Slimming World response to NICE announcement on bariatic surgery
In response to today’s announcement that the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is considering lowering the threshold for bariatric surgery for people who have been diagnosed with diabetes in the last 10 years, Slimming World, the largest commercial weight loss organisation in the UK and Ireland has warned that there is no quick fix to obesity.
Dr Jacquie Lavin, Slimming World Head of Nutrition and Research, said: “It’s important for people to realise that choosing surgery is not a light-hearted decision, nor is it the only option for people with a lot of weight to lose as data shows that, with the right support, diet and lifestyle changes can be extremely effective.
“Weight-loss surgery may serve to heighten people’s feelings of failure and lack of control, as it puts the solution well and truly in someone else’s hands and leaves the individual bereft of the very support they needed in the first place. It’s not always the quick-fix people are hoping for and in fact we have seen an increasing number of people wanting our support, even after having gastric surgery.
“In our experience, empowering people to make healthy lifestyle changes, such as improving their diet and becoming more active, can have a huge impact on raising self-esteem and self-confidence by helping people to feel more in control of their own weight and health. Plus these behaviours can be passed on to the whole family, meaning that the next generation and the next grows up with healthy habits too. Research from Cambridge University and Harvard Medical school shows how maternal grandmothers’ diet affects the health of their grandchildren.
“Increasingly we’re welcoming people to our groups who don't want to incur the risks of surgery yet have a lot of weight to lose – in fact, a recent analysis of the weight loss records of 1.2 million Slimming World members found that nearly one in three (29.7%) had a starting BMI of at least 35kg/m2 and 12.2% had a joining BMI of at least 40kg/m2*, which would be classed as ‘morbidly obese’.
“By following a flexible and generous eating plan, getting encouragement to become more active and, importantly, receiving ongoing, regular support in their weekly group Slimming World members make behaviour changes that are easy to live with – and keep up – and are often shared by family and friends too.
“While everyone is different and in some cases surgery may be the right answer, perhaps in cases where life is at risk or a person truly believes they have tried every possible method to lose weight, many of our members tell us that the idea of having surgery terrified them and they’re delighted that they’ve been able to achieve the results they dreamed of without having to face it.”
*Slimming World’s analysis of the weight outcomes of 1.2 million Slimming World members was the largest ever audit by a commercial slimming organisation. It was presented at the European Congress on Obesity in Liverpool in 2013.
