New weight loss therapy: What Goes In Must Come Out?

There is a new weight loss procedure being piloted to help people lose weight without invasive surgeries such as gastric bypass. The procedure is called aspiration therapy and it works by removing ingested food from the stomach.

Patients first have a skin port placed in their abdomen. After a meal, they connect a tube to the port – and into the stomach. When they turn on the valve, water is infused, and food travels from the stomach to the outside of the body.

The device allows patients to discard 30 percent of the food from the stomach before it is absorbed. In clinical trials, patients lost an average of 45 pounds during the first year using the therapy.

Patients have to use the device approximately 20 minutes after a meal, and the process usually lasts for about 20 minutes. Doctors also monitor patient’s nutrient intake and can provide them with special supplements if needed.

This weight loss procedure may appeal to some since its much less invasive than gastric bypass surgery- the gold standard of bariatric surgery. However, there are some blatant drawbacks. For one, this treatment does not appear to have a nutritional education component. Therefore, the person could still eat cheeseburgers, cake, fries, pop, and fast food on a daily basis but just absorb much less calories and therefore lose weight. Maybe the person will lose weight but will their body still be in a state of inflammation from their poor diet? Most likely yes.

Next, in order to achieve long term results one would have to aspirate pretty much every meal for the rest of their lives. It is not hard to see how after awhile people would get tired of living their life like this. Not to mention if they decide to have the port removed they will most likely regain the weight they lost because no one taught them how to eat a healthy diet.

To achieve long term weight loss and wellness, lifestyle change must be implemented. At Heal n Cure – a medically supervised weight loss and wellness center – our multidisciplinary team of bariatric physicians, registered dietitians, and exercise physiologists teach patients how to take control of their health by improving their diet, changing their behaviors, and exercising.