Hosted by Barbara Thompson
Author of:
Weight Loss Surgery:
Finding the Thin Person Hiding Inside You.
Issue #142
June
1,
2008
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In This Issue
* Walk on the Capitol
* Ask Barbara: Controlling Weight Regain During Pregnancy
* Murder Mystery Cruise
* Look who's on the cover of WLSLifestyles
* Fat Cells among Us
* Vitamins: You Can’t Stay Healthy Without Them Study Shows
* Recipe: Tomato Vodka Soup
* Success Story: Sue Failer *Obesity
Sensitivity Training
I know raising awareness of obesity is
important to you. And, that is why we need your help and
your voice on June 17th for an historic and first
of its kind event – the Walk from Obesity – Walk on the
Capitol.
On June 17th at 6:30 pm, the
Obesity Action Coalition and the American Society for
Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Foundation will host this
National event to send a strong message to the public and
government that obesity needs to be prevented and treated.
The Walk on the Capitol will be held on the National
Mall in Washington, DC, where thousands of individuals will
gather. We encourage and invite you, your family members and
friends, healthcare professionals, industry leaders and any
individual concerned about obesity to take part in this
historical event. For more information, visit
www.walkonthecapitol.com.
I am very excited about this. I hope
you can join me and thousands of others. I have received so
many emails from people saying, “How can I help?” Well this
is it. I hope to see YOU in Washington, DC! I’ll be there!
Ask Barbara:
Controlling Weight Regain
During Pregnancy
April 12th, 2008 was my two year surgiversary and I have lost about 140 pounds. About a month ago, I
found out that I am pregnant and I'm due in October. The old pre-op
habits are coming back. I eat a whole lot more and I'm stressed out
and tired. For example, Saturday I had two chili dogs. Yes, I did have
the repercussions of having the runs for eating such poor foods, but
my hormones are more controlling than my right frame of mind. My main
fear is that I will regain a lot of weight during my pregnancy and
won't be able to lose it. This month I'm starting an eight week
step-by-step class for running. I've spoken to the coordinator and
advised the person of my situation and the person reassured me that
the class is for beginners and that most of the people do a brisk
walk. I have to double check with my doctor to make sure that I have
the okay. Do you have any suggestions on how to be able not to gain a
substantial amount of weight during pregnancy? I want to stop the bad
habits before they become out of hand.
Thanks,
Carla
Hi Carla,
Congratulations on your pregnancy!! And congratulations on your
concern about weight regain. I have noticed that many patients when
talking about how they became morbidly obese often cite the amount of
weight they gained during pregnancy and then were not able to lose
that weight.
However, first and foremost is the health of you
and your baby and I’m sure that is your first concern as well. I would
begin with working with the nutritionist that is associated with your
surgeon’s office. If there is not a nutritionist available, ask for a
referral. And if that doesn’t work, then ask your obstetrician.
You can find out from a nutritionist how to eat healthy for you and
your baby, yet stay in bounds so you are not gaining too much weight.
Be very careful of your vitamins. Now is not the
time to cheep out. See the article below from the American Journal
of Clinical Nutrition. If is OK with your nutritionist, be
very careful of your carbohydrate intake. Simple carbohydrates such
as white bread, white potatoes and sweets will only serve to increase
your hunger. And this is a time of excessive hunger and cravings, so
you don’t need anything that makes it worse. Make your carbohydrates
the complex variety found in fruits and vegetables.
Just the fact that you are asking and are already
taking steps to increase your exercise in a healthy way shows that you
are definitely headed in the right direction. I wish you the best and that
you continue to have a healthy pregnancy and in a few months, a
beautiful baby.
If you
have a question you would like to ask, email me at
Barbara@WLScenter.com. I can keep your identity anonymous if you
prefer.
Join me on a Murder
Mystery Cruise!!!
January 24-31, 2009
The “Who Dun It” on the High Seas!
Sail with me to the warm and sunny Eastern
Caribbean during what for most of us is the coldest part of the winter
visiting San Juan, Puerto Rico; St. Thomas/St. John and St. Maarten.
During the 3 days at sea of the 7 day cruise join in the fun of a
murder mystery each day. A professional troupe from Toronto will
entertain us with thrills, clues, conundrums, and red herrings. This
will be a totally fun cruise with me and other weight loss surgery
patients. We will sail on the Carnival Cruise ship Liberty which will
sail out of Miami.
