Morbid obesity is defined as a condition when patients are 100 pounds or more overweight, relative to their height. While morbid obesity only affects 2 percent of the population, obesity in general is a growing problem in the United States. Typically, morbidly obese patients receive restrictive surgical procedures designed to reduce their stomach size, limiting the amount of food they can eat and improving their ability to sense fullness after a meal. Patients with this disease are at risk for high blood pressure, heart attacks, strokes, diabetes, asthma, sleep apnea and many skeletal and muscle problems. These diseases make a morbidly obese person's chances of dying 20 to 40 times higher annually than normal.
Stereotypes clearly persist about slender and obese people.
You almost feel like you're not even worthy of living. Buchwald says the ultimate goal for patients who have the surgery is to come within a reasonable level of what they should weigh. Some patients, who really work at it, don't neglect their diet and stick with their exercise, reach their optimum weight. Despite producing excellent results for 80 percent of its patients, and good results for another 10, many morbidly obese people are not interested in pursuing the surgical option. Following surgery, patients are required to meet with a nutritionist.