10 year old boy has bypass

[rambo]

14 stone boy has stomach surgery at 10

William McBride, from Portland, Oregon - who weighed 14 stone when he was 10-years-old - has become the youngest patient to have a weight loss operation.



By Ben Leach
Published: 1:54PM BST 29 Jul 2009

William McBride, before and after Photo: Jeff Rayner; Coleman-Rayner


Twelve-year-old William had the £10,000 procedure after his parents had both had the same operation.
Two years ago he was told by doctors that unless he reduced his weight, he could be dead by the age of 21. His 14-stone weight meant he could barely walk and often had to use a wheelchair.

Related Articles

• <LI sizset="42" sizcache="23">Patients 'put on weight to get NHS surgery'
  
  <LI sizset="43" sizcache="23">Coroner urges investigation into three deaths at leading hospital
  
  <LI sizset="44" sizcache="23">Obesity crisis 'will lead to children having their stomachs stapled'
  
  <LI sizset="45" sizcache="23">Obesity surgery on the NHS is up 40% as doctors act on nation's weight problem.
  
• Woman gives birth after losing 15 stone through gastric band

His parents both struggled with obesity before they had weight-loss operations, known as bariatric surgery, which removes the left side of the stomach, leaving the patient with a stomach 15 per cent its normal size.
The success of their operations – they lost 24 stone between them – led them to seek out a surgeon who would perform the procedure on their son.
But doctors in the US refused to carry out an operation as he was too young, so the family flew to Alcoy in Spain to have the procedure with surgeon Aniceto Baltasar.
William, who is thought to be the youngest person in the world to have had stomach-shrinking surgery and is now just over eight stone, said the operation transformed his life.
He told the Daily Mirror: “I just feel so good and I don’t have to spend my days in a wheelchair. I can still eat what I want, but I’m no longer hungry all the time.
“My life has changed so much. I can walk wherever I want to go and just feel so much better.”
His mother, Dina McBride, a 45-year-old housewife, said: “I knew there were big risks. Any surgical operation is a risk, but I had to do this to save William’s life.
“If he did not have the operation there was a chance he would not live to see 21. He was in very poor health and stomach surgery was the only choice.”
In England, obesity levels have almost doubled in 15 years. One in four (24 per cent) of men and women are obese compared with 16 per cent of women and 13 per cent of men in 1993.

 

[ladybird_gal]

I saw this too. We read the Mirror I'm thinking!! He had a procedure called a lap sleeve gastrectomy. What is the difference between this and a Bypass? x x

 

[margaretmc]

Hi Steve
Dear God almighty that is awful , the little boy looks better but the is no way he should of had that surgery . Michelle Bowater was on TV the other night . Hows life treating you Steve I hope everything is well with you hun . Take care .
Margaret xx

 

[hopelesscase]

If that was my son and knowing how i have struggled all my life knowing what i know now and how effective the bypass has been for me hopefully putting an end to the misery that being obease brings i would do exactly the same if it would stop my son going through the humiliation that i had suffered all my life.
hc

 

[thinkbethin]

Personally I think he was far too young to have such surgery and think other methods should have been used including educating him on a healthier life style. I'm just glad it turned out alright for him with him being so young. He does look so much happier but at ten years old????

 

[Snowcrystal]

I can't help but look at it this way...Forget how he got there in the first place, but this child was dying a slow death...you have all said the same about yourselves.

If this was my child I wouldn't say no to a life saving operation...I would do anything I could to save him...Both parent have been morbidly obese, the child obviously took after his parents, so there must be a genetic predisposition for the child in the first place...I would think the parents had tried every other method of weight loss prior to this decision...in fact I'm sure the doctors who agreed to the procedure would have taken a full history prior to operating.

Just my opinion...but I think this operation saved his life.

And as HC has said, you'd do anything to give your child a normal life without humiliation.

(((hugs)))

 

[elffie01]

In one way i agree, If my 11yr old needed the surgery to save her life then I would be on it like mad.
BUT being an overweight parent made me more responsible to the welfare of my daughter. She doesnt get to eat the crap I ate and I vary her food healthily. There is no way in hell that she is going to go through what I have been and Im damned if Im going to see her get to my stage now.!!
Surely the parents should have been more responsible in the first place knowing they were both obese.
There is nowhere in that article saying he has a condition that makes him obese, so therefore the parents should have dealt with it.

