Sunday, March 26, 2006

What is perfection?

I spent some time this weekend on one of my favorite WLS message boards. A few of us on the board complimented the site administrator and others for setting such good examples for the rest of us.

The administrator was quick to post that she is far from perfect. She mentioned that she occasionally indulges in a bite or three of some of her old favorite foods that aren't WLS-friendly, such as pizza. Her strategy is to take a bite (or two or three) of the food as it's presented before picking it apart. So, she'll nibble a little of the pizza as is, and then just eat the toppings before trashing the crust.

This works for her, because eating just a bit of the food as is keeps her from feeling deprived.
To me, this sounds like perfection for a WLS patient. Why? Because if I try that same method, I end up eating the topping and then nibbling on the crust. And if I'm not careful, I'd eat the whole slice before realizing it.

I'm just not the three-bite type. Fear enables this trick to work for me when trying cheesecake or chocolate mousse. But for whatever reason, pizza is a weakness -- and three bites is never enough. And that's why this woman is perfect in my book.

Tuesday, March 21, 2006

WLS and blood pressure

A Reuters story reports that a recent study found a significant reduction in high blood pressure after gastric-bypass surgery.

According to the story, published Monday, March 20: "Patients who had not been taking drugs to treat their hypertension prior to surgery saw a significant easing of their blood pressure afterward, and some of those on anti-hypertension drugs were able to stop taking them, according to a study published in the Archives of Surgery."

So far, I have not been as fortunate as the group studied. My blood pressure, though significantly lower than before I had weight loss surgery, still hovers around 140/100.
Click here to read the whole story.