Amino acids connected to obesity and gut microbiome
Researchers at Lund University in Sweden have discovered a new link between gut bacteria and obesity that certain amino acids in the blood are connected to obesity and the composition of the gut microbiome. The researcher adds to an increasing number of studies, which indicate that the gut microbiota does…
BEAT OBESITY THIS FESTIVE SEASON
Hi Everybody, We would like to take this opportunity to wish you and your families a peaceful festive season and a very happy and prosperous 2018. The follow article was featured in the Nursing Magazine:
A long and eventful year for Du Toit, Funnell & Partners
With the festive season now in full swing we would like to take a look back at 2017 and extend a heartfelt Thanks to all our patients, partners, staff, service providers and loved ones. The following is an adaptation from an article published in 2013 by Lyndsay Ord (Taking the…
The threats to health associated with obesity should not be underestimated
Netcare Waterfall City Hospital and Netcare St Augustine’s Hospital Media release The threats to health associated with obesity should not be underestimated World Obesity Day should be used as opportunity to raise awareness of this global health scourge Wednesday, 11 October 2017, Many South Africans today do not fully…
SA’s obsession with food and the psychology of weight loss
Citizen Reporter Obese people need to redefine their relationship with food and ‘learn to eat again’. Obesity is a growing concern in South Africa, particularly because of the lifestyle diseases associated with it, including type 2 diabetes, hypertension and heart disease. Gastric bypass surgery is an increasingly popular treatment option…
Couple gains a new lease on life after metabolic surgery
Netcare St Augustine’s Hospital Media release Couple gains a new lease on life after metabolic surgery Multidisciplinary support for patients at SASSO’s centre of the year Wednesday, 8 November 2017, Gastric bypass surgery is popularly associated with weight loss, however it is the health and wellness benefits, rather than the…
Media release: Netcare St Augustine’s Hospital -Four hundred metabolic procedure milestone for KZN hospital
Four hundred metabolic procedure milestone for KZN hospital Metabolic intervention has numerous health benefits for many obese patients Thursday, 19 October 2017, Surgeon Dr Gert du Toit and his partner Dr Ivor Funnell of the Durban Metabolic Surgery Centre at Netcare St Augustine’s Hospital in Durban, yesterday completed their 400thmetabolic…
Weight loss from bariatric surgery can improve cardiac health
In overweight and obese people, fat often gets deposited in the midsection of the body and can lead to unhealthy changes in a heart’s function and size however, weight loss from bariatric surgery can help the heart to return to its natural shape and function according to new findings presented…
Durban medical team and hospital honoured for contribution to South African metabolic surgery
SASSO hails Dr Du Toit and Netcare St Augustine’s Hospital as bariatric ‘Centre of the Year’ Monday, 7 August 2017, The outstanding contribution of specialist surgeon, Dr Gert du Toit, for his work in laparoscopic gastric bypass procedures at Netcare St Augustine’s Hospital in Durban, has been recognised with the…
Weight loss after surgery may reverse retinal damage
Early eye damage caused by obesity, high blood pressure and diabetes can potentially be reversed by bariatric surgery, according to a study presented at this year’s Annual Meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) in Lisbon, Portugal. Changes to the mircovascular structure of the retina can…
Post-op malnutrition
The following is an extract from an article in the Bariatric News. We would like to start a Facebook discussion on this topic. The outcome of this discussion is to provide more local vitamin and mineral supplement options to our patients and readers. Please feel free to read and share…
Delaying bariatric surgery may result in poorer outcomes
Obese patients who underwent bariatric surgery were more like to achieve a BMI of <30 one year after surgery if they had a BMI<40 before surgery, according to a study published by JAMA Surgery. The study authors from University of Michigan Health Systems, Ann Arbor, Wayne State University and Henry…
Diagnosing obesity by mathematically estimating fat
Researchers from ETH Zurich, Switzerland and Yonsei University in Seoul, South Korea, have proposed a new technique to evaluate abdominal obesity by estimating the thickness of subcutaneous fat using electrical impedance tomography (EIT). The paper, ‘Mathematical Framework for Abdominal Electrical Impedance Tomography to Assess Fatness’, was published in the SIAM…
Gut microbes RYGB dramatically alters gut microbes compared to LAGB
A study comparing Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) and laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) has reported that bypass produces profound changes in the composition of microbial communities in the gut, with the resulting gut flora distinct from both obese and normal weight patients. The results are likely due to the dramatic…
EndoBreak: Meet ‘Glucoracle’; Mental Health & Bariatric Surgery
News and commentary from the endocrinology world byKristen Monaco Contributing Writer, MedPage TodayApril 28, 2017 Source: https://www.medpagetoday.com/endocrinology/generalendocrinology/64887 A new app — Glucoracle — may help people with type 2 diabetes to manage glucose levels. “Our algorithm, integrated into an easy-to-use app, predicts the consequences of eating a specific meal before the food is…
Brown fat: Researchers identify brown fat signalling lipid
