Weight-loss surgery for older people

Q: I’m 65 and have struggled with my weight for years. Is it safe to get bariatric surgery? — Carol G., Akron, Ohio

A: The Annual Obesity Week meeting offered new insights into the benefits and risks of weight-loss surgeries.

One major revelation was from a follow-up study that tracked 367 folks ages 60 to 75 who had sleeve gastrectomy, or open or laparoscopic Roux-en-y gastric bypass between 2007 and 2017.

The participants’ 90-day major and minor complication rates post-surgery were 5.6 percent and 16 percent, respectively, comparable to the rates of younger patients. At one year out, they’d reduced their daily meds by an average of three drugs. Three years after their surgery, the group had shed more than 60 percent of their excess weight, and almost 46 percent were free of Type 2 diabetes.

One important warning: A University of California, Irvine, study found that people who had laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy and were discharged on the same day had over a fivefold increased odds of death versus those who were discharged the following day.

Q: I have chronic back pain, and my doctor prescribed oxycodone. I don’t want to take it. I hear there’s an effective pain-relieving extract from marijuana. Is it legit? — Michael J., Provo, Utah

A: What we kinda know: When it comes to using a marijuana derivative for pain relief, the best option appears to be an extract called cannabidiol, or CBD. It’s a non-psychoactive component of marijuana (you don’t get high); early research indicates that it can suppress chronic inflammatory and nerve pain without triggering addiction. But we still need more data on its use for non-cancer-related pain.

On top of that, there currently are no Food and Drug Administration-approved applications for CBD, even though as of 2016, D.C. and 36 states had legalized medical cannabis.

Beware! A new study in JAMA found that more than 42 percent of CBD products contained a higher concentration of CBD than indicated; 26 percent contained a lower concentration of CBD; and only 30 percent contained CBD that was within 10 percent of the amount listed on the label.

So, talk to your doc about alternative pain-reducing options, including: meditation; acupuncture; nutritional and supplement choices, such as Dha-omega-3; aspirin and other NSAIDS, such as cox-2 inhibitors; and cognitive behavioral therapy.

Email questions for Mehmet Oz and Mike Roizen to youdocsdaily@sharecare. com.