Wednesday, January 8, 2014

My 600-lb Life - Low Carb VS. Surgery




Airs Tuesdays at 9PM EST/8PM CT on TLC
I started recording a series on TLC called My 600-lb Life, which apparently premiered in February of last year, however, since I live in a cave, under a rock, I watched my first episode late last night! This episode in particular follows Zsalynn, a 43 year old, wife and mother, who had allowed her weight to spiral out of control, and was desperate to save her life and be a better mother for her daughter, but was meeting resistance from her husband who wanted her to stay morbidly obese to gratify his sexual desires.


Zsalynn
It was touching and inspirational to witness her journey towards self discovery and betterment, but the whole time I was SO frustrated, I wanted to sit down and have a heart to heart with her, and tell her about Low Carb/High Fat, and why it's a better health alternative to Weight Loss Surgery (Laparoscopic Gastric Bypass Surgery). Some may assume that it's a fast and easy way to lose weight quickly, but there are horrible nutritional side affects. I'd like to share with you why Weight Loss Surgery shouldn't even be a last resort, and why Low Carb/High Fat will be the last culinary lifestyle change you'll ever have to make.

Weight Loss Surgery VS. Low Carb/ High Fat:

Surgery: Weight Loss Surgery, or Laparoscopic Gastric Bypass Surgery, is the surgical removal of a portion of the stomach and small intestines, or by placing an inflatable band around the stomach dramatically reducing it's size. This method of weight loss works by depriving the body of important nutrients, effectively starving your body skinny, but you don't feel like you are starving, because your stomach is the size of a small water balloon, and while you get fuller quicker, you also get hungry a lot quicker as well, resulting in having to eat 6+ small meals a day, but never really feeling "satisfied". If you think you can eat whatever you want after surgery, as long as it's a small portion, forget it! Before and After surgery they are going to put you on a Low Carb diet anyway, only now, you can't absorb the nutrients, so why not just opt for Low Carb? Long term success with this method is less than 10%.

Pros:
• Weight Loss

Cons:
• Risk of Death
• Invasive Surgery & Recovery
• Risk of Infection
• Risk of Gallbladder Failure
• Risk of Liver Failure
• Risk of blood clots
• Loss of Muscle Mass
• Bone Loss
Malnutrition
• Hair Loss
• Restrictive Diet
• Hungry all the time
(to name a few)

Low Carb/ High Fat: There are several different approaches to low carb living, the Atkins and the Ketogenic Diet being quite popular. Both diets restrict carb intake, however,  there is a difference. The Atkins diet promotes eating protein as your main source of nutrients, while the Ketogenic Diet promotes limited protein and high a fat content of 75-80%. Weight loss occurs because your body runs out of carbohydrates to burn, and begins to burn fat for energy, this is called "Ketosis". There are many benefits to this Lifestyle, including a boost in energy, 

Pros:
• Weight Loss
• Blood Sugar Normalization
• Blood Pressure Normalization
• Menses Regulation
• Improved PMS
• Diabetes Reversal
• Epilepsy Management
• Cancer Management
• Acid Reflux/Heartburn Treatment
• Visible Skin Improvement
• Nail Improvement
• Hair Improvement
• Hungry Less Often
• Eating Real Food

Con:
• Giving up your food addictions (which isn't really a con after all, is it?)

Why limit yourself when you can eat your way into health?

Don't put yourself at further risk of health complications, on Low Carb/High Fat, you can enjoy a variety of delicious foods, eat when your hungry, feel full and lose weight! Eat things like:

• Beef
• Bacon
• Cheesecake
• Whole Eggs
• Heavy Whipping Cream
• Fish
• Poultry
• Pork

All smothered in butter! Here's a full list of Acceptable Low Carb Foods.

If you're ready to change your life, lose weight fast the healthy way, and still enjoy eating, Low Carb/High Fat is the way to go!

Join The Big Fat Skinny's Private Low Carb/High Fat Facebook Group and receive my latest blog updates, recipes, information regarding the Low Carb/High Fat Lifestyle, and support throughout your own Low Carb journey.

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8 comments:

  1. Just 'hopped' over to wish you all the best with your blog. I'll certainly be looking in.

    All the best Jan

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  2. Excellent blog but not sure where you got the info that weight loss surgery causes you to feel hungry all the time. The initial surgical procedure affect your appetite and hunger hormones that for many people will all then to feel satifisfied for the first time i a long time. The nutritional malabsorptive issues through are all to real and can get extremely serious even causing nerve damage and bone density issues for long term people.

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    Replies
    1. Because of the reduced size of the stomach, and the increased speed of digestion, some complain that they feel hungry again shortly after eating, because of this and also nutritional purposes, they eat more than several small meals throughout the day... not that they "never" feel satisfied, but that for some the satisfaction is short lived. I hope I've clarified effectively. :)

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  3. Bariatric physician, Eric Westman would agree with a lot of what you're saying.

    http://www.dietdoctor.com/the-science-of-low-carb

    ReplyDelete
  4. If you had the exact same number of people getting bariatric surgery as have diabetes every year, more people would be killed by the surgery than by the diabetes. I looked up the numbers once and was just appalled. They don't tell you this when they hype up these stomach surgeries in the media.

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  5. it's important to trust the doctor because weightloss surgery is smth serious

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  6. I LOVED Zsalynn, didn't you? Such a great attitude and kind disposition despite her many struggles. Favorite featured person.

    ReplyDelete