The food preferences of most morbidly obese patients are unsurprising, write researchers from Binghamton University (New York): "The foods most patients prefer before their surgery are exactly what can be imagine, ice cream, fries, hamburgers, pizzas”. On the other hand, after the intervention, their food preferences are modified, reveals this study presented in the journal PLoS ONE.
After their operation, many patients say they prefer “salad, for example”. “20% of patients said that their favorite foods were vegetables. And the very people who report altered food preferences lost the most weight.”
Thus, this change in food preferences that leads to a change in food choices is also linked to the success of long-term weight loss after bariatric surgery. Bariatric surgery, in particular the “Roux-en-Y” gastric bypass procedure (RYGB), is considered and documented today as the most effective treatment for morbid obesity and its comorbidities, including diabetes. The principle of RYGB is to reduce the volume of the stomach, to bypass part of the small intestine, and to open a passage directly into the small intestine. This means that people can no longer consume too large meals and will therefore lose weight. This study shows that in addition to reducing dietary intake,
The research team tracked changes in food and smell preferences after RYGB and related these changes to body mass index after surgery. To assess food and smell preferences before and after surgery, patients took several tests to assess their food preferences. BMI data were collected before and after surgery.
- 20% of patients see their taste preferences changed after the intervention, with a more pronounced taste for vegetables;
- participants who liked coffee more after the operation were also those who had lost the most weight;
- coffee and vegetables have a bitter taste, indicating that some patients' taste preferences have changed after the intervention, with less aversion to bitter tastes.
- however, these altered food preferences usually revert to preoperative preferences over time. Also, the rate of weight loss decreases with time since surgery…
A temporary but essential effect , because most of the weight is lost the first year, then the weight stabilizes. And, despite the risk of weight regain after surgery, the majority of patients manage to lose and maintain their weight.
Specifically, 80% of operated patients will succeed in maintaining their weight, conclude the authors.
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