The balloon partially fills the stomach giving a feeling of fullness which makes it easier for people who have undergone the procedure to adhere to a reduced energy intake. However, it is not a foregone conclusion that you will automatically lose weight. For optimum weight loss outcomes the procedure needs to be combined with appropriate dietary, behavioural and exercise programs.

The procedure is marketed as a strategy to get you on the road to weight loss, NOT as a long term solution. The balloon is not permanent. Generally it is removed after six months because the acid environment of the stomach breaks the material of the balloon down and can cause it to deflate. Apparently blue dye is placed in the balloon so if it breaks down you soon know about it because your urine turns blue!! There have been a few cases where the balloon did deflate and became lodged in the bowel requiring surgical removal.

The balloon is usually removed around 6 months. The balloon is pulled back out through the mouth.

The balloon is marketed as an option for obese people who are more than 40% overweight and who have been unable to lose weight despite many serious attempts to do so. Because there is no surgical risk it can be considered for people with BMI’s greater than 50 who are a surgical risk until they lose enough weight to be considered fit for surgery. Because it is non-invasive and reversible it is also an option for overweight and obese people in the lower weight ranges.

The downside of the procedure appears to be nausea or vomiting in the first few days. And, as mentioned above, if the balloon does happen to deflate it can pass into the bowel and out. However, as already noted there have been cases where the balloon has had to be surgically removed from the bowel.

The balloon is not a panacea or a magic wand. It is possible that you will not lose weight if you do not adhere to a dietary regime despite websites saying you could lose between 10 and 25kgs. When the balloon is removed you will only maintain any weight loss you have achieved whilst the balloon is inserted if you adhere to the appropriate nutritional, psychological and exercise advice post-surgical removal. So, unless you address the behaviours, belief systems and habits that caused you to gain weight in the first place you will likely regain all the weight you lost as a result of having the gastric balloon and should save your money!

Surgical procedures or procedures such as the gastric balloon should not be taken as an easy way out. They are designed for people who have made genuine attempts at weight loss and who are willing to address their health issues from a nutritional, psychological and physical/exercise vantage point.

Related posts:

1. Supplementation after Bariatric/Weight Loss Surgery – lapbands, gastric sleeves etc

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While many diets proclaim to have the “magic” balance of nutrients whether it be low GI, low carbohydrate, low fat or high protein, the facts are that it is the total energy you take in, regardless of the distribution of protein, fat and carbohydrate versus the energy you burn up that determines whether you gain or lose weight or stay the same.

Excess weight is caused by too much food and too little exercise or activity.

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To maintain weight, we need a balance:

ENERGY IN = ENERGY OUT

To lose weight we must eat LESS and exercise MORE.

Even small increases in energy intake and less activity or exercise can lead to large long-term weight gain. For example, eating just 1½ plain sweet biscuits above your energy requirement daily can lead to a 5kg weight gain over a year!

Look at the energy content of the nutrients:

1g PROTEIN 17 kJ or 4 kcal

1g FAT 37 kJ or 9kcal

1g CARBOHYDRATE 16 kJ or 4 kcal

1g ALCOHOL 29 kJ or 7kcal

As you can see, fat is more than twice as “fattening” as protein and carbohydrate. So when trying to lose weight we must check our intake of fatty foods and watch alcohol consumption!

In fact, it is important to watch what we drink because it is easier to drink on body fat, than it is to eat it on. So, even though fruit juice and cordials and soft drinks are nearly half the calories of alcohol, it all adds up rather quickly. Drinking fluids doesn’t make us feel as full as when we eat making it easier to drink more.

We were designed to “eat to live” not “live to eat”, although many of us tend to do more of the latter than the former. Regardless of where our calories or kilojoules come from, the body will deposit any excess energy as fat once it has tended to all its daily energy needs from the food you eat.

Science tells us that to lose ½ kilogram or 1 pound we must burn 3500 kcals or ~ 800 kjs of energy more than we consume as food. Most weight management programs then will cut your calorie or kilojoule intake by 500kcals or 2000kjs a day to enable you to lose ½ kilogram or 1 pound a week, or by 1000kcals or 4000kjs to enable you to lose to lose 1 kg or 2lbs per week.

To lose weight you don’t need to starve yourself. Little changes will assist you with weight loss, for example:

· Eat smaller portions
· Put your food on a plate, not a bowl because it less looks more
· Don’t eat from the takeaway container be it a noodle box, or pizza box
· Skip supper
· Eat one course meals, and especially skip dessert
· Swap higher energy foods with lower energy options, eg cake or pastry when out for coffee have a scone, or have fruit for mid-meals instead of biscuits
· Wait 20 minutes after eating before deciding you are still hungry; it takes time to shut off the feeding centre and turn on the satiety centre after you start eating.

Related posts:

1. It isn’t weight management, it’s fat management

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Post tags: Health, losing weight, Nutrition, Weight Loss, weight management

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