CUTTING CALORIES

1000 Coasters a year going under the knife for extreme weight-loss surgery

DIETING and hitting the gym is no longer enough for an increasing number of Gold Coasters who are resorting to surgery to control their weight. Every year more than 1000 morbidly obese locals are having weight-loss operations such as gastric bypasses and lap band surgery. This is despite the Coast having the second-lowest obesity rate in Queensland.

THE number of Gold Coasters going under the knife to lose weight is tipped to soar as weight loss surgery becomes increasingly acceptable in an ever-expanding society.

More than 1000 morbidly obese Gold Coasters are having weight loss procedures each year, with up to 10 bariatric surgeons catering for the city’s appetite for what was once considered an extreme measure.

Benowa’s Obesity Surgery Gold Coast is operating on up to 10 patients each week, while a Kirra surgeon is aiming to double her annual client base to 200 in coming years.

Dr Jason Free, who performs procedures such as gastric bypasses and lap band surgery at Pindara Private Hospital, said health experts believed up to 30 per cent of the population could benefit from weight loss surgery but only 1-2 per cent were undergoing procedures.

“That number will grow as (surgery) becomes less stigma- tised and more people talk about it (as an option),” he said.

“Almost everyone who diets will lose a bit of weight but only 1-2 per cent of morbidly obese people (with a body mass index above 40) can maintain that loss long-term.

“It’s not their fault. There is a huge amount of genetics involved so you can’t blame the patient … the human body has not evolved to match the (modern-day) diet of Western society.”

The Australian National Health and Medical Research Council recommends weight loss surgery for anyone with a body mass index of more than 40, or those with a BMI above 35 who have obesity-related disorders such as diabetes or sleep apnoea.

Dr Candice Silverman, who opened her Kirra practice in 2012, said the wider medical profession was becoming “more open” to surgery for the morbidly obese.

“There has been an idea that weight loss surgery is a shortcut and (patients) should be able to lose and maintain weight through diet and exercise, but that’s not true,” she said. “Once people are morbidly obese, the horse has bolted and they need active management.”

Dr Harald Puhalla, who has a practice at John Flynn and Gold Coast private hospitals, said there was an increasing onus on GPs to discuss weight loss surgery with morbidly obese patients.

“The patient can say no but they need to beware of the option,” he said.