Research published in Public Library of Science (PLOS) Medicine says thousands of very obese people in the UK could benefit from the surgery. Very obese individuals are defined by having a body mass index (BMI) of 40 or more. Normally, people with a BMI of 30 upwards are considered obese. Bariatric surgery is available on the NHS to treat people when other options, such as lifestyle changes, have not been successful.
A research team led by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine examined 3,882 records of patients who had undergone weight-loss surgery and a similar group of people who had not undergone the procedure and followed them for up to around 4 years. They found that weight loss surgery patients underwent rapid weight loss for the first 4 months after surgery at a rate of almost 5 kilos a month. Weight continued to fall off, albeit at a slower rate, up to the end of…