Sorry just my opinion and i know there are cases that parents do try.

 

[Snowcrystal]

In one way i agree, If my 11yr old needed the surgery to save her life then I would be on it like mad.
BUT being an overweight parent made me more responsible to the welfare of my daughter. She doesnt get to eat the crap I ate and I vary her food healthily. There is no way in hell that she is going to go through what I have been and Im damned if Im going to see her get to my stage now.!!
Surely the parents should have been more responsible in the first place knowing they were both obese.
There is nowhere in that article saying he has a condition that makes him obese, so therefore the parents should have dealt with it.

Sorry just my opinion and i know there are cases that parents do try.

You make a very good point......however the paper would never print the full details as it would never sell papers...they like to make our blood boil...lol

(((hugs)))

 

[elffie01]

hehe yeah, it worked ! Probably because Im very aware of what my daughter eats. Maybe too much at times, im hoping that the surgery will help with that too, making me less anxious of her eating habits. Probably because she hardly ate anythign as a little un and now shes finding her tastebuds are changing. Luckily for me she goes for the healthier options than what I would ,eg fruit and yogs so fingers crossed, ( plus her dad is like a rake!! )

 

[hopelesscase]

In one way i agree, If my 11yr old needed the surgery to save her life then I would be on it like mad.
BUT being an overweight parent made me more responsible to the welfare of my daughter. She doesnt get to eat the crap I ate and I vary her food healthily. There is no way in hell that she is going to go through what I have been and Im damned if Im going to see her get to my stage now.!!
Surely the parents should have been more responsible in the first place knowing they were both obese.
There is nowhere in that article saying he has a condition that makes him obese, so therefore the parents should have dealt with it.

Sorry just my opinion and i know there are cases that parents do try.

Whilst i understand where you are coming from in defence of my mum who was herself obease we had very healthy diets as children as she did herself. As a 10.5lb baby and only 17inches as the endocrain ologist told me in effect i was born obease and it had blighted my life as it did my mums , her sisters and her mothers. I have 3 sisters none of whome have a weight problem who take after my father and his family so i would say genetics played a big part of my weight problems.
Luckly for my son he takes after his dad and although he carries a little extra weight he is solid muscle and is built like a brick **** house.
very intresting topic though
carole

 

[Bonita]

One of my sons has had major life saving surgery, to me this isn't any different.

My first instinct to be honest was, if they could afford to pay for this surgery then why couldn't they afford to send hin to one of those fat camps in the states? Then I realised he was wheelchair bound and knowing just how difficult its been for me to exercise, then maybe this was the only answer for him.

I'm sure as loving parents they didn't take this decision lightly and he certainly looks happy enough.

 

[elffie01]

HC dont get me wrong, I could and probably are completely off the track with this. No disrespect to your mum in any way, my mum also made me healthy meals, shame i didnt stick to them
There may be underlying issues and illnesses with him and maybe also with his parents, though there is nothing to state that.

 

[rambo]

hi all
this is a bit of a hot topic at the moment i read this article in the guardian online,, and now i cant find typical, i am sure i read he had some underlining health problems and needed the surgery to gain control of his weight, he now certainly looks all the better for it, my only concern is the life long commitment that is required to keep his weight off starting at so young an age i certainly hope he can, as with all of us its in our own hands now and i am sure he will get the support he will need for the future. i wish him a long and healthy life, as we all do
regards Steve

 

[Mummyof2]

Oh bless him, use of a wheelchair because he's fat is no way to live for a ten year old. Atleast now he can live a normal life hopefully without both the psychological and physical issue's that arise from obesity. His life has been saved in my view and although he is very young he was either destined for the bypass or death in the near future anyway. Atleast now he can avoid most of the complications and live out a normal healthy life. I wish him the best of luck and hope that the healthcare profession and family continue to support him in educating him on a healthy lifestyle to keep the weight off.

