March is Nutrition Month!

The UT Health Tyler Bariatric Center

Bariatric surgery is the most effective approach to weight loss. It can drastically improve most, if not all obesity-related health problems. However, it should not be considered an easy way out or quick solution.

Reasons to consider bariatric surgery:

• You’ve tried more conservative methods for controlling weight, such as diet, exercise and medication, with limited or no success
• You want to avoid the very serious health problems and risks that result from morbid obesity

Benefits

The benefits of bariatric surgery go beyond just weight loss. Not only will you lose weight, but other health problems will be improved or even resolved.

One of the greatest benefits is the impact on type 2 diabetes. Diabetes is a serious condition that can lead to other health problems, such as heart disease, stroke, peripheral vascular disease, kidney disease, nerve problems and more. Bariatric surgery procedures can help improve diabetes, even before any weight is lost. For many people, their diabetes goes into remission following surgery. It’s not uncommon for a person to have surgery and see improvement of their diabetes within just a few days.

Other health problems also can be improved or resolved, including hypertension, sleep apnea, acid reflux and high cholesterol.

Procedures

The UT Health Tyler Bariatric Center offers several surgery options done by our board-certified and fellowship-trained surgeons. Our team will work with you to develop a care plan that best fits your needs. Most procedures are minimally invasive and can also be done robotically.

• Sleeve gastrectomy
• Gastric bypass
• Duodenal switch
• Lap-Band® placement, management and removal
• Revisions of previous bariatric operations
• Conversion of Lap-Band® to sleeve gastrectomy or gastric bypass
• Conversion of sleeve gastrectomy to duodenal switch or gastric bypass
• Panniculectomy (removal of excess abdominal skin following weight loss)

Next Steps

If you’re interested in learning more, visit TylerBariatrics.com. There you’ll find more information about the benefits, procedure options, qualifications, our providers and more. You can also watch our free online seminar. This video gives an introduction to bariatric surgery and features both of our surgeons, Dr. Hugh Babineau and Dr. Charles Keith.

You can also read through real patient stories, blog posts and watch additional video interviews from our doctors, and follow us on Facebook.

If you’d like to schedule an appointment or talk to someone at the clinic, you can call 903-593-0230 or fill out the contact form here.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. According to the CDC, one person dies every 37 seconds from cardiovascular disease. It’s important to know the signs and risk factors of heart disease.

Nearly half of all Americans are at risk for heart disease. Risk factors include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, smoking, obesity, diabetes and family history.

As an accredited chest pain center, recognized for excellence in treating heart attack symptoms, UT Health East Texas provides quality care and cutting edge procedures from board-certified physicians.

UT Health East Texas provides a wide range of heart (cardiac) care from comprehensive diagnostics to open heart surgery and cardiac rehabilitation. With state-of-the-art facilities, advanced technology and board-certified and fellowship-trained physicians, we're improving heart health in East Texas. 

We offer heart clinics as well as diagnostic testing and imaging at our facilities conveniently located througout East Texas. Advanced procedures and surgeries are performed at UT Health Tyler.

Click to learn more about the following conditions or services offered:

Cardiac care is offered at the following locations. Click the links below to learn more about the specific services offered at each and information about how to schedule an appointment.

Diet is a key component to living a healthy life. UT Health East Texas offers a variety of nutritional services that help educate patients on how to make the best nutritional choices for their body.

Nutritional Counseling

UT Health East Texas Olympic Center in Tyler offers one-on-one nutritional counseling with a registered dietitian. This service is available to anyone who is wanting to learn how diet impacts your fitness and overall health. Sessions can be purchased individually or as a package. For questions or more information, call 903-596-3150.

Nutritional Counseling for Diabetes

UT Health East Texas offers two diabetes education programs to help you learn how to manage your diabetes, including tips about diet and nutrition:

1. Diabetes University at UT Health Tyler

   Diabetes University is an outpatient diabetes education program that meets the national standards for diabetes self-management education, and has received a Certificate of Recognition from the American Diabetes Association. Our program staff includes a registered dietician and a registered nurse who also are certified diabetes educators that specialize in educating people with diabetes about their condition. We offer a wide variety of services to fit your needs and interests, including two separate but complementary services: diabetes self-management training and medical nutrition therapy.

   For more information about Diabetes University, call 903-535-6354.

2. Empower Diabetes at UT Health North Campus Tyler

   Empower Diabetes is a free diabetes education program that meets four times each year. This in-depth program provides information and tools that help people with diabetes manage meal planning, glucose monitoring, exercise, medication, insulin administration and foot care.

   Click here to see session dates and register online. Call 903-877-8978 for questions or more information.

