For residents on the quest to enjoy an improved quality of life through weight loss, comprehensive help in reaching those goals is just a phone call away.
For over a decade, the Valley Baptist Medical Center-Brownsville Surgical & Medical Weight Loss Program has helped residents throughout Cameron County reach their weight loss goals and live better lives.
With obesity playing a major factor in a wide array of critical health issues ranging from diabetes to stroke, there is no time like the present for those interested in losing weight to consider options beyond traditional means of only diet and exercise, said Marcela Montemayor, the program’s director.
“Obesity contributes heavily to metabolic syndrome, which can affect the entire body and can increase the risk of stroke, diabetes, and heart disease,” she said. “Surgical options offered here at Valley Baptist can be the most effective long-term tool for weight loss and a resolution for many of the health issues associated with obesity. Now is the best time to take control of your life and your health through weight loss and healthy eating.”
Montemayor said that the two most prevalent surgical weight loss options utilized at the Valley Baptist Surgical & Medical Weight Loss Program are gastric bypass and sleeve gastrectomy, with both options offering their own set of benefits.
Gastric bypass surgery creates a small pouch at the top of the stomach while dividing the small bowel. The biliopancreatic limb is reattached to the small bowel on one end, and the other is connected to the pouch, creating a Roux limb. The pouch releases food slowly, so patients feel full after eating very little.
Gastric bypass surgery is performed because it’s a very effective treatment option for producing lasting weight loss in obese patients for whom nonsurgical methods of weight loss haven’t been effective.
Sleeve gastrectomy is also an effective weight-loss procedure approved by the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery. It involves removing a large portion of the lower stomach and creating a long, tubular structure that looks like a sleeve. The part of the stomach that’s removed produces a hormone that makes a patient feel hungry. Also, the stomach size is significantly smaller, but the digestion process does not change. A smaller stomach means that patients eat less, and that, along with a slower digestive process, leads to weight loss. Hormonal changes related to gastric restriction also impact hunger and blood sugar control.
Sleeve gastrectomy and Gastric Bypass surgeries take between 1 ½ to two hours. Most people stay in the hospital for only one or two days after surgery. These surgeries are now minimally invasive because they are usually performed using robotic technology. This means less pain and faster recovery.
Choosing a surgical solution for weight loss can often be both difficult and confusing, but the Valley Baptist Surgical & Medical Weight Loss Program offers residents a variety of opportunities to receive information and education on surgical weight loss, Montemayor said.
“What we try to do is educate our patients on what the procedures are about, how they work, and how the associated changes can benefit their lives. We explain exactly what lifestyle changes are required to help make this procedure successful because we’re looking for long-term goals,” she said. “We want to make changes that last a lifetime.
People need help analyzing their lifestyles and dietary habits so they can make beneficial changes to help them reach their goals.”
As the Rio Grande Valley’s first medical and surgical weight loss program accredited by the American College of Surgeons Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Accreditation and Quality Improvement Program, Montemayor said the Valley Baptist Surgical & Medical Weight Loss Program offers a variety of surgical weight loss options to help patients reach their goals.
Significant lifestyle changes to diet and exercise accompany surgical weight loss procedures. Montemayor said the program makes it a priority to accompany patients on their long-term weight loss journeys.
“Our program is special because we consider our patients as family, and that doesn’t end after surgery,” she said. “We are all focused on helping people achieve their health goals safely and live long, healthy lives.”
For more information on the Valley Baptist-Brownsville Surgical & Medical Weight Loss Program, which is also accredited by the American Society of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, visit valleybaptist.net/services/bariatric-surgery or call (855) 720-7448.