Clare xx

 

[fairyringuk]

Very interesting article. On one of the bypass programmes I watched the surgeon in America said that over the next ten years they would see a drastic rise in child bypass ops as there was such a major problem in America...........though at the rate Britain is going we wont be far behind.
I think now parents have got to be responsible and ensure their children eat a varied and healthy diet, like Elffie does, and like my daughter and son do with their children.
I think they should restart cookery in the schools for children so that they see cooking a meal from scratch, which I have always done as thats how I was brought up, would be second nature to them.
Fast food has a lot to answer for.

Jay xx

 

[rambo]

thats half the trouble to day the lifestyle in society has changed so much fast food takeaway convenience foods , ppl dont take the time or do not have the time (in there minds) to prepare a good wholesome meal and eat a well balance diet ,i myself was brought up like this so in practice i should never have got to be like i now am because i knew the right way to eat and prepare a proper meal in theory, but after about 23 my life style changed and i took the more convenient route to eating IE fast food takeaway never for one minuet thought i would end up like this but i never seen it coming till it had got its teeth into me, and we all no the hell of a road to get back to were we once were
so we end up here the last chance saloon,so education is great but if we dont heed it for what ever reason we end up here wots the answer ? you tell me
regards steve

 

[Snowcrystal]

One of my sons has had major life saving surgery, to me this isn't any different.

My first instinct to be honest was, if they could afford to pay for this surgery then why couldn't they afford to send hin to one of those fat camps in the states? Then I realised he was wheelchair bound and knowing just how difficult its been for me to exercise, then maybe this was the only answer for him.

I'm sure as loving parents they didn't take this decision lightly and he certainly looks happy enough.

Just a thought about what you said about the fat camp...if this was genetics and this kid is going to be prone all the rest of his life, why prolong the agony and why stunt his childhood?...like I suggested in another post the newspaper won't always give you the real deal, they'll cut out relevant bits to juice the story up and make everyone feel like it's the parents fault.

With respect, this is just my opinion and I could be wrong but the papers have us judging the family without offering the real facts of the matter....And it could be seen as paying out lots of money because they'd pay anything to see their child healthy.

Anyway...just a thought!

(((hugs)))

 

[Snowcrystal]

thats half the trouble to day the lifestyle in society has changed so much fast food takeaway convenience foods , ppl dont take the time or do not have the time (in there minds) to prepare a good wholesome meal and eat a well balance diet ,i myself was brought up like this so in practice i should never have got to be like i now am because i knew the right way to eat and prepare a proper meal in theory, but after about 23 my life style changed and i took the more convenient route to eating IE fast food takeaway never for one minuet thought i would end up like this but i never seen it coming till it had got its teeth into me, and we all no the hell of a road to get back to were we once were
so we end up here the last chance saloon,so education is great but if we dont heed it for what ever reason we end up here wots the answer ? you tell me
regards steve

Most of the time our life style has definitely contributed to a lot of us...and this can't help those that have inherited the 'fat' gene.

My mother and my grandmother always said that people were so healthy when they were on rations during the war...but I think what they meant were that people were thinner.

Regarding education, it angers me that schools no longer do home economics, cookery etc...I think it should be compulsory and re-introduced back in schools along incorporating healthy lifestyle plans .

(((hugs)))

 

[hayley1983]

He is very young, but having known what it's like to go through school being bullied because of my weight, I think his parents have made the right choice. He looks so happy in his picture post surgery

 

[Mummyof2]

I dont think it's always fair to blame the parents. I for one am the only fat person in my family at the age of 2 i jumped from 50th percentile to 99th my mum took me to the doctors they didn't understand as my mum was exceptionally skinny at the time my dad had to put two stone on to join the navy! They ran loads of tests on me and found nothing. Throughout my childhood i was forced to eat only healthy stuff my bro and sister could eat sweets etc I wasn't allowed and then came an age (around 8) where i stole food as I was never allowed it. I used to run everywhere and swam everyday still i was fat! I remember once my sister when we lived in hong kong brought me my first ever bag of sweets in the 3 yrs we lived there and my mum came home from work early bugger whipped the things from me and I never got one. Consequently throughout my teens I became obsessed with food and anythin naughty i'd munch it down in a second before it was taken off me, i'd even hide crisp packets in coke cans (diet might I add) before I got told off!.. so i dont think u can actually blame the parents, my mum tried everything even if she regrets some of it now.

Clare x