Weight Loss Specialist

Weight Loss Q&A

Why is weight loss so important?

Weight loss is critical to good health because obesity is a cause of major health problems, including:

Hypertension (high blood pressure)
Heart disease
Liver disease
Type 2 diabetes
Sleep apnea
Some cancers

Weight loss can be challenging and is something many people struggle with. The healthiest way to lose weight is to make changes to your lifestyle, so you're eating fewer calories and have a better diet, while also exercising more to burn off fat.

However, if you've tried these approaches without success, then there are further interventions that might be suitable for you.

What surgical weight loss options are there?

If you're morbidly obese, you may qualify for weight loss surgery, enabling you to lose a significant amount of weight. Weight loss surgery reduces your stomach's capacity, so you physically can't eat large meals. It can also decrease your appetite by removing a part of your stomach that produces the hunger hormone, ghrelin.

Weight loss surgery options include:

Sleeve gastrectomy

Dr. Sutker reshapes your stomach, so instead of a large sac, it becomes a thin tube.

Roux-en-Y gastric bypass

Dr. Sutker reduces your stomach's size to form a small pouch, then rearranges your intestines and attaches them directly to your new stomach.

Revisional weight loss surgery

Revisional surgeries might be necessary if you've previously undergone a Lap-Band, vertical-banded gastroplasty, or similar procedure. Sleeve gastrectomies and gastric bypass procedures sometimes require revisional surgery, too.

Dr. Sutker typically performs these surgeries using minimally invasive laparoscopic techniques that only require small incisions. To maximize precision and aid recovery, Dr. Sutker has assistance from a state-of-the-art da Vinci® robotic surgical system.

To find out more about your weight loss choices, call the Michael Sutker, MD, PA, office nearest you today or book an appointment online.

Do You Qualify for Weight Loss Surgery?

Obesity is associated with major health problems including hypertension, heart disease, liver disease, diabetes, and sleep apnea. It can even increase the risk of cancer in some people! People with a BMI (body mass index) over 35 may qualify for weight loss surgery. You can calculate your BMI below. Weight loss surgery is an option for patients with obesity that allows you to lose a significant amount of weight and reduce the medical problems associated with obesity.

Weight loss surgery decreases the capacity of the stomach so that you will no longer be able to eat large meals. The surgery also reduces appetite by removing a center for the hormone, ghrelin, which is responsible for hunger.

Dallas-Fort Worth, TX’s Medical Weight Loss Expert

Dr. Sutker offers medical weight loss solutions for our Dallas-Fort Worth, TX patients who need an effective program to shed the extra weight. With tools like diet and medication management, healthy behavior modification, and guidance for nutrition and exercise, we put together a weight loss plan tailored to you for maximum benefit. Dr. Sutker evaluates your health and the medications you’re on and weighs in factors like age and reasons you’re enrolling in medical weight loss. We gear our strategy toward long-term behavioral change in your diet, your activities, and your lifestyle. We provide the tools and support you need for successful weight loss, and the changes to your behavior will help you keep the weight off.

Benefits of Medical Weight Loss

Medical weight loss has a variety of benefits for your figure and your overall well-being. Reducing your mass to a more reasonable weight eases stress on your body, including your joints. You have less chance of developing or increasing the severity of chronic serious issues and pre-conditions like pre-diabetes and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. It drastically benefits your blood pressure, chemical levels, and other vital statistics. In general, losing weight improves your health and wellness, both physically and mentally. The reasons for medical weight loss can vary, but the emphasis is on the benefits to your body.

Reasons to Consider Medical Weight Loss

To improve your general health
If your family has a history of cancer or weight-related conditions
To manage medical issues like high blood pressure or cholesterol, osteoarthritis, sleep apnea, or pre-diabetes
To reduce the risk of other procedures like total replacement of a joint, hip, or knee
To maintain long-term weight loss

Maintaining Weight Loss

If you’ve undergone weight loss surgery, you need to follow changes to your lifestyle after recovery to maintain your weight loss plan. While the surgery will affect your body’s composition and significantly reduce your weight, you must make sure to stick to your doctor’s instructions on diet and activities. The risk of side effects after your procedure include wound infections up to three weeks following, gallstones, constipation, and dumping syndrome, in which high-sugar foods rush through the stomach and trigger nausea, vomiting, and weakness. Your reduced weight also has positive effects on weight-related issues like sleep apnea and type 2 diabetes. If you have any questions, please give Dr. Sutker a call to get answers or set up an appointment with Dr. Sutker to discuss medical weight loss in Dallas-Fort Worth, TX.