Weight gain after gastric bypass is common; study will see if post-operative supervision helps keep it off

Though 200,000 people undergo gastric bypass surgery to lose weight each year, more than half of patients put back on at least 20 percent of the weight they lost, research-reporting service Newswise reports. A new study will test whether supervising patients' exercise and food intake post surgery will help the pounds from creeping back on. This should be of more than passing interest in Kentucky, given our high nrate of obesity.

"You wouldn't invest $25,000 to remodel your home and not maintain it. Shocking as it may seem, follow-up on diet and exercise just isn't the norm with gastric bypass," said Gary D. Miller, who will head the study at Wake Forest University in North Carolina. "With so many people seeking gastric bypass each year, we can improve the long-term outcome of gastric bypass by keeping up with patients as they figure out their new lifestyle."

In the sixth-month study, one group of patients who recently underwent gastric bypass surgery will receive aerobic training, such as walking or cycling, and resistance training three days a week. They will also be supervised by an exercise psychologist and will be asked to document what they eat in a food diary, which will later be analyzed. They will additionally be encouraged to exercise at least two more days a week.

A second group will receive post-surgery care that is standard to gastric bypass patients. Generally, these patients receive guidance about diet and exercise, but their fitness levels and eating habits are not supervised. "This could show that surgery plus supervised exercise and diet might be the best, most efficient option for weight loss in obese and morbidly obese people," Miller said. (Read more)