Normal for Lap-Band Surgery?

by Mama's Girl
(Toronto)

About 2 and a half to 3 years ago my mom had lap-band surgery. She lost over 120 pounds and now sits at what she considers a good weight for herself, 125 pounds. However, she has a lot of trouble keeping ANY food down at all sometimes and this is really worrying.

Sometimes, she forces herself to throw up because she says that the food is hurting her stomach so much she can't take it. She tells my family this is due to stress, however I know that maintaining her weight is very important to her. She never wants to gain back what she lost and is willing to do anything to keep her current weight.

When she gains five pounds, she goes in and gets her lap-band tightened so that she will lose it again, however this is usually through the process of barely eating (as all she can usually keep down is liquids - water, coffee and soup).

Should I be worried about my mom? I really think this issue is serious, but I don't know if her stomach issues are actually due to stress or simply her way of forcing herself to lose weight?

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Answer:

The amount of food a person can eat after gastric lap-band weight loss surgery is drastically reduced. If special attention isn't given to eating nutrient dense meals and supplementing with appropriate vitamins/minerals, then developing nutrient deficiencies
is entirely possible.

The fact that your mother has trouble keeping any food down and is frequently vomiting is concerning. It's hard to meet nutrient needs in the best case scenario after gastric banding due to the drastic reduction in portion sizes.

I'd suggest you discuss your concern with your mother and talk to her about getting her blood work checked to determine if she's developed any nutrient deficiencies. Read more here about vitamin supplementation with lap-band.

See my lap-band website for full details on the lap-band diet.