Non-Surgical Weight Loss Options
For individuals who struggle with obesity, there are a number weight loss options that don’t involve bariatric surgery incisions and can still help many patients achieve a healthier weight. From minimally-invasive procedures designed to reduce food intake, to prescription weight loss medications and more, the key is often finding the right medical professionals to help you reach your goal.
Endoscopic Sleeve Gastroplasty
Endoscopic Sleeve Gastroplasty (ESG) is a minimally-invasive procedure that decreases the size of the stomach.
Unlike bariatric surgery procedures like Gastric Sleeve and Gastric Bypass, where incisions are made to access the stomach, for ESG an endoscope is passed into the stomach through the mouth. Using this thin tube with a camera attached, the doctor is able to place a number of sutures to make the usable portion of the stomach much smaller. This limits the food capacity of the stomach, allowing a patient to feel fuller while eating much less.
Most patients are able to resume normal activities the day after their Endoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy procedure, and the average patient reduces excess body weight by more than 50% in the first year after ESG.
Gastric Balloon
The Gastric Balloon is another non-surgical weight loss tool that may help people lose weight and adopt healthier food habits. During this procedure, a deflated silicone balloon is swallowed or placed in the stomach with an endoscope. The balloon is then inflated with a sterile saline solution, expanding inside of the stomach to help patients feel fuller faster.
Not only can a Gastric Balloon help a patient eat less, but it can also help them develop healthier eating habits. Essentially, when a patient is able to eat much less food, he or she needs to choose which foods are consumed wisely. Using a Gastric Balloon, some people are able to lose up to double the amount of weight they would have lost with diet and exercise alone.1
Medically-Supervised Weight Loss
Prescription weight loss medications can give many people struggling with obesity the extra help they need to get their weight under control. There are many types of medications that have proven effective in helping people manage obesity, from injections or pills that trigger a sense of fullness to medications that alter the taste of foods or help reduce cravings.
Some medications that may be prescribed to help combat obesity include:
Contrave®: Contrave is an FDA-approved medication that works on two areas of the brain to control cravings. When used in conjunction with diet and exercise, Contrave may help people lose more weight than people who use diet and exercise alone.2
Adipex: Adipex is a phentermine-based medication that helps to suppress the appetite and is one of the more common drugs to be used in medical weight loss plans. For some patients, a combination of Adipex and Qsymia works well.
Qsymia: Qsymia is approved by the FDA for individuals who have a BMI over 30 or people with a BMI of 27 who also have an obesity-related health condition. There are two medications in Qsymia: one that works immediately to reduce appetite, and one that is time-released to help reduce the sensation of pleasure associated with eating.3
Saxenda®: Saxenda is also approved by the FDA for the treatment of obesity, and is recommended for individuals with a BMI of 27 or higher who suffer from obesity comorbidities. This is an injectable medication that comes in the form of a pen for injection once a day. Saxenda works on the hormone GLP-1, which helps the body regulate hunger.4
Consider Your Non-Surgical Weight Loss Options
For people with obesity who have tried to lose weight on their own without success, it can be easy to feel discouraged. Not only can it be very difficult to maintain the lifestyle changes required to succeed, but there may also be other factors at play. For example, genetic predisposition, imbalanced digestive bacteria, and metabolic issues can all create challenges for a person who is trying to lose weight. The bottom line is that obesity is a disease, and as such, often needs to be medically treated. Working with a medical weight loss specialist can help people uncover the true causes of their obesity and give them the tools they need to achieve and maintain a healthier body weight.
1 Kim SH, Chun HJ, Choi HS, Kim ES, Keum B, Jeen YT. Current status of intragastric balloon for obesity treatment. World J Gastroenterol. 2016;22(24):5495-5504. doi:10.3748/wjg.v22.i24.5495. Available: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4917609/. Accessed November 3, 2020.
2Nalpropion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. How Contrave Works. Available: https://contrave.com/about/. Accessed November 3, 2020.
3 VIVUS, