“Bariatric surgery has emerged into a standard treatment for refractory obesity and diabetes with the Tamil Nadu government endorsing it under the Comprehensive Chief Minister’s Insurance Scheme,” said Dr Praveen Raj, Head of Department of Bariatric Surgery, Gem Hospital Institute of Gastroenterology & Laparoscopy.

Addressing a support group meeting, organised as a part of ‘Fight Obesity Club’, an initiative of the Obesity and Diabetes Surgery Center of the hospital, where over 50 beneficiaries, who underwent bariatric surgery, congregated for a get-together. Dr Praveen said, “It is proven that bariatric weight loss surgery can help in long-term weight loss, recovery from diabetes, improvement in cardiovascular risk factor, and even reduction in mortality rate up to 40 per cent.”

Bariatric surgery is recommended for those with BMI over 40 and without comorbidities and over 30 BMI with comorbidities.

A patient from Salem, sharing his life-changing experiences after undergoing bariatric surgery in Gem Hospital, said, “The bariatric laparoscopic procedure helped me lead a normal life, as I achieved a weight loss from of over 40 kg in a few months time. Now, I weigh only 70 kg and my diabetes is in check, which helps me enjoy life more.”

“Obesity has established itself as an epidemic of the 21st century due to changing lifestyle factors. With the increasing incidence of obesity among the population, comorbidities, such as diabetes , hypertension, cardiac diseases , stroke and certain cancers occur.

The risk factors can be modified with bariatric weight loss surgery, which is gaining popularity due to its effectiveness in weight loss and eliminating comorbidities,” said C Palanivelu, Chairman of Gem Hospitals and Research Centre.