Waging a war with the bathroom scales? Struggling to conceive due to obesity? Is your weight affecting your mood and self-confidence? You CAN take control – and the Winnett Specialist Group is here to help you achieve your weight loss goals, and improve your health and overall well-being.
Count your weight loss blessings
“The benefits of weight loss are extraordinary,” says Melbourne Bariatric and Laparoscopic Surgeon Mr Jason Winnett. “A large peer-reviewed study in the British Medical Journal shows that losing just over 10% of body weight with a doctor-driven weight loss program can reverse diabetes and return pre-diabetes blood sugar levels to normal within a year.”
“We also know that losing weight can dramatically reduce joint pain. Being overweight doubles the risk of knee pain, while being obese triples the risk of knee pain, according to an Arthritis Australia report on the Obesity Epidemic. 50% of people who are obese and have knee surgery go on to have poor post-surgical outcomes compared to only 10% of subjects at a normal weight, the same report found,” he says.
“Reduced cholesterol, asthma, sleep apnoea, heart disease and migraines are all other important benefits of weight loss,” says Mr Winnett.
And if you’re still not motivated enough, here are a few more –
- Every 1kg of weight loss improves blood pressure by 1 point according to research in the journal Hypertension.
- Losing 10% of body weight increased conception rates from 54 to 88%, according to a study in the American Society of Reproductive Medicine
- Every 5-point increase in body mass index (BMI), equates to a 12% increased risk of breast cancer in menopausal women, and even 5% weight loss has been shown to significantly lower breast cancer risk in post-menopausal women according to research on 930,000 women reported by the American Society of Clinical Oncology.
- Weight loss is also linked to a reduction in 12 other cancers. Why? Because it improves insulin resistance, – obesity leads to the pancreas producing more insulin which can in turn promote the growth of cancer cells.
- Weight loss can improve psychiatric indicators significantly, such as depression.
- Life can become more comfortable and enjoyable. Imagine climbing stairs without feeling out of breath, getting in and out of cars with ease, and sleeping peacefully in your bed without discomfort.
Enlist the Weight Loss Experts
“One of the benefits of doctor-based programs is that patients are accountable to someone other than themselves,” says Mr Winnett. “That person also has a medical background which is useful in the treatment of weight-gain-related diseases such as thyroid disease, depression and diabetes. These can all be factors affecting weight, where dieting alone may not be suitable and often ineffective.
He also says that in a world where there are more overweight people than underweight people – the zeitgeist about the optimal way to weight loss is constantly changing. “In the past year in Australia especially, we have also seen a huge shift in the approach to weight loss – as more people opt for the pharmaceutical-first approach with drugs such as Semaglutide.
The recently released 2023/2024 Australian and New Zealand Bariatric Surgery Registry’s Annual Report, shows that fewer Australians are having bariatric surgery – with 15,985 surgeries performed in 2023/2024, compared to 17,540 in 2022 and 18,737 in 2018. This is an 8-year-low for the speciality.
“With multiple interest rate increases, people are facing significant cost of living challenges, and many are taking the view of trying a less-invasive pharmaceutical approach first with new line medications such as semaglutide (Wegovy® and Ozempic®).” However, he says that surgery is still the gold standard for obese patients. Unlike medications, where the weight usually returns when you stop – this does not generally happen with surgery. “Today, bariatric surgery has an excellent morbidity and mortality profile, and a risk profile that is equal to other common procedures such as knee replacement or appendectomy,” says Mr Winnett.
Since the Bariatric Surgery Registry started tracking surgeries in Australia more than a decade ago, surgeons have performed 179, 690 surgeries with a total of 62 deaths recorded within 90 days of surgery (0.03% risk). “Of course, adverse events and mortality are very important, but this – almost negligible risk – needs to be weighed up against patients who are almost certainly living a life of severe disability or dying prematurely from a co-morbidity such as heart disease or sleep apnoea if they don’t have the surgery at all.”
He says 70% of patients no longer need insulin for diabetes one year after surgery, and average weight loss across all bariatric procedures continues to be nearly a third of total weight even after year 4 post-surgery.
However, he concedes that an increasing subset of patients may find other approaches more appealing than surgery. “Pharmaceutical approaches certainly work well for people looking to lose 10 to 20kg. Although the weight often returns after they stop the medication, many just see this as a medicine they take for the rest of their lives, as they would for cholesterol, blood pressure or depression.”
Mr Winnett says that enlisting expert advice from a GP and/or weight loss specialist was a vital first step in deciding on the optimal weight loss approach.
Rewire your thinking about your New Year’s resolutions
“Many people see the New Year as an opportunity to make big changes, including improving their health, quitting smoking, or vowing not to drink for a year,” says Mr Winnett. “However, the reason why so many resolutions fail is that they are often based on sweeping changes, rather than setting smaller, more immediate and more specific goals. “As humans, however, we are creatures of habit. We are not wired to make these monumental changes all at once. You probably need to take 10 or 20 steps to get to that place.”
He says when it comes to weight loss, often just entering the doctor’s office is the hardest step – but also the most rewarding. “Engaging with a health professional, such as a GP or weight loss surgical specialist, means you will have someone sharing the journey with you. Ideally, this means a friendly, non-judgemental conversation that focuses not just on their physical symptoms but on their emotions as well.”
“In order to change a behaviour, you have to be uncomfortable enough to admit that you need to change. You have to really, really acknowledge that discomfort and how much you want to change. Surgery or medication-based weight loss is not a walk in the park. It’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon. It also requires determination, organisation, and commitment,” he concludes.
Start Your Path to Better Health
Winnett Specialist Group takes a holistic approach to weight loss. Our patients have the support of a fully dedicated multi-disciplinary team, comprising a weight loss surgeon, specialist physicians, dietitian, exercise physiologist and psychologist who are all involved in the patient’s journey, not just at the time of surgery but in the months and years that follow. If you would like expert advice, please contact us or call (03) 9417 1555 to learn more about how we can help you achieve your weight loss goals and improve your overall health.
Mr Jason Winnett
Laparoscopic and Bariatric Surgeon
P (03) 9417 1555 admin@winnettspecialistgroup.com.au
www.winnettspecialistgroup.com.au
Queens Terrace, 382 Victoria Parade, East Melbourne 3002
Sources:
- 2023_BSR_Annual_Report_Summary.pdf
GP-Based weight loss program can reverse Type2 diabetes, BMJ 2017
Arthritis Australia 2018 Obesity Epidemic in Australia Report
Weight loss and blood pressure control, Hypertension Journal.
Mayo Clinic High Blood Pressure Symptoms and Causes, July 1, 2021
Modest weight loss reduces breast cancer risk, Asco Post, 2018
You hold the cards to reducing your cancer risk, Cancer Council Australia
Weight Loss Improves Mood In Depressed People, New Research Shows | ScienceDaily 2009
More obese people in the world than underweight, says study – BBC News
National Cancer Institute, Obesity and Cancer, 2017
Criteria for bariatric surgery ANZMOSS
Re-examining the Link between Obesity and Wages | St. Louis Fed