OK I admit it. I am really excited!
I’m on the cover of WLS Lifestyles Magazine. If you
aren’t familiar with the magazine, it has been
publishing for many years and is a
quarterly magazine dedicated
to inspiring, educating and supporting life after weight
loss surgery. I have been a frequent contributor to it.
I am very proud to have been selected for their cover
which will also be distributed at the annual meeting of
the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery
in June.
Click here for more information and to
to subscribe to the magazine
Click
here to read the article
on Barbara Thompson
Fat Cells Among Us
The journal Nature in their May 2008 issue
reported on a study that counted fat cells. The study found:
That the number of fat cells that we have is
established during the first 20 years of our lives.
Those who are obese have more fat cells than
those of normal weight.
If we were obese as children, we are stuck
with the higher number of fat cells into our adulthood.
We cannot lose fat cells, but by dieting or
losing weight through weight loss surgery, we
can keep the fat cells smaller.
The study suggests that for those of us who are
obese, it is harder for us to maintain a normal weight because of our
higher number of fat cells, but it can be done. The study also
underlines the importance of preventing childhood obesity.
Nutritional deficiencies
after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass for morbid obesity often cannot be
prevented by standard multivitamin supplementation.
Christoph Gasteyger, Michel Suter, Rolf C Gaillard,
and Vittorio Giusti
Standard Multivitamin
Not Enough After Gastric Bypass
A study just published in
the May issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition shows
that the majority of gastric bypass patients cannot maintain their
nutritional health on a basic multivitamin supplement. The study
followed 137 gastric bypass patients for two years. By the end of
year one, 59% of the participants required additional supplements
and by the end of year two, this number had increased to 98%. The
most common additional supplements needed were B12, folic acid,
calcium, iron and vitamin D. Much less commonly, they identified
deficiency of thiamine, zinc, magnesium and B6. The authors
concluded that basic multivitamins are not effective at preventing
deficiency in gastric bypass patients, and typical supplementation to keep
a gastric bypass patient health averages about $420.00/year when
additional nutrients are accounted for. They also encouraged
further study and the use of routine post-operative labs to assess
nutritional status.
Source:
Gasteyger,
Christoph, et al, “Nutritional deficiencies after Roux-en-Y
gastric bypass for morbid obesity often cannot be prevented by
standard multivitamin supplementation,” American Journal of
Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 87, No. 5, 1128-1133, May 2008
Nutritional
Supplements for Bariatric Surgery Patients
Bariatric Advantage® provides a complete line of
nutritional supplements that have been specifically
formulated to meet the unique demands of both the
pre-operative bariatric surgical candidate, as well as
the post-operative bariatric surgical patient.
This tomato-Worcestershire-vodka soup gets served in shot glasses for
fun. This is great to have for a summer party. It is just as good with
the vodka left out. Look for the pickled veggies near the jarred
vegetables in the supermarket.
32 peeled deveined
cooked medium shrimp
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, divided
Pickled vegetables (such as carrots, celery, green beans, and olives)
1 28-ounce can tomatoes in juice
2 green onions, chopped
1/2 cup (or more) low-salt chicken broth
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons vodka (optional)
1 tablespoon prepared horseradish
1/2 teaspoon celery salt
Toss shrimp with 1 tablespoon lemon juice in large
bowl. Thread 1 shrimp and 1 vegetable on toothpick. Repeat with
remaining shrimp and vegetables. Cover and refrigerate until ready to
serve.
Place tomatoes with juice, green onions, 1/2 cup
broth, Worcestershire sauce, vodka, if desired, horseradish, celery salt, and
remaining 1 tablespoon lemon juice in blender. Cover; blend until
smooth. If mixture is too thick, thin with additional broth by
tablespoonfuls. Season Bloody Mary mixture to taste with salt and
pepper. Transfer to pitcher. DO AHEAD: Skewers and soup can be made
1 day ahead. Cover and chill.
Pour Bloody Mary mixture into shot glasses or small
glasses. Garnish each with shrimp-vegetable skewer. Serve remaining
Bloody Mary mixture and shrimp-vegetable skewers alongside.
Makes 8
servings
If you have a recipe that you would like to share in future issues of
thisnewsletter, please send it to me at
Barbara@WLScenter.com
Success Story:
Sue
Failer
I want to offer a special thanks to Sue Failer.
