Gerds, gallbladder, anemia, and osteoporosis

[sugarbear234 17]

I am in my late 40s and I meet with my surgeon at the end of December to plan for the sleeve. My concerns are great I have co- morbidities high b/p, bmi 40, and history of TIA's. That is real reason for the surgery but when I see what I am trading them for it causes me to question. Vitamin, nutrients deficiency, malabsorption, how does this look at 50 60 70 years of age when bones aren't getting what they need?

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[BettyG 75]

It's true that you will have to always take Vitamins and keep a close eye on your nutrition, but that is true for anyone. Many obese people today are actually malnourished and deficient in many Vitamins because the kinds of foods that are easy to overeat and that lead to obesity are "empty calories" -- high processed and full of fat and sugar and chemicals.

Gastric bypass has been around for a long time (30+ maybe 40 years?) so there are many long-term studies. It has proven to be very safe over the long term.

I am in my 40s also and I'm getting a RNY bypass and I wondered the same as you: will this keep me healthy for the next 40+ years? I Googled "oldest gastric bypass patient" and found a post on a forum somewhere of a gal who is 79 now I believe and doing great. She believed she was the oldest bypass patient still alive. Her post reassured me a lot.

Also, if I don't get weight loss surgery, I doubt I will live more than another 20 years.... so there's that. (Like you, I have numerous health problems. All my relatives who were obese died in their 50-60s, the skinny ones all lived to 90+. Just saw my grandfather at Thanksgiving who will be 96 in January).

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[BettyG 75]

You will be taking Calcium every day, so your bones will get what they need. The best way to keep your bones healthy as you age is doing strength-training exercise. Which is much easier to do at a normal weight than when obese.

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[suzzzzz 1,005]

I had my sleeve at age 58 5 mths ago. No problems on this journey so far. Had blood work done last week and it all came back great. I have also cut my BP meds in half, am no longer prediabetic and feel great. I take Vitamins everyday and doing so is a great tradeoff for getting healthier. Oh, and there is no malabsorption with the sleeve.

[Djmohr 6,965]

Not sure from the title of your post whether or not you have GERD? If you do, the sleeve is likely not the best procedure for you. Check with your surgeon on this.

The sleeve can make GERD worse resulting in a revision to bypass. It is the reason i had bypass, I had my heart set on the sleeve and then was told it was not the best solution for my health issues.

I had my RNY over two years ago. I am 53. I had type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, sleep apnea, severe gerd and worst of all stage 3 kidney disease. I also have psoriatic arthrits, Osteo arthritis and hypothyroid.

Within 3 months my diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and severe gerd were completely GONE. My kidney disease was in remission and liver function went back to normal. Within 12 months my sleep apnea was gone.

I was off all medications for those issues with the exception of my thyroid replacement and biologics for my Psoriatic arthritis.

I of course now take calcium citrate, a multi Vitamin, Vitamin D, Vitamin b1 and vitamin B12.< /p>

It is alot less expensive for me, I lost all of my excess weight and other than my lousy back, I feel fantastic. Years younger......prior to losing my weight i felt like I was dying every day.

Try not to worry, just educate yourself. Get on line, go to support groups, talk to those on forums like this. It will help you know everything you need to know to get healthy and stay healthy.

Best of luck to you!

[ShelterDog64 2,364]

Adding to what @@suzzzzz said....I'm 52 and chose the sleeve over bypass for exactly the reasons you mention. I didn't want to deal with malabsorption as I was already anemic and have had vit D deficiency for years. I'm post-menopausal and concerned about bone density, too. I'm using patch Vitamins and just had my 6 month doc visit yesterday. I had the best labs I've had in 10 years...everything was perfect or nearly so. Calcium, Iron, B12, vit D...all were right in the middle of the 'normal' range, my hemoglobin was normal, cholesterol ratio was amazing, etc.

I went in for my sleeve surgery with bad fibromyalgia trigger points in my back and on 2 blood pressure meds. I came home with NO pain and off the meds...my BP is perfect.

