Obesity has become an epidemic not only in America but also all over the world, and many times people are taking the easy way out with costly surgery over natural weight loss of diet and exercise. A person is considered obese when he or she has a body mass index of at least 30 or has developed a medical condition from being obese and in the United States obesity affects 149. 3 million people every year. Losing weight for anyone can be difficult and there are so many different ways to accomplish this like diet, pills, diet plans, shots, surgery, and of course diet and exercise.
In this essay I will compare and contrast the risks and benefits of liposuction versus diet and exercise. Liposuction has fast results and is being accepted as a weight lose method instead of a last result. Liposuction is a procedure that vacuums out the fat deposits from areas on the body like the stomach and bottom. I can’t imagine using a vacuum to suck out the fat, when all that is needed some exercise and good nutrition. Liposuction can be very painful, and can cause swelling that could take up to 2 months to subside, depending on how much fat is removed.
Who is to say once the swelling does go down if the weight will even stay off? Imagine spending 5,000 on surgery and then within 6 months all of that fat is back or even more because all that was done is having fat removed. In 2009 American spent over 5 hundred million dollars on liposuction surgery. Most are women making up 90% of all liposuctions done in the United States. From 2008 to 2009 men having liposuction increased 18%. Liposuction is not an instant cure to obesity and can come with many complications.
The FDA cites studies that indicate the risk of death is as low as 3 deaths per 100,000 operations, but the risk is between 20 to 100 per 100,000 deaths. Deaths in liposuction operations have a higher mortality rate than car accidents. A person’s expectation of results after surgery is not always met. When an excessive amount of fat is removed the skin can look wavy and wrinkly. Skin loss is also a risk especially with smokers and people with diabetes because the skin can die and would have to be removed.
Unlike with diet and exercise that none of these problems will exist. Diet and exercise when done as a life style change can completely change how you look, feel, and keep you healthy. Exercise can help control weight, when you do a work out, or run you burn calories. The more intense the workout the more calories are burned. Not much time is needed daily, just a half an hour everyday to get your heart rate up, which will help deter heart disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure. Diet is also an important part of making you feel better.
Have you ever heard the saying you are what you eat. Replacing your snacks with healthy choices like carrots and celery and eating well rounded balanced meals anywhere from 3 to 5 will make a difference when it comes to how you feel and look. Diet and exercise can also boost your energy; regular workouts can improve muscle strength and boost endurance. When you exercise and eat foods that are healthy you give oxygen and nutrients to tissue and your cardiovascular system works more efficiently and gives you more energy.
Diet and exercise helps prevent health conditions and disease and boost good cholesterol. Liposuction is usually not covered by any insurance companies because it is considered a cosmetic procedure and liposuction procedures can cost around $3,000. The average membership to a gym cost somewhere between $20 and $100 per month which is just under a 1,500 per year but this all depends on what type of gym and the services you use. This is 1/3 the cost of liposuction. You don’t need an expensive surgery or even a membership to a gym to be health and have a healthy weight.
Walking or running cost you nothing and grocery shopping is already something most Americans do which can be less in cost than you think. Making the choice to change is the first step to living a healthy life. Anyone can do it and it doesn’t have to cost you anymore than what you spend now, making this choice can be the difference between living happy and dying early in life. Making this choice is everyone own decision. Liposuction isn’t the quick fix everyone thinks it is and there are complications to it and if you do have liposuction there is still a need to change your lifestyle.
Removing the weight does not guarantee it will stay gone and the need to change your lifestyle after this type of surgery is a must or all of the weight will just be gained back. A natural diet and exercise over time can give you the results you want but can also decrease your risks of major health issues like heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. Making this type of lifestyle change is what make lives better and using a quick fix like surgery can only make the problem worse the way I see it because in the end the life style change will be needed with or without surgery.
References: 1. Akamai Technology Survey conducted by Forrester Consulting: 2 Seconds as the New Threshold of Acceptability for eCommerce Web Page Response Times 2. The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS) 3. What are the Risks or Complications Associated with Liposuction? – Food & Drug Administration 4. American Heart Association (2008, January 23). Daily Exercise Dramatically Lowers Men’s Death Rates. Science Daily. Retrieved December 14, 5. McNeil K, LeBlanc E, Joyce M.
The effect of exercise on depressive symptoms in the moderately depressed elderly. Psychology of Aging 6. Blumenthal JA, Babyak MA, Moore KA, et al. Effects of exercise training on older patients with major depression. Archives of Internal Medicine 7. Doyne EJ, Ossip-Klein DJ, Bowman ED, Osborn KM, McDougall-Wilson IB, Neimeyer IB. Running Versus Weight Lifting in the Treatment of Depression. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. 8. Source: The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery for statistical data.