Scientists at Joslin Diabetes Center have shown that a lipid called 12,13-diHOME that circulates in the blood signals brown fat cells in mice to fuel up with other lipids. In one experiment, obese mice given low levels of the molecule produced reduced levels of blood triglycerides. Although the Joslin team…
The Skinny On Bariatric Surgery
Gastric bypass surgery is helping obese people slim and overcome life-threatening illnesses. Bernadette Wolhuter spoke to two surgeons who are changing their patients’ lives For the past decade, specialist surgeons Dr Gert du Toit and Dr Ivor Funnell have been changing people’s lives. The pair founded the Durban Bariatric Surgery…
ZG16 protein Newly discovered bacteria-binding protein in the intestine
Deficiency in a certain protein in the gastrointestinal tract has been shown to lead to both inflammation and abdominal fat accumulation in mice. The discovery of a bacteria-binding protein provides yet another piece of the puzzle of how humans are affected, or not, by the large quantities of intestinal bacteria…
Post-surgical weight loss increases work productivity
Patients who had bariatric surgery that resulted in weight loss, improved physical function or reduction in depressive symptoms also reduced their absenteeism at work, according to a Researcher Letter published in JAMA. It is well-known that obesity is associated with sick leave, disability, and work-place injuries and bariatric surgery is…
Post-surgical assessments aid weight loss
Assessing certain weight control practices and eating behaviours after bariatric surgery can significantly influence the amount of weight loss after surgery, according to a study published by researchers from the Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, Fargo, ND. The paper, ‘Postoperative Behavioral Variables and Weight Change 3 Years After Bariatric Surgery’, published in…
Bariatric surgery can increase risk of preterm birth
Surgery and pregnancy Babies of women who have undergone bariatric surgery for obesity run a higher risk of preterm birth, according to an update from a study from the Karolinska Institutet and published in the New England Journal of Medicine. “Since obesity is associated with a higher risk of preterm…
Experts push for surgery to tackle Type 2 diabetes
DIABETES specialists across the world are calling for a radical mind-set shift in treatment for Type 2 diabetes so that doctors can recommend bariatric surgery for patients. They say the surgery is close to the holy grail of a diabetes cure. Diabetes is a major cause of kidney failure, blindness,…
microRNA breakthrough may protect against obesity
Using a pre-clinical model of obesity, researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) have discovered that a small, non-coding RNA molecule called miR-181b is an important determinant of obesity-induced changes in adipose tissue by controlling the function of the vessels in adipose tissue. The study, ‘MicroRNA-181b Improves Glucose Homeostasis and…
Repeated use of antibiotics linked to T2DM risk
Repeated use of some types of antibiotics may put people at increased risk of developing type-2 diabetes by possibly altering their gut bacteria, according to a large observational study published in the European Journal of Endocrinology. The findings emphasise the need to reduce unnecessary antibiotic prescriptions. A team from the…
Mental health conditions common among bariatric surgery patients
Date: January 12, 2016 Source: The JAMA Network Journals Summary: Mental health conditions, such as depression and binge eating disorder, are common among patients seeking and undergoing bariatric surgery, according to a study. Bariatric surgery is an accepted method of promoting weight loss in severely obese individuals. Mental health conditions…
Can a Drug or Surgery Solve Your Weight Problem?
In a word, no. Can they help? Perhaps… Last month I wrote an article that spoke somewhat favorably of the new weight loss drug, Saxenda. I said it was perhaps the most important weight loss medication ever developed. Wow! Did I get lambasted! I got all sorts of email blasting…
Jenny de Beer
The story I am about to tell has been a life changing experience. All my life I have been known as “big Jenny” and have struggled with weight problems for as long as I can remember. I was overweight even at primary school and was teased and made fun of…
sLR11 protein prevents body losing weigh
An international team of researchers from the Wellcome Trust-Medical Research Council Institute of Metabolic Sciences at the University of Cambridge, UK, and Toho University, Japan, have shown that a protein found in the body, known as sLR11, inhibits our ability to burn fat. Most of the fat cells in the…
Cancer Study finds surgery eliminates precancerous uterine growths
Cancer Study finds surgery eliminates precancerous uterine growths – A study evaluating the effects of bariatric surgery on obese women most at risk for cancer has found that the bariatric surgery eliminated precancerous uterine growths in those that had them. Other effects included substantial weight loss, improving patients’ physical quality…
Surgery should not be considered as the last option
For diabetic morbidly obese patients, surgery should not be considered as the last option, but as an appropriate treatment, in particular when diabetes is not controlled or when other obesity-related comorbidities are poorly controlled, according to researchers from Università Cattolica del Sacro, Rome, Italy. In their systematic review, ‘Assessing the…
New mechanism controls glucagon secretion in humans
New mechanism controls glucagon secretion in humans; TYPE 2 DIABETICS who are resistant to insulin have an excess blood glucose level, which they are now trying to reduce using a new class of DIABETES drugs known as the gliflozins. These new drugs lower the sugar level but also produce a paradoxical…
After Surgery?