Here is her story:
My first diet was in 5th grade when my mother
signed me up for Weight Watchers. That was the beginning of my diet
journey. I covered them all through the years: Jenny Craig, the Cabbage
Soup Diet, Phen Phen, Nutrisystem, Deal a Meal--you name it, I tried it.
I lost weight on all of them to some degree with the highest weight loss
being 110 lbs on Jenny Craig in my late 20's. I was not able to maintain
my weight loss then because my reasons for losing weight were for other
people and not me.
Fast forward 15 years to my early 40's where
metabolism and life stressors pushed me to 281 lbs. I had relocated to
another State after a miserable break-up that I dealt with by eating. I
was now becoming concerned for my health as I was pre-diabetic and
already on two cholesterol medications. My sister had gastric bypass
surgery 4 years earlier and she tried to educate me on the surgery. I
was still under the assumption that I didn't need the surgery and I
could lose weight on my own.
I was in such denial that I didn't even visit my
sister in the hospital when she had her surgery. Sure enough, she lost
100 lbs that first year as I continued to try and fix my weight problem
on my own. As the depression increased and the realization that losing
weight in my 40's was a completely different story than in my 20's, I
began to open my mind to learning more about weight loss surgery. I
started asking my sister questions and doing some research on my own. I
went to an introductory meeting in Spring of 2006 and had the roux-n- y
surgery December of 2006. Two and a half years out of surgery, I have
lost 135 lbs and now weigh 145 lbs and am a size 2. It took a while for
my brain to catch up with the pounds I had lost and I still struggle
occasionally with a distorted body image.
Not only has my weight loss far surpassed my
expectations, I have become a very strong advocate for the surgery and
through my own success have influenced several other women to have the
surgery themselves. Because I have an addictive personality, I didn't
just lose weight, I completely changed my entire life. I believe the
reason I have been so successful is my propensity to not do things in
moderation and I was able to correctly make a lifestyle change that
incorporated new behaviors and exercise. I also have started a support
group for post gastric bypass people as well and am excited to
facilitate this monthly group as not only an encouragement to others,
but to also hold myself accountable. I have discovered that I have
needed to establish some life long new behaviors in my life in order to
ensure continued success. Some of these new behaviors include regular,
scheduled exercise; not drinking with my meals and making wise, healthy
food choices while still not depriving myself of things I enjoy.
I believe that exercise is truly what made the
difference in my life and I have the work schedule that allows me
regular gym workouts 5 days per week. I began weight training about 4
months after surgery and that has made an incredible difference in my body
shape and size. I found the second year out of surgery, even though I
lost another 21 lbs, the changes to my body were attributed primarily to
exercise. I am in the process of pursuing certification as a personal
trainer and hope that my knowledge of exercise could only help other
weight loss surgery patients to be as successful as I have been.
This surgery was absolutely life changing and
something I would do again in a heartbeat. I am so thankful that my
insurance covered the procedure and that I have made the necessary
changes to my life to be called a success story!
I love good news. If you have good news, a
success story to share, or inspiration, please send it to me at
Barbara@wlscenter.com so that I can include it in future
issues.
Congratulations
Sue
Attention Nurse Educators
Preparing for COE Status?
Would
You Like to Have
Obesity Sensitivity Training for
Your
Hospital Staff?
(Guess
What - It May Be Free)
Speaking
for Hospitals
If you are a
bariatric coordinator or nurse educator and need obesity sensitivity
training for your hospital staff, contact me at 877-440-1518 or
Barbara@BarbaraThompson.net. Obesity sensitivity training is a
Center of Excellence requirement. I can help you find sponsorship that
your hospital may qualify for.
Back on Track Program
Are you...
Suffering from emotional eating and can’t stop?
Grazing on carbohydrates and can’t control it?
Lacking inspiration to lose the weight you have
regained?
Feel you don’t know what to do now that you have
had surgery?
Dying to be in better shape with warm weather
coming?
Then you are in luck! My Back on Track Internet Mentoring
Program is just what you need!
You may reprint any items
from this newsletter in your own print or electronic newsletter. But
please include the following paragraph:
“Reprinted from
Barbara Thompson’s free e-newsletter featuring helpful information and
research material to help patients succeed following weight loss
surgery.
Subscribe at
http://www.barbarathompsonnewsletter.com ”
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