20.05.12

For the answer, we interviewed Dr. Thomas E. Lavin, bariatric surgeon, Clinical Assistant Professor of Surgery Tulane University School of Medicine and founder of The Surgical Specialists of Louisiana, which has offices in Covington, Slidell, Metairie and Lafayette. Lavin's group also performs the new POSE (Primary Obesity Surgery Endolumenal) procedure, which he describes in more detail below.

Q: How can someone know when to try weight-loss surgery instead of just dieting?

A: We are laparoscopic surgeons that help people lose weight, but we’re all about wellness and fitness. We work with people who want to lose weight just by changing their habits. They might want to lose 20 to 30 pounds and that group really needs to look at their whole lifestyle as far as what they eat, what exercise they do. I recommend that they sit down with someone who specializes in weight loss and look at their exercise and eating habits and start making a plan to change it and do it one day at a time. Change your eating patterns and start planning your meals. People have a very difficult time changing their lifestyle patterns. But once you do something for a month, it becomes a new lifestyle. They need someone to help them get to that point.

Source: NOLA.com