After Surgery? Gastric bypass surgery is a major abdominal operation and like all other major surgeries can affect a patient well after the surgery is over. Aside form the physical aspects, patients may have trouble adjusting psychologically to their drastic weight loss after the operation. For example, the rapid change in weight…
5 Things Not to Say to Someone Who’s Had Weight-Loss Surgery
5 Things Not to Say to Someone Who’s Had Weight-Loss Surgery;Weight-loss surgery has always been a topic of conversation and intrigue. After New Jersey Governor Chris Christie underwent Lap-Band surgery (in which a silicone band is placed around the upper part of the stomach to shrink it) in 2013, the…
Nutritional concerns during post-op pregnancy
Nutritional concerns during post-op pregnancy;Women who become pregnant after bariatric surgery are at high risk for low micro-nutrient levels, especially for vitamins A and B-1 and albumin, according to research published online at PlusOne. The researchers from the University Hospitals Leuven, Leuven, Belgium, prospectively evaluated micronutrient levels during pregnancy and…
Pearls of Wisdom – Event at The Oyster Box
We recently held a very successful presentation on Bariatric Surgery entitled Pearls of Wisdom on Weight-Loss Surgery at the Oyster Box ( see what we did there- Pearls of Wisdom + Oyster Box…clever don’t you think so too!) Have a look at some photos of this gala event : pearls-of-wisdom-event-at-the-event-at-oyster-box
Weight -Loss Surgery Advice
Article By Karmen Redman November 2014 Weight -Loss Surgery Advice; My advice to someone considering weight loss surgery is to do the research and talk to other people who have had the surgery; this helped me considerably in making my decision to have bypass surgery done. The surgery has changed my…
Gastric Bypass Family
BETWEEN the three of them they’ve lost 182 kilograms –the equivalent of 18 large sacks of potatoes or the combined weight of three average-size women. For years Charmaine Schwenn,her husband, Barry Todd, and mother, Marie, tried every diet under the sun but the weight just kept piling on.Fed up and at their wits’ end, one by…
Obese youths have a nearly six fold risk of hypertension, according to research in more than 22 000 young people from the Prevention Education Program (PEP) Family Heart Study presented at European Society of Cardiology Congress by Professor Peter Schwandt from Germany. “The prevalence of hypertension and obesity in children…
Taking the bypass route
Original Article and Credits To: Lindsay Ord September 25 2013 at 12:50pm . WEIGHTY: Barry Todd has lost 55kg since his bariatric surgery. Durban – With 10 percent of men and 28 percent of women being classified as morbidly obese, South Africa has a weighty problem on its hands. For…
A New Look Website For Us…and perhaps a New You in 2014
If you are a regular visitor to our website no-doubt you would have noticed a fresh new look and some awesome new features we have added: Read All About the Success Stories of some of the Bariatric Patients of both Dr Gert du Toit and Dr Ivor Funnell – Success…
Genetic link between carbohydrate digestion and obesit
Every additional copy of the salivary amylase gene there was approximately a 20% decrease in the odds of becoming obese Tuesday, April 22, 2014 – 17:26 Owen Haskins – Editor in chief, Bariatric News Obesity in the general population may be genetically linked to how our bodies…
Benefits of Weight Loss Surgery
Severe obesity is a chronic condition that is very difficult to treat. For some people, weight loss surgery — or bariatric surgery — helps by restricting food intake or interrupting digestive processes. But keep in mind that weight loss surgery is a serious undertaking. You should clearly understand the pros…
Do you need Bariatric Surgery? Don’t have Medical Aid…
Losing weight isn’t easy — and for many severely overweight people, exercise and diet simply aren’t effective enough to shed significant weight. When all else has failed, many people start thinking about weight loss surgery, also called bariatric surgery. You likely have questions about financing weight loss surgery — the…
Bariatric Support Group Secrets
Bariatric Support Group Secrets – What I Learned as a Support Group Leader by Sarah Muntel, RD Every bariatric center has them. Bariatric surgeons talk about them. Patients promise to go. When it is all said and done, there are many more patients that do not attend support…
Banding patients must adhere to nutritional advice
Gastric banding patients do not meet recommended daily requirements for important nutrients such as protein, vitamin D and calcium, despite receiving nutritional counselling over a three-month period, according to the outcomes of a study by UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers. “Our study clearly shows that there are issues regarding nutritional…
Can Adolescents have Bariatric Surgery?
In the past, weight loss surgery, was typically reserved for individuals who are over 18 years old and sometimes the requirements are much older than that. Now, as the whole world grows fatter, children are taking the blunt force of this trend. Today the rates of children who are obese are growing…
Post-Bariatric Surgery Life Style Changes
Life after Bariatric Surgery Bariatric surgery is not a quick fix. It’s an ongoing journey toward weight loss through lifestyle changes. After surgery, the difference in your body makes it physically easier to adjust your eating and lifestyle habits. Fortunately, you will not have to go through the process alone.…
Obese SA man too fat for New Zealand
Wellington – An obese South African man has been told he is too fat to live in New Zealand despite shedding 30kg since he moved to the country six years ago, a report said on Saturday. Albert Buitenhuis – who now weighs 130kg – and his wife, Marthie, said they…
The Durban Bariatric Surgery Support Group
The Durban Bariatric Surgery Support Group is a safe place for the bariatric population or those considering bariatric surgery, to go for support, acceptance, understanding, encouragement, empowerment and information. The mission of this group also includes having a very active group, forming friendships and gathering for chats on our Face…
After weight-loss surgery, new gut bacteria keep obesity away
(Reuters) – The logic behind weight-loss surgery seems simple: rearrange the digestive tract so the stomach can hold less food and the food bypasses part of the small intestine, allowing fewer of a meal’s calories to be absorbed. Bye-bye, obesity. A study of lab mice, published on Wednesday, begs to…
Life After Bariatric Surgery; Support Groups
Dear Patients We are considering starting a Bariatric Support Group for our Candidates in Durban. The widespread use of support groups has provided weight loss surgery patients an excellent opportunity to discuss their various personal and professional issues. Most learn, for example, that weight loss surgery will not immediately resolve…
Invitation to start a Bariatric Surgery Support Group in Durban
April 2013 – Due to the increasing demand for and at the request of our patients we ( Dr Gert du Toit and Dr Ivor Funnell would like to invite our post-operative Bariatric Surgery Patients to establish a Durban based Support Group for all interested parties. The aim of this…
Women Should Wait at Least 12 Months Before Trying for a Baby Following Weight Loss Surgery, Experts Say
Women should wait at least 12 months before trying for a baby following weight loss surgery and need further advice and information on reproductive issues, suggests a new evidence-based literature review published January 11 in The Obstetrician & Gynaecologist (TOG). The review looks at the safety, advantages and limitations of…
Weight-Loss Surgery in Durban
Our aim is to provide information and support to pre and post surgery patients of Dr Gert du Toit and Dr Ivor Funnel regarding Weight-Loss Surgery Solutions. Bariatric Surgery is designed to create lasting weight-loss results through Lifestyle Changes and Surgical intervention. The partnership of Drs du Toit & Funnell…
TV, Devices in Kids’ Bedrooms Linked to Poor Sleep, Obesity
Children who bask in the night-time glow of a TV or computer don’t get enough rest and suffer from poor lifestyle habits, new research from the University of Alberta has shown. A province-wide survey of Grade 5 students in Alberta showed that as little as one hour of additional sleep…
Halo Effect: Family Members of Gastric-Bypass Patients Also Lose Weight, Study Finds
Family members of patients who have undergone surgery for weight loss may also shed several pounds themselves, as well as eat healthier and exercise more, according to a new study by researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine. A year after the 35 patients in the study had Roux-en-Y gastric…
What is the Bariatric Surgery recovery process?
