Aside from bariatric surgery, existing alternatives for weight loss include pharmacological and behavioral management given during primary care visits. Other options include hospital-based interventions and self-help and commercial programs (i. e. , aerobic exercises, body-building equipment and the like). Whatever approach is chosen, long-term care is typically needed to ensure success and maintenance of weight loss. In the long term, diet therapy, unfortunately, is usually unsuccessful in managing obesity, with or without support groups.
Efficacy rate of diets is generally low since most dieters usually regain lost weight and that significant dietary restrictions may encourage binge eating. At present, there exists no effective pharmacological therapy to manage obesity, particularly morbid obesity. Aside from this, pharmaceutical agents involved in the therapy have result in too many complications and side-effects that adversely affect the body. As such, it is reasonable to infer that bariatric surgery today is the only highly effective therapy for morbid obesity.
Like in other approaches to manage obesity, the best outcomes are attained through regular physical activities and healthy diet. Likewise, surgical intervention requires long-term follow-up to assist patients adopt to the surgical procedure as well as to lead a healthy lifestyle, specifically observing healthy eating habits and related activities. Long-term support groups—which include family members and friends—can prove to be very helpful in the program.
Another key consideration in managing severe obese patients is their emotional health as adverse psychological results might occur, such as depression, due to considerable changes in eating habit and decrease in food intake. It is crucial for health care providers to communicate clearly with patients to identify if the patients are aware of the need for surgery, instead of merely supposing that they do. It is helpful to discuss results of the physical examination together with laboratory tests and medical history with the patient to better determine the need for weight reduction.
The healthcare provider must also identify the most opportune time for undergoing bariatric surgery as this operation and weight loss in general need complete focus and constant effort. Distractions—such as problems, serious illness of a family member, etc. —can greatly impair the process, particularly the patient. If patients think that they are not yet prepared to undergo treatment, it is more prudent to wait for the better time. In such instances, the primary objective will be to prevent gaining more weight than reducing weight.