I elected to go the route with my weight that allowed me to manage everything...I'm taking the weight off and any 'tradeoffs' are completely manageable. Slapping a Vitamin patch on my belly every day beats the hell out of having a stroke at 60, at least in my opinion

[sugarbear234 17]

Thanks for sharing so helpful

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[Djmohr 6,965]

@@sugarbear234

I also want to tell you that I was anemic and malnourished before my RNY surgery. I no longer take any Iron tablets. The change of diet is an important part of how you stay healthy.

Not sure if you know this or not but many many many morbidly obese patients are malnourished. This comes from eating the wrong foods.

My anemia was resolved very quickly. In fact, I was shocked when they never even put me on an Iron replacement after surgery. My iron has been strong ever since.

Half the battle is learning that you need to eat differently. I always say, 90% of having WLS is a head game, 10% is about the surgery itself.

It is ALL about changing behaviors and eating differently than you do today. It is not all about quantity of food......

[James Marusek 5,244]

If you have GERD then go with RNY gastric bypass surgery. Sleeve will only make this condition worse. Several members on this board have undergone revisions from sleeve to RNY gastric bypass because of this problem.

I am over 3 years post-op RNY surgery. The main reason why I had the surgery was because of medical issues. I had high blood pressure, diabetes, GERD and sleep apnea along with other conditions. All these conditions went into remission within weeks/days after surgery. I am off all the prescription medicines that I was taking for these conditions. Life is good. By the way I am 68 years old. I take a regiment of Vitamins each day and periodically my blood is analyzed to ensure that my Vitamin intake is correct. So my nutrient levels are well balanced and fine tweeked. My bones seemed fine. I do little projects around the house. Last year I moved 100,000 pounds of gravel by hand along with around 60,000 pounds of concrete blocks and this year I moved about the same amount.

[laceemouse 631]

I am in my late 40s and I meet with my surgeon at the end of December to plan for the sleeve. My concerns are great I have co- morbidities high b/p, bmi 40, and history of TIA's. That is real reason for the surgery but when I see what I am trading them for it causes me to question. Vitamin, nutrients deficiency, malabsorption, how does this look at 50 60 70 years of age when bones aren't getting what they need?

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The surgery doesn't make it impossible for you to eat, it makes it easier for us to be satisfied eating NORMAL amounts of food like thin, healthy people are.

People in their 50's, 60's and 70's don't need nearly as much food as younger people, people who are thin at those ages are the ones who live to be 90.

Not everyone gets GERD, but obese people are likely to have it anyway so your chances of never getting it if you don't have the surgery are slim.

Some people do have gallbladder issues after weight loss, but it really has nothing to do with surgery. I had to have my gallbladder out 15 years ago after losing a measly 40 pounds on Weight Watchers. If you lose the weight on your own you could still end up with gallbladder problems.

I don't understand what the big deal is about Vitamins, is it really that hard to take them?

Edited December 6, 2016 by laceemouse

[sgc 538]

I had GERD before getting the sleeve and haven't had it since the sleeve. My GERD was more likely caused by a hiatal hernia that was repaired during surgery.

[ShelterDog64 2,364]

@@sugarbear234 Do you actually have GERD? You didn't mention it in the post, so I missed that.

If so, definitely consider bypass over sleeve. Talk with your doc about the incidence of severe reflux in sleeve patients vs bypass. It's not a 'for sure' thing by any means but definitely occurs more often if you already have reflux pre-op.

[BettyG 75]

I am in my late 40s and I meet with my surgeon at the end of December to plan for the sleeve. My concerns are great I have co- morbidities high b/p, bmi 40, and history of TIA's. That is real reason for the surgery but when I see what I am trading them for it causes me to question. Vitamin, nutrients deficiency, malabsorption, how does this look at 50 60 70 years of age when bones aren't getting what they need?

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By the way, I see malabsorption as a benefit, not a drawback. It means that part of the calories you consume don't get absorbed. Imagine that - free calories! I get to taste and chew and swallow but escape some of the calorie consequences! Sounds like a dream come true to me. Well worth taking Vitamins every day.

Also, what is "history of TIAs"?

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[sugarbear234 17]

Wow now that's funny... TIA also called mini strokes appearance and symptoms of a stroke.

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