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Gastric bypass weight-loss surgery increases risk of alcoholism, study says

Kevin1708

Century Club
I have always tried to be balanced in what I post. I value honesty and integrity both as a personal trait and in others. I post information I believe will be of value to my fellow WLS – it is not censored or meant to be in any way contentious. Where I have stated a personal opinion I have endeavoured to make this known.

Here is an interesting article :

By Thomas H. Maugh II, Los Angeles Times May 9, 2011,
Gastric bypass surgery for weight loss doubles the risk of developing alcoholism compared with Lap-Band surgery, Swedish researchers reported Monday. Researchers already knew that bypass surgery allows the body to absorb alcohol quicker, but the new findings, reported at the Digestive Diseases Week meeting in Chicago, are the first to suggest an increased risk of problems associated with the effect.

Dr. Magdalena Plecka Ostlund of the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm and her colleagues examined medical records for 12,277 patients who underwent bariatric surgery in Sweden between 1980 and 2006. The patients had a mean age of just under 40 and three-quarters of them were female. The team compared them with 122,770 carefully matched healthy controls in the general population. Prior to their surgery, the obese patients were significantly more likely than those in the general population to be treated for psychosis, depression, attempted suicide and alcoholism. After the surgery, the risks of the various disorders remained higher than normal, with the exception of psychosis, Ostlund said.


After the surgery, however, the risk of developing alcoholism among the patients who underwent Roux-en-Y surgery, commonly known as gastric bypass, was 2.3 times higher than in the group who underwent Lap-Band surgery. The Roux-en-Y procedure creates a smaller stomach pouch and bypasses part of the intestines. The Lap-Band procedure, in contrast, involves placing an inflatable silicon band around the stomach to restrict food intake, but food continues to pass through the entire stomach.

Dr. John Morton, a bariatric surgeon at the Stanford School of Medicine, noted that alcohol is normally at least partially metabolized in the stomach by enzymes there. When a patient has a gastric bypass, this digestion does not occur and the alcohol reaches the intestines largely intact. The finger-like structures called villi on the interior surface of the intestines absorb alcohol extremely well, so that the drug reaches high concentrations in the blood more quickly. "A single glass of red wine can make a bypass patient legally intoxicated regardless of weight loss," Morton said.

Researchers are not sure, however, how that increased absorption may increase the risk of alcoholism. Nonetheless, patients undergoing the surgery should be counseled to limit their consumption of alcohol. "They shouldn't drink as much and they shouldn't drink and drive afterwards," Morton said.

Please see : Gastric bypass: Weight-loss surgery increases the risk of alcoholism, study finds - latimes.com
 
:)Thanks Kevin-I shall have a gander laterx
 
That's very interesting in regards to drinking and driving. If you got pulled over after having one glass of wine and were a bypasser, would it mean you could be charged with drunk driving?

I used to drink a lot socially during my twenties. Then I moved jobs and areas and didn't go out really so stopped drinking. But I started self harming. I managed to stop doing that a couple of years ago when I had my medication changed, but food has been a constant addiction for me throughout. I suppose I am a prime candidate for addiction transfer, which is probably why I am so 'right wing' about post op dietary habits. I just hope my addiction post op is cleaning or exercise.
 
Hi Kevin

Very interesting reading, but it didnt state when they had their first drink! I was made aware that alcohol could affect me differently after the op.

I have never driven after having a drink not even 1 so I know I am in the clear for that one :D

"A single glass of red wine can make a bypass patient legally intoxicated regardless of weight loss," Morton said.

Thats good I dont like red white must be ok :):)
 
That's very interesting in regards to drinking and driving. If you got pulled over after having one glass of wine and were a bypasser, would it mean you could be charged with drunk driving?


Yes you would be charged if you failed a police station breath test. Though while I understand how alcohol will enter you blood stream undiluted (and much quicker) and therefore give a higher reading, I cannot grasp how this will manifest in a roadside screening breath test !

I am sorry to learn of your ‘self harming’ and am pleased that this is now behind you. Was food really an addiction for you or did it ‘fill a void’? I enjoyed and continue to enjoy a very active social life but sadly it took some time to heed and / or recognise the warning signs – now I have and I have done something about it. For me it is not a race to lose the weight and if I can tolerate wine I will drink (in moderation and within guidelines) – I do not have an addictive personality and do not believe that addiction transfer will be an issue. What I would find very difficult is to imagine life without good quality food (steak or chicken salad – I have simple tastes) a glass of wine and (naturally) good company.

I doubt that anyone truly adheres to all the rules of post op diet – hey wait a minute . . . good food, wine (in moderation) and good company are all within the rules of post op diet – so I am a good boy after all.

When we speak post op (after your op) your opinion may have changed – getting to your goal will be so much easier (though may take a few weeks longer) if you enjoy your journey after all it is a journey of well being and not some penal sentence.

On a final note if you do find you have addiction transfer to cleaning and ironing – I can help ! xx
 
Something to consider - addiction transfer....

I wonder if there are any risks for those who don't currently drink alcohol (or only have it on occasion) of developing alcoholism post op.

I don't drink that much - just social occasions, Christmas and New Year, etc. and most of these times I'll be driving so I don't drink anyway. I can manage without alcohol so I don't mind not drinking at all post-op. I just hope that my addiction to food doesnt transfer to alcohol post-op, which is why I specifically asked for counselling before the op - need to know how to cope without food when things get tough.

It would be interesting to see if anyone developing alcoholism post-op had been offered any counselling before the surgery.
 
I specifically asked for counselling before the op - need to know how to cope without food when things get tough. QUOTE]


Please don’t worry . . . strangely, in my experience eating enough is the problem - even head-hunger fades. Like anything else in life it is when you are told you can't have something that you most crave it most - this is why in my opinion - a little bit of what you fancy does you good xx
 
I am two years post-op and find my consumption of alcohol largely increasing. It is worrying me.

I had bariatric counselling pre-op, but this was based around food. Alcohol was never mentioned, other than my surgeon's instruction was not to drink for a year.
 
Love the Oscar Wilde quote . . .

As we have seen from other threads alcohol is a rather contentious matter ~ have you spoken with your team to see if they can offer any advice or counselling. Forgive me but do you have other issues in your life which may lead you to have a drink . . . it may not be linked to your surgery.

Take care and good luck xx
 
;)

I'm seeing my consultant on Friday so I'll speak with him then. The hospital cancelled my last appointment with the bariatric psychiatrist in Feb 2010 and have never rescheduled another, so I think I'll ask for a re-referral.

Life is always a problem, but no, I have just developed a liking for wine. I prefer to drink than eat some days. But I am trying to restrict myself to weekends only.

Pre-op I could drink most men under the table (one doesn't sustain a 23 stone frame by being shy of a decent pint or 10 of decent real ale).

I have also developed a real craving for Grays Herbal Tablet sweets and anything that smells strong, like moth balls, disinfectant, bleach etc.

No, I am deffo not pregnant because I don't have the 'pipework' any more! Strange days indeed!
 
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I think it's very brave of you coming on here and stating this so publically Brunetteandred. I hope you manage to have a good chat with your team.

Thank you for posting this article Kevin. Being aware of this sort of thing makes it easy for Pre-oppers (such as myself) to be aware of things to erm .... be aware of!!
 
Yes in this WHOLE journey of WLS. I have had a ton of realizations of what addictions I had in my life. I have already had the experience of addiction transfer that us how I become overweight. I replaced a drug addiction with a food addiction. I think the most important part is to be aware of it and to self evaluate how u feel and your behaviors.
 
I think the most important part is to be aware of it and to self evaluate how u feel and your behaviors.

I totally agree. I had never heard of addiction transfer until I started down this path. With the 'forewarning' I have received from here my partner and I have a contingency plan in place - if I'm going to be addicted to anything it will be my childhood addiction which was swimming! I can see me spending a lot of my spare time at the local pool! If that's shut then we'll go for a stroll along the seafront.

I was pleased to note that this was mentioned at my Group Education session. Thank goodness it is being openly acknowledged
 
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