The Importance of Nutrition

This month, we are emphasizing the importance of nutrition. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), healthy nutrition is profoundly important in keeping Americans in good health throughout their lives. People with healthy patterns of eating have been shown, on average, to live longer and to be at lower risk for several significant health problems, including obesity, type 2 diabetes and heart disease. For patients already affected with chronic diseases, healthy eating can often help in the management of these conditions and in the prevention of complications. The CDC has found that fewer than one in 10 children and adults consume the recommended daily amount of vegetables. Additionally, they have found that only four in 10 kids and fewer than one in 7 adults consume enough fruit. Poor nutrition has been found to contribute to many costly diseases, including heart disease, obesity and some cancers.

As we consider global nutrition habits and life spans, the Blue Zones are five fascinating demographically confirmed and geographically defined areas with the highest percentage of centenarians on earth. Countries in this zone include Loma Linda, California; Nicoya, Costa Rica; Sardinia, Italy; Ikaria, Greece and Okinawa, Japan. In these locations, individuals are reaching the age of 100 at 10 times greater rates than in America.

Okinawa has been found to have a life expectancy of 84 years. The current American life expectancy is approximately 78 years and eight months. The local life expectancy for Smith County is 78 years and two months. These Blue Zones share certain common characteristics referred to as the “Power 9” factors, which include purpose, moving naturally (when safe and possible for the patient), slowing down, a sense of belonging, maintaining relationships with loved ones and other factors. Additionally, many of these cultures emphasize consumption of beans (fava, black beans, soy, lentils) and a less frequent emphasis on meat, in comparison to the typical American diet. However, meat is still eaten in their diet, as it can provide important nutrients. When eaten, meat is usually consumed in smaller portions, as compared to the average American diet.

In Sardinia, there is an emphasis on whole grains, beans, garden vegetables and fruit. In Okinawa, there is an emphasis on root vegetables (sweet potatoes), yellow and green vegetables, other plants and soybean-based foods, as well as seafood, fruit and lean meats. Members of the Loma Linda Blue Zone often eat a diet directly taken from the Bible. They tend to also incorporate leafy greens, nuts and legumes in their diet. In Nicoya, the citizens consume little to no processed foods, and they eat lots of antioxidant-rich tropical fruit. In Ikaria, the average lifespan is eight years longer than the American lifespan. This particular population has been shown to have 20% less cancer, half of our rate of heart disease and very low rates of dementia. In Ikaria, they tend to eat a variation of the Mediterranean diet, which includes fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, potatoes and olive oil.

America is currently experiencing the effects of the obesity epidemic. Currently, states in our region are experiencing the presence of obesity in 30% or more of our citizens. Another significant fraction of our population is becoming overweight. It is expected that these trends will only continue to rise in the foreseeable future in America (and in other parts of the industrialized world). It is thought that these changes are due to a number of factors, including higher energy intake (increased 300 kcal/day since 1985), larger portion sizes at home and outside the home, higher frequency of eating outside the home and less energy expenditure. This is due to work being more reliant on machines and automated processes, less active occupations, increased amount of sedentary work, less physical labor and a greater amount of sedentary time (relaxing on the couch). Other factors also may contribute to the rise in obesity, and these factors may include poor sleep habits, epigenetics and more time spent in neutral temperature-controlled environments indoors.

Science has shown that obesity increases the risk of type 2 diabetes, liver disease, certain mental health issues, high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, dyslipidemia (high cholesterol), cancer, stroke, gallbladder disease, osteoarthritis, sleep apnea, respiratory problems and other conditions. The CDC has found that modest weight loss of 5-10% of total body weight (in a person who weighs too much) is likely to produce many benefits, including improved blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, mood, mobility, self-confidence and energy level.

In conclusion, it is important to eat healthy and to eat in appropriate portions in order to maintain a healthy weight for the average patient. Many doctors have noted the benefits of a Mediterranean-style diet, which emphasizes consumption of vegetables, fruits, whole grains and healthy fats (which could come from olive oil, nuts, seeds and fats from fish like herring, mackerel, albacore tuna, sardines, salmon and lake trout) instead of the less healthy fats (like saturated and trans fats) which can contribute to heart disease. This diet includes weekly consumption of fish, poultry, beans and eggs. Herbs are included as well. This type of diet also includes moderate portions of dairy products and limited intake of red meat.

We know that our patients have a wide variety of conditions and questions related to diet and specific food groups and their effects on health conditions and health status. No single diet is perfect for every individual, but the food habits listed above are beneficial for health promotion in the average healthy American. Please consult with your primary care physician for specific questions related to health conditions if there are certain food groups you have been instructed to avoid or to specifically include (examples: lactose-intolerant patients, patients with diabetes, anemic patients, patients with hypertension, high cholesterol, food allergies, heart failure, food intolerances, vitamin deficiencies and other conditions).

Thank you for reading and remember to eat healthy and in appropriate moderation!

Edwin Anders, MD, MPH

UT Health North Campus Tyler Preventive Medicine & Population Health