Alcohol and other addictions after bariatric surgery. #obsmuk 's 22nd May chat blog by Dr Denise Ratcliffe
Alcohol and other addictions after bariatric surgery Bariatric surgery is the most effective treatment for obesity in regards to weight loss and treatment of obesity related conditions. Perhaps more importantly, it is safe with a low risk of complications and death. However, the evidence on longer-term outcomes following bariatric surgery has evolved and there is a growing awareness of the psychological difficulties that can arise following surgery, including addictive behaviours that are the topic of the forthcoming #obsmuk chat. The types of addictive behaviours that have been discussed following surgery include alcohol, shopping, gambling, sexual behaviour, exercise etc. The concept of “addiction transfer” following surgery is a widely held lay belief. It is based on the premise that the individual’s presumed pre-operative addiction to food is transformed into an addiction to other substances or behaviours after surgery (Mitchell et al., 2015). This is underp