Gastric Bypass Surgery and Alcoholism: Weight Loss Surgery Alcohol Addiction

Does Gastric Bypass Surgery cause Alcoholism

Alcoholism and Gastric Bypass Surgery is a much talked about topic these days.

Gastric Bypass Surgery reduces the size of your stomach. Your food and beverage intake capacity is lowered after this bypass surgery for weight loss. You undergo a bypass surgery so you can lose weight. People who are obese and want to lose weight fast use this mode of weight loss. Most of these people are addicted to food. They eat too much and cannot curb their cravings. Gastric Balloon Weight Loss Procedure is a non surgical gastric weight loss process that may work for some patients.

If you are already consuming alcohol prior to your surgery, discuss with your surgeon about this. There are a number of case where gastric bypass patients have taken to alcohol big time. They have managed to replace their addiction to food with addiction for alcohol. Now with the reduced size you stomach after the surgery, alcohol tends to affects your senses much earlier compared to before the surgery. This transfer of addiction from food may not be limited to alcohol only. Gambling, shopping, sex may be the new addictions.

Put another way, since the small intestine is bypassed, the alcohol takes less time to reach your brain. So if you were an alcohol drinker prior to your gastric bypass, you may start liking the fact that you get a ‘kick’ really soon now! This could also be a cause for addiction to alcohol after  gastric bypass surgery.

So while you try to treat your overeating addiction with gastric bypass, you may just find yourself addicted to alcohol. Both are bad. Instead of trying to treat the symptoms, you must try and go to the root of the problem. You must see a counselor or an expert in this field and ask seek treatment for the addiction. True, not everyone gets addicted to alcohol after gastric weight loss surgery. But according to some research findings, between 5% to 20% of gastric bypass patients have been found addicted to alcohol. Their could be more addictions (other than alcohol) that may be embraced by a few other people.You must know more about the pros and cons of gastric bypass surgery. Also, Gastric Bypass is not cheap. Cost of gastric bypass surgery and insurance coverage (if at all) must be studied detail before you make up your mind.

In summary, do your home work. Seek professional advice on whether gastric bypass is the only alternative for your weight loss. Would you want to risk getting addicted to alcohol after weight loss surgery or would you just want to try treat you addiction to overeating before going for the gastric bypass?