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Are You A
Candidate For
Gastric Bypass
Surgery?
Candidates
For Gastric
Bypass Surgery
Gastric bypass
surgery is
recommended for
those persons
who are 90
pounds or more
overweight and
have or are
likely to have
medical
complications
that will be
helped, and in
many instances,
cured by
substantial
weight loss.
While weight
loss surgery is
not for
everyone, there
are a large
number of
patients for
whom losing a
lot of weight
is imperative,
including those
suffering from
diabetes, high
blood pressure,
heart trouble,
shortness of
breath,
arthritis and
orthopedic
(bone) problems
with their
legs, hips or
back. Weight
loss surgery
actually fails
in those
persons who
drink large
quantities of
regular soft
drinks, consume
sweets, ice
cream, chips
and fatty fried
foods. If you
are one of
these people
and feel you
cannot switch
to diet drinks
and cut out
sweets and
fried foods
then gastric
bypass surgery
is not for you.
Do I qualify
for Gastric
Bypass Surgery?
Physicians and
healthcare
professionals
commonly use
the "Body Mass
Index" (BMI) as
a way of
helping to
determine
obesity. BMI is
a number
calculated by
dividing a
person's weight
in kilograms by
his or her
height in
square meters.
Although a
patient's BMI
cannot be used
to determine
actual
percentage of
body fat or
overall health
condition, it
is a means of
categorizing
weight in terms
of nationally
recognized
standards.
These standards
— derived from
years of
research and
data — are
based on the
probability of
whether or not
a person will
be healthy or
unhealthy as
they age.
A Body Mass
Index (BMI)
greater than 40
is by
definition
morbid obesity.
Lesser BMI may
be morbid if
associated by
serious
co-morbidities.
Body
Mass Index standards
are:
-
BMI 18.5 to 24.9
Healthy
-
BMI 25 to 29.9
Overweight
-
BMI 30 to 39.9 Obese
-
BMI 40 to 49.9 Morbidly
Obese
-
BMI 50 or higher Super
Obese
Answering
the
question
"Am I
Morbidly
Obese?"
may give
you the
courage
you need
to take
the
first
step
towards
gastric
bypass
surgery.
Below,
we've
included
a BMI
Calculator
and an
Ideal
Body
Weight
Chart
you can
use to
determine
if you
are
morbidly
obese.
(However,
BMI is
only one
of many
factors
we
consider
when
determining
whether
or not a
patient
is a
good
candidate
for
weight
loss
surgery.) |
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You may
be a
good
candidate
for
surgery
if:
-
You are 100 pounds or
more over your healthy
(ideal) body weight
-
You have a BMI of 40 or
more
-
You have a BMI of 35 or
more and have serious
health problems, such
as diabetes or heart
disease, that are
caused by your excess
weight
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