More Blacks Fight Obesity with Surgery
By Deborah Todd, Contributing Writer
June 5, 2006
PITTSBURGH (Special to the NNPA from the New Pittsburgh Courier) - According to the Center for Disease Control, heart disease, various cancers, stroke and diabetes were the top four reasons Black Americans died in 2002. Each disease is more likely to affect Blacks than any other ethnic group in the country, and all the diseases' have root causes that can be traced back to obesity.
"The African-American population is particularly vulnerable to severe obesity, so they're a population in tremendous need," said Dr. Anita Courcoulas, Chief of the Section of Minimally Invasive Bariatric and General Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh.
Fortunately, Blacks have begun to step up and make the changes necessary to improve their outlooks with . According to doctors in attendance at the National Obesity Help Convention at Magee Women's Hospital May 13, Blacks are seeking help in greater numbers.
"I think it's wonderful that, now with more education and awareness, more people are becoming aware of the surgical option and are coming for help," said Courcoulas.
Yes. In the African-American community we have a lot of people interested in surgery, we have a lot not interested in surgery," said Dr. Madelyn Fernstrom, founder and director of the UPMC Weight Management Center. "I think there's a lot more interest, sort of more hope, in general.
Many Black people hear statistics saying more than 64 percent of our population is obese, but have no idea whether they fall into that category or not. Fernstrom said learning a patient's Body Mass Index is the first step in determining how to help them lose weight.
"When you're in that in the 30's, 30 to 35 is Class One Obesity; 35 to 39 is Class Two Obesity and 40 and above is Class Three, that's what we call severe obesity-that's the surgical people," said Fernstrom.
Although some patients with Class Two Obesity can be candidates for surgery because of medical problems, Fernstrom emphasizes the fact that surgery isn't a quick fix for obesity and may not be for everyone.
"Just because people think, 'I'm big enough for surgery-sign me up,' it doesn't work like that.
"All the insurance companies have a mandatory six-month lifestyle plan that you must complete with your doctor that will say that this person is demonstrating the ability not to lose weight, but to stick with a long-term program. Because (patients') lifestyles after surgery are way harder than before surgery."
These challenges can be especially difficult for families who are used to eating less healthy foods because of cost, little access to healthy foods and cultural perceptions of how foods should be prepared.
Valerie Campbell, author of "Cooking With Soul" a bariatric cookbook," said "hot and heavy," used to be her mantra regarding food. But after losing 120 pounds following her gastric bypass surgery, she has found ways to make her favorite foods healthy and has incorporated those recipes into her soul-food catering company.
"If you're doing something like fried chicken, you can use low-fat breading mixes, low fat, low carb pancake mixes instead of flour," she said. "Instead of using Crisco, you can use Canola or Olive Oil. Use something natural, so that your body can break it down."
Another, more difficult challenge, can be that patients have unrealistic perceptions of how surgery will change their appearance. While surgery patients are warned about scarring and excess skin left behind after surgery, some patients are disappointed by the fact that, in spite of their weight loss, they may never be classified as "skinny."
"If you look at someone that comes and has 100 pounds to lose, they can expect to lose 60 to 80 pounds with surgery-that's realistic," said Courcoulas. "Ideal weight is not a goal after surgery, but healthy weight is."
Pam Jennings, who underwent gastric bypass surgery in 2003, agrees with Dr. Courcoulas that success for the bariatric surgery patient cannot be determined by their weight or BMI number, but by their improved health.
"I like to look at it more of what other metrics I can look at," said Jennings. "Pre-surgery I could barely walk with the group I was with and now I can run on a treadmill for two miles without stopping.
I feel a lot more confident in putting myself where I want to be and think I need to be in my career."
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