Weight loss surgery, also called bariatric surgery, has a number of health benefits, such as reducing the risk of diabetes or hypertension. However, it can also reduce nutrient absorption.
Weight Loss Surgery Increases Chance of Breaking a Bone:
A new study shows that weight loss surgery designed to bypass parts of the intestinal tract (gastric bypass or gastroenterostomy, which is sometimes done laparoscopically) can increase the risk of bone fractures after a number of years. That may be linked to fewer nutrients being absorbed, along with lower calorie absorption.
The Study:
The investigators compared 2,000 people who had undergone surgery between 2001 and 2009 to 5,000 obese individuals who had not had surgery. Those who had undergone surgery to keep food from being absorbed were 47 percent more likely to break a bone over the next 12 years than those who had not had surgery.
The absolute rates were a bit less frightening, however: in almost 5 years of follow-up, the 2,ooo post-surgical patients suffered 183 fractures, while the 5,000 who had not gone through surgery experienced 374 fractures in that same time frame.
The Explanation:
Presumably, shortfalls in vitamin D and critical bone minerals such as calcium or magnesium set people up for fracture. In addition, bones respond to the stresses being put on them. Carrying around an extra 100 pounds or so requires strong bones, but losing that weight may send bones the signal that they no longer need to maintain such strength. It is possible that strength training and weight bearing exercise, along with exposure to sunshine so that the skin can make vitamin D, could counteract this risk. That has not yet been studied.
Medicine, online December 15, 2015
You may be interested in our Guide to Vitamin D Deficiency.
