I know what you’re thinking, what is the world coming to!? We have seen childhood obesity become a huge epidemic and now it seems as though it could be affecting even our toddlers. This 2 year old has become the youngest person in the world to undergo gastric bypass. The surgery removed a large majority of his stomach. The Saudia Arabian parents felt as though they had no other choice due to progressive weight gain and breathing problems that plagued their child.
After countless dieting attempts, the child was unable to loose weight. However, it was unclear whether the parents were successful in administering the diets.
Surgeons carried out a laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy on the boy which involved removing the outer margin of the stomach to restrict food intake, leaving about 30% of the stomach as a ‘sleeve’ roughly the size and shape of a banana.
‘To our knowledge LSG has never been tried in very young age children,’ the surgeons say in their report. ‘We present here probably the first case report of the successful management of a two year old morbidly obese boy (source).’
While the surgery was a success doctors are not sure what long term affects this will have on his health. Things such as stunted growth and possible vitamin deficiencies could be an issue.
What Blogging Mothers Are Saying About Gastric Bypass on a 2 Year Old
“I think parents will do anything, even if it’s extreme, to help a sick child,” said Wortz, who is one of the co-founders of the blog, Mom Colored Glasses. “Maybe they weren’t able to stick to the diet, but maybe they were. Maybe they did everything they could to help him lose weight, but weren’t successful in the end.”
“I truly hope that pediatric gastric bypass surgery doesn’t become just another ‘norm’ in our culture of instant gratification and ‘easy fixes,’ ” said Wortz.
“Skinny is not an equation for health,” said blogger and author Liz Henry, whose work will be featured in the upcoming book “The Good Mother Myth.” “This is unchartered territory and a dangerous precedent for still growing and maturing bodies (source).”
It’s clear that the surgery was a success and this child was saved from other possible problems such as bowed legs, insulin issues, heart problems and breathing issues. While this 2 year old was the youngest child to have gastric bypass, he may not be the last. This has become a serious issue around the world and it deserves serious attention. Take the necessary steps to help your kids and kids around you stay healthy.
Adria
CPT, BS, CES, PES
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