Is It Cheaper In The Long Run To Operate?

[ToraToraTora]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-29953082
I'm in 2 minds here. I'm not exactly thin but I'm not really fat enough to consider surgery but I do have some sympathy with the idea that surgery can improve quality of life as well save money in the long run, what do we think?

[youngmafbog]

Wouldn't it be better to fix the cause?

The problem with giving surgery is it gives the green light to pig out making the matter worse.

And who is to say the larger boned people wont be back queuing outside Greggs in couple of weeks?

[Old_Geezer]

As long as it is used as a last rather than early option, then there is something to be said for it. But one must have ensured a cheaper option has been tried a number of times and now considered a failure and will remain so for this patient, first.

[jomifl]

Surely it must be cheaper in the long run to eat less. why do you think surgery would change your eating habits unless you have a gastrectomy?

[ToraToraTora]

They are talking about gastric bypass. Essentially makes it physically impossible to eat much. Yes I agree that changing lifestyle is the obvious choice. I know that can prove difficuly if not impossible for some.

[ummmm]

I think it's hard for slim people to understand the relationship overweight people have with food.

[youngmafbog]

If you mean me ummm then you have got it all wrong.

I love pie, beer and curry so perhaps that gives you some insight into my size.

[Baldric]

I heard them saying this morning that in some cases it can make Type 2 Diabetes effectively vanish, which has got to save the NHS money long term.

[ummmm]

Not you in particular, YMB. My sister is obese, as is her daughter, and she's been that way for so long that if she got down to a healthy weight she'd be left with excess skin which, if you're honest, is quite unsightly. So...do they carry on eating their unhealthy food and unhealthy portion sizes, or do they lose weight knowing they'll need an operation they'd probably never be able to afford.

[ludwig]

Ultimately if it saves money I don't see why not, but I'd like to see a 'fat tax' on some foods to help pay for the cost of the operations, and reduce the extent of the problem in the first place.

[Dizmo]

ludwig: How one the government decided what foods came under the 'fat tax' though?

[Dizmo]

I'll try again. I started writing a sentence then ended up dissecting it. How would the government decide what foods could be taxed under the 'fat tax'?

[Gromit]

I know someone who has had a gastic band and he has lost a ton of weight. His The operation is not without danger, so it should be as a last resort.

Becoming Super Obese before 25 years of age shows a lack of education.

[jomifl]

/How would the government decide what foods could be taxed under the 'fat tax'? /
The fat content would be a reliable guide..

[pastafreak]

Those who can't lose weight may be overweight due to many things besides eating too much... hormones also play a large part in how the body uses and stores food. Its not as simple as 'eat less,do more' or 'calories in,calories out'. For such people surgery may save their lives.

[jomifl]

Gromit, when I was under 25 I couldn't afford enough food to get fat. Perhaps there is a clue there.

[ludwig]

// How would the government decide what foods could be taxed under the 'fat tax'? //

Don't know. It can't be beyond the wit of man though. They already have a 'traffic light' system that shows lots of red boxes if something's deemed high fat/salt/sugar etc, so it would be something similar to how those rules are formulated.

[jomifl]

Pastafreak, hormones and metabolic rates are just the excuses trotted out by people who eat too much. I'm a bit overweight, it isn't due to hormones or metabolic rate, more likely idleness and gluttony.

[pastafreak]

//The fat content would be a reliable guide..//
Not necessarily true. More and more research is finding that its the eating of most carbohydrates that is fueling both the obesity and diabetes epidemics,and that fat in the diet is not the demon that many have believed it to be.

[pastafreak]

jomifl...you are guilty of what so many are...lumping all obese people into the 'lazy,undisciplined,greedy' category. As I said,its not that simple. That greed...which you are so disparaging about...is also controlled by hormones. Obviously not helped by the availability of so much crappy,franken foods today. 50-100 years ago these problems existed...but at least the food available was, in most cases,good fresh food.

[ummmm]

Pasta...'most' obese people eat too much.