Puget Sound Surgical Center

Mark Corrales hadn’t been able to tie his own shoes in 15 years. He suffered from obstructive sleep apnea, hypertension, severe gout and degenerative joint disease. Add to that a case of GERD and borderline diabetes, and you have a picture of Mark’s physical health: uncomfortable, unhealthy and definitely un-Mark.

Gastric bypass surgery at Puget Sound Surgical Center helped Mark lose 213 pounds and improve his overall health. “The weight loss tool that was given to me changed my life,” he wrote in a testimonial for the center.

Mark’s treatment went beyond the surgery. “They connected me with an excellent nutritionist and people who were able to relate to my needs and cravings,” he said. “I started to eat things that were healthier, and surprisingly, I enjoyed them! I couldn’t believe it!”

Today, he participates in a fitness center cycling program and enjoys hiking. He has received promotions at work and more doors are open to him because he’s taking more challenges.

Mark’s success story revolves around a comprehensive program Puget Sound Surgical Center has set into place. The program begins before the patient’s bariatric surgery and continues one to two years after the surgery. “We don’t want to give a patient new surgery and a new chance of life, then simply send him on his way,” Torie McIntyre, public relations coordinator, explained. “We want to give our patients support for mind, body and spirit.”

That support comes in the form of nutrition therapy, an exercise program, counseling services and support groups that provide interaction with the other weight-loss patients. Puget Sound Surgical Center specializes in minimally invasive bariatric surgery including Lap-Band and Lap Sleeve surgery. The center also provides the latest in aesthetic cosmetic procedures such as SmartLipo, which tightens skin and eliminates fat using laser liposuction technology.

Upcoming surgical weight-loss seminars are scheduled for November 18th in Bellingham and December 10th in Edmonds. For details, contact Torie at the surgical center. She can guide you to educational information, help you sign up for a seminar and introduce you to staff specialists who will influence your success in building a healthier new you.

According to a news report by CNN, a study of human relationships in social network behavior has discovered that people are more likely to be influenced by the people they know.

Social networks influences our likes and dislikes both online and offline. This affects the behavior of people and their friends up to the 4th degree of separation. According to Dr. Nicholas Christakis, a Harvard Professor and James Fowler an associate professor at the University of California, San Diego, this new form of connected behavior has a significant affect on people’s social views, preferences, even to the point of affecting others eating habits. This phenomena is very similar to how patterns of disease spread.

These affects are not small to any degree. In fact they can have a profound impact on a person and the amount of weight that they gain. “If a mutual friend becomes obese, it nearly triples a person’s risk of becoming obese.” It doesn’t matter if the person or friend is over a 1000 miles away, the risk of becoming obese as a result of the social network relationship is increased.

This is an interesting study that has yet to be fully explained. Obesity seems to spread in social networks because of “behavior imitation.” This is where a person copies the behaviors of friends that they are close to. When people see friends gaining weight, they modify their behavior to readjust their own idea of what an acceptable body size is.

People are always going to be susceptible to bad behaviors, even in cyberspace. Being aware of how it affects you is important and being strong enough to quarantine the negative behavior of others is key to preventing it from affecting you.

CNN – Reports on the controversy regarding the need for medical insurance to pay for weight loss surgery procedures for the morbidly obese. The debate arrises from the notion that a person’s obesity is a result of personal responsibility and not any known naturally occurring medical condition. However, medical insurance companies do not deny medical treatment due to lung cancer if the person was a chronic smoker all their life.

By reimbursing for weight loss surgery, overall health care cost would be reduced significantly since surgery patients would be less likely to obtain a secondary diseases like high blood pressure, stoke, heart attack, edema and diabetes once the weight comes off.

Most experts believe that there would be a national reduction of health care costs since less money would be spent on treating morbid obesity related diseases which in turn would also help to reduce insurance premiums.

CNN – Reports that childhood obesity is rising at an alarming rate. One study done by the Institute of Medicine has determined that childhood obesity has more than tripled in the past three decades. Bloggers discuss possible solutions and issue surrounding this new epidemic in this video.

CNN – Reports that the price of obesity is increasing at an alarming rate. Cost are escalating for the health care industry in order to manage the medical needs of those who are morbidly obese.

According to a CNN health report, obesity can remove 2 to 4 years off the average lifespan of a person. Being very obese can shorten the lifespan by 8 to 10 years or more according to a new scientific study which included almost a million people.

Professor of global health, Ali Mokdad, Ph.D., at the University of Washington, states, “This is scary and something that we should pay close attention to. These new findings actually underestimate the true impact of obesity on society because they don’t address the costs of obesity-related illnesses and other factors.”

The original study was conducted by the eminent epidemiologist Sir Richard Peto of the University of Oxford. This study was conducted to figure out how exactly a body mass index (BMI) relates to mortality.

CNN reports that infertility can be attributed to obesity in some women. Women that are overweight produces too much estrogen, this in turn affects other hormone levels within their bodies. This can cause Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) where there is not enough balance of hormones to stimulate and egg to full maturity.

This video is a repost of this report

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CNN report on obese people who live in Alabama who are penalized on insurance premiums for being overweight. This plan was implemented as a means to motivate people to lose weight. However, some feel that this is nothing more than a fat tax.

This video is a rebroadcast of this report.

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Hey y’all!   I am one week post surgical and have my good days and bad days – mostly good.  I never thought that finally being able to have pureed potatoes would excite me more than a new pair of shoes but here I am!

So let’s have some fun!  What are some habits that make you a “Gold Star” earner as a Lap Band-ite? What are some that might put you in detention?  With school starting soon it makes for a fun game.  I’d love to hear from y’all – I would hate to think I am alone on this board!

Go Hawks!

Jill

I have lapband surgery almost a year ago.  While I lost 35 lbs during the first 6 months, I did not lose more weight from months 7-10  As I’m sure many of us know, the nutritionists are very conservative in their approach to fills, and we understand why.  However, at 10 months I was only at a fill of “2″.  A friend of mine who had the same procedure done in Olympia talked to me about the bariatric xray that she’d had and how you could see what was getting through and when a fill was enough.  One of our nutritionists suggested that I go to a 2.2 fill.  I went ahead and scheduled the X-ray prior to the fill and Dr. Billing found that it wasn’t until 2.9 that I personally (and I know this is a personal situation for each of us) was getting any type of true restriction.  Now I can actually feel fuller yet still get enough protein through to be healthy!  Thank heavens for modern science and equipment that helps us “know” where the restriction works rather than have it based on guess work.  I’m now starting to lose weight again. Good luck to you all in your journeys- Jan Schiffner