Life

Our range of multivitamins and multiminerals is the cornerstone of the post-operative protocol. For those facing absorption challenges, our supplements can help, ensuring that your nutritional needs are met. Each product is carefully formulated to cater to the specificities of your new digestive condition, enabling you to live fully without the fear of nutritional deficiencies.

Bariatric Surgery

Frequently Asked Questions

FAQ - Dumping Syndrome

Dumping Syndrome

Dumping is a condition that can occur after bariatric surgery, characterized by symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, dizziness, sweating, and diarrhea. It usually happens when the stomach's contents are emptied too quickly into the small intestine, especially after eating foods high in sugar or fat.

The symptoms of Dumping can include nausea, palpitations, weakness, sweating, dizziness, and occasionally diarrhea. These symptoms can occur immediately after eating or a few hours later.

To prevent Dumping, it is recommended to eat small meals throughout the day, avoid high-sugar and high-fat foods, chew food well, and not drink liquids during meals. It is also important to rest after eating before resuming physical activities.

The treatment for Dumping primarily involves dietary adjustments. In rare cases, medical or surgical interventions may be necessary. Consulting a dietitian for specific dietary guidance is essential.

FAQ - Weight Regain

Weight Regain

Weight regain after bariatric surgery is often related to a lack of ongoing follow-up with the multidisciplinary team. Other factors include not adhering to nutritional guidelines, failing in adequate supplementation, and ceasing regular physical exercise.

To prevent weight regain, establishing a routine that includes a balanced diet and daily supplementation of vitamins, minerals, and proteins is essential. Regular physical activity and maintaining follow-up with the multidisciplinary team are crucial, as well as avoiding alcohol consumption.

Warning signs for weight regain include the return of comorbidities such as diabetes, fatty liver, high cholesterol, and hypertension. Other indicators can be a lack of energy for physical activities and difficulties in maintaining routines of exercise and healthy eating.

Yes, there are interventions to address weight regain after bariatric surgery. One of them is the use of argon plasma, an endoscopic technique that may be indicated for patients who have experienced weight relapse two years or more after bariatric surgery.

FAQ - Reconstructive Surgeries

Reconstructive Surgeries

Reconstructive surgeries are procedures carried out to correct excess skin and other bodily changes that occur after significant weight loss, such as that seen after bariatric surgery. These procedures help to improve both the appearance and physical comfort of the patient.

Common types include abdominoplasty (to remove excess skin from the abdomen), mastopexy (breast lift), brachioplasty (removal of excess skin from the arms), and thigh lift.

It is generally recommended to wait until the weight has stabilized for at least 12 to 18 months after bariatric surgery to ensure the reconstructive surgery results are more effective and long-lasting.

While the results are typically long-lasting, maintaining a stable weight is crucial to preserving the surgery's benefits. Significant weight fluctuations can affect the outcomes.

FAQ - Post-Bariatric Surgery Supplementation

Post-Bariatric Surgery Supplementation

The selection of supplements should be done with the guidance of a healthcare professional, such as a nutritionist or doctor, who can recommend specific types and doses based on individual nutritional needs and lab test results.

Yes, supplements formulated for post-bariatric patients are often more concentrated and in forms that are more easily absorbed by the body, given the altered absorption capacity after surgery.

After bariatric surgery, it can be challenging to obtain all the necessary nutrients just from the diet due to food restrictions and changes in nutrient absorption. Therefore, supplementation is an essential component of post-operative care.

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