Most people typically stay in the hospital for a few days or less after gastric bypass surgery. Some may need to stay four to five days. Your doctor will approve your discharge home once the following is true for you: You can move without too much discomfort. You can eat…
More Exercise, Eating Less Fat and Weight Loss Programs Are In, Popular Diets Are Out, Study Suggests
ScienceDaily (Apr. 10, 2012) — Contrary to popular perception, a large proportion of obese Americans can and do lose weight, say researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. What’s more, they say, the old tried and true methods of eating less fat and exercising are some of the most effective…
Type 2 Diabetes, Cured by Weight Loss Surgery, Returns in One-Fifth of Patients
ScienceDaily (June 25, 2012) — A new study shows that although gastric bypass surgery reverses Type 2 diabetes in a large percentage of obese patients, the disease recurs in about 21 percent of them within three to five years. The study results were presented June 25 at The Endocrine Society’s…
Diabetes Improved Regardless of Surgical Procedure
ScienceDaily (May 7, 2012) — New research reports that no procedure for weight loss surgery is any better at treating diabetes than another. The study, presented May 7 at the International Congress of Endocrinology/European Congress of Endocrinology in Florence, Italy, uses a large ongoing study to show that improvements to…
Cost of Gastric Bypass Surgery
The cost of gastric bypass ranges from R130 000 to upwards depending on the procedure that is best suited for your individual case. The good news is that, increasingly, medical aid companies are offering gastric bypass surgery cover for all or part of the gastric bypass cost if your doctor…
Gastric Bypass Surgery Satisfies Long-Term
Gastric bypass surgery gets high marks for patient satisfaction and maintenance of substantial weight loss at 11 years post-operatively, according to long-term results of a study published online March 26, 2012 in Surgery for Obesity and Related Diseases. The researchers point out that this study is one of the few…
The Best Free Apps to Help You Lose Weight Your Smartphone
The Best Free Apps to Help You Lose Weight Your Smartphone is a perfect tool for getting and staying in shape. Think about it: It’s always with you, it lets you listen to music during your workout, and it provides you with many powerful (free!) apps at your fingertips. A…
Social Network For People With Chronic Conditions
We have launched collaboration with a social network for people with chronic conditions (including, but not limited to people with obesity). The network is at http://www.thehealthchain.com Registration and use is at no cost to the user. There are a number of ways that the network can assist people to stay…
Diets High in Fiber Won’t Protect Against Diverticulosis, Study Finds
ScienceDaily (Jan. 23, 2012) — For more than 40 years, scientists and physicians have thought eating a high-fiber diet lowered a person’s risk of diverticulosis, a disease of the large intestine in which pouches develop in the colon wall. A new study of more than 2,000 people reveals the opposite…
Number of Laparoscopic Bariatric Procedures Continued to Rise Between 2003-2008, U.S. Study Finds
ScienceDaily (Aug. 8, 2011) — According to a study published in the August issue of the Journal of the American College of Surgeons, there was an increase in the number of laparoscopic bariatric procedures, an increase in the number of bariatric surgeons and a decrease of inhospital mortality rates between…
Accomplish Your Weight-loss Goals and Resolutions
Don’t let your weight loss goals and resolutions for 2012 fall by the wayside. weightChances are that to achieve your dreams and live a life you love, those goals and resolutions are crucial. Goal setting and goal achievement are easier if you follow these six steps for effective and successful…
I had a Gastric Bypass…so now what?
You have made the commitment to a lifestyle change. You have had bariatric surgery and now find yourself with a lot more questions than answers. The big-gest question after surgery usually is: I had a Gastric Bypass…so now what? No doubt you will need to make some serious lifestyle changes…
Gastric Bypass Surgery Associated With Improved Health Outcomes, Studies Find
ScienceDaily (Feb. 21, 2011) — Gastric bypass surgery appears to lead to better long-term results including greater weight loss, resolution of diabetes and improved quality of life compared with sleeve gastrectomy and “lap-band” surgery, according to two reports in the February issue of Archives of Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives…
Your Consultation Session
Preparing for weight loss surgery involves evaluations and recommendations by several health care professionals. They may include a bariatric physician, a bariatric surgeon, a nutritionist and a psychologist. This team works together to develop a comprehensive treatment plan. Let’s assume that you have a good understanding by now of the…
2 in every 3 South Africans are overweight
South Africans are a nation of people in denial when it comes to perceptions of how overweight, unfit and unhealthy they are. In a recent national health survey measuring the health of the nation, it was found that 74% of South Africans think their fellow citizens are overweight, while only…
Benefits Of Bariatric Surgery May Outweigh Risks For Severely Obese Patients
Bariatric surgery can result in long-term weight loss and significant reductions in cardiacand other risk factors for some severely obese adults, according to a scientific statement from the American Heart Association. The statement, published in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association, is the first by the American Heart Association…
What is Weight-Loss Surgery?
Welcome
Durban Bariatric Surgery provides pre and post surgical information and solutions to severely obese patients of Drs. Du Toit, Funnell and Partners. We proudly service Durban and surrounding areas of Kwa-Zulu Natal in South Africa. Our practice is situated at Suite 201 Caritas Wing L2 St Augustines Hospital, 107 J…