A report published by the National Confidential Enquiry into Patient Outcome and Death (NCEPOD) was recently released, which was on the topic of weight loss surgery and how it was advertised.

The adverts for weight loss surgery (especially in the private sector) focus on the benefits and show it as a ‘quick fix’ to being over weight. They avoid the statistics like 20% of weight loss surgery patients are re-admitted to hospital due to ‘complications’, and 7% have to under-go further surgery.

The truth is that weight loss surgery is that the surgery is the start of a very long term lifestyle commitment. People who do not know this may think ‘its all sorted now’, and revert back to their original poor diet. This, unsurprisingly leads to damaging the work of surgery and inflicts a number of health problems.

People MUST be aware of the longer term commitments required of themselves with weight loss surgery, and not fall for the morally questionable advertising.

Image courtesy of USD school of medicine.