Empowered Health Course · Lesson 20 · 4:02
On average, lifestyle interventions bring about a 3–5% reduction in body weight long-term. Some people lose more, which is fantastic; some less. For some, that 3–5% resolves symptoms of obesity; for others, symptoms remain — diabetes, fatty liver, arthritis, and so on.
That's where we can augment best weight with medical therapy. The drugs currently on the market bring around a further 7–8% average reduction, getting us toward a 10–15% weight loss, and with that, more symptoms of obesity can resolve.
For others — based on their starting weight, their response to therapy, or residual symptoms that could lead to complications — bariatric surgery is an option, bringing around a 25% body-weight loss long-term. For certain people that's the best tool, if it fits their goals and preferences. Bariatric surgery is an effective treatment for the real, chronic disease of obesity. It's not a shortcut or the easy way out — it's the most effective treatment for a real medical condition seated in the deep brain, beyond conscious control, and it can markedly improve quality of life and often reduce medications.
These are the tools in the toolbox. Our job as clinicians is to make sure you're educated on each one — which makes the most sense, and which appeals to you. In that way we're like a tour guide pointing out the options, or a contractor laying out the tools for the project: what are you wanting to do, and how can we help? It takes an open mind, and a lot of trial, error, and persistence. You all have such grit, grace, and courage. Working with you is about that persistence — trying this and that, accepting when something isn't appealing, appropriate, or tolerated, and continuing to try. And there are areas beyond body-weight regulation that we can always work on.
This transcript has been lightly edited from the video for readability. For the complete experience, please watch the video above.