Type 2 diabetes is a chronic condition that causes serious health complications including blindness, kidney failure, heart disease and stroke. While diet and exercise can help control it, bariatric surgery may be able to reverse type 2 diabetes.
Insulin is a hormone that carries blood sugar (glucose) into your body’s cells where it’s used for energy. In Type 2 diabetes cells may become resistant to insulin and don’t take in enough sugar from your blood. Obesity can cause insulin resistance and is one of the most common causes of Type 2 diabetes.
Doctors don’t know exactly why this happens, but being overweight contributes to the problem. That’s why bariatric surgery and diabetes is a common topic of discussion in weight-loss clinics.
HOW DOES BARIATRIC SURGERY DUODENAL SWITCH AND GASTRIC BYPASS HELP DIABETES?
Significant weight loss through bariatric surgery can put diabetes into remission. First, losing weight will decrease insulin resistance, which makes your blood sugar easier to control. Second, weight-loss surgeries prompt hormonal changes that stabilize your blood sugar levels. The Duodenal Switch and Sleeve Gastrectomy weight-loss surgeries reduce the amount of ghrelin in your body. This hormone stimulates your appetite. If you have less ghrelin, your desire to eat decreases. Simultaneously, bariatric surgery causes your body to make more hormones that boost insulin production. When you have more insulin, it’s easier for your body to regulate your blood sugar instead of allowing it to build up in your bloodstream.
So how does bariatric surgery help diabetes patients control their blood sugar? It’s through the combination of less ghrelin and more insulin-producing hormones in their bodies such as GLP-1 and polypeptide YY (PYY) and Glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP)
HOW QUICKLY WILL GASTRIC SLEEVE HELP DIABETES?
Improvements in your body sugar will occur soon after all types of bariatric surgeries including the Sleeve Gastrectomy, and especially the Duodenal Switch and Gastric bypass surgeries. Some patients may be able to decrease their diabetes medication immediately.
IS WEIGHT-LOSS SURGERY A CURE FOR DIABETES?
Bariatric surgery can induce type 2 diabetes remission. That means it’s controlled so well that you no longer need to take medication to regulate your blood sugar.
WHAT TYPES OF BARIATRIC SURGERY ARE AVAILABLE?
If you have type 2 diabetes, you have several weight-loss surgery options:
- Duodenal switch surgery, which involves creating a small stomach tube and re-routing some small intestine to decrease absorption of calories. This has a 90% control rate for diabetes.
- Gastric bypass decreases the size of your stomach and moves the gastrointestinal tract so food bypasses much of the stomach and small intestine. This reduces your caloric intake.
- Gastric sleeve makes your stomach smaller and narrower. The procedure also reduces the amount of appetite-stimulating hormones in your body.
WHO IS A CANDIDATE FOR WEIGHT-LOSS SURGERY?
Weight-loss surgery candidates are typically at least 50 pounds overweight and have a body mass index (BMI) of greater than 30. BMI measures your weight in relation to your height. It is a screening tool for anyone interested in bariatric surgery.
You can calculate your BMI by dividing your weight in pounds by your height in inches squared. Multiple the number by 703 to find your BMI. For example, if you are 6 feet tall and weigh 250 pounds, your BMI is 33.9.
SCHEDULE A CONSULTATION
Can bariatric surgery help with diabetes? Can the Duodenal Switch help with diabetes? Can gastric bypass help with diabetes? Absolutely! Talking to a weight-loss surgeon is the best way to determine if you’ll find success with bariatric surgery for diabetes remission. By discussing your health with an experienced surgeon, you can learn about the risks and benefits of weight-loss surgery as well as other treatment options that are available.
At the Center for Weight Loss Surgery, we will help you find the solution that works to control your diabetes so you can live a healthy, happy life.
