A recent study out of UC Davis studied information on over 1300 people who were being evaluated for weight loss surgery, specifically analyzing the difference between the men and women who were seeking the weight loss procedure. While these people were overwhelmingly women (which other studies have shown is the overall trend), the study suggests that men who seek bariatric surgery are in worse health than women. This includes a higher average BMI and more weight-related health ailments.

One interpretation of the study is that men need to be encouraged to consider weight loss surgery before their health gets to a crisis point. If a candidate for a lap band or gastric sleeve is too unhealthy, then immediate post-surgical complications might outweigh the long-term benefits of bariatric surgery. If men were to get bariatric surgery before their health worsened, they’d both prevent negative weight-related health conditions and be more capable of handling the normal stresses of surgery.

At Beverly Hills Physicians, we’ve helped numerous men and women reclaim their health through weight loss surgeries like the gastric sleeve, lap band, and lap band to sleeve conversion. While we don’t know for sure what drives women to seek weight loss surgery more frequently than men (we would guess it would be unfair societal pressures placed on women), we encourage anybody concerned about their obesity to give us a call. BHP employs a talented team of board-certified bariatric surgeons and offers a free consultation for those who may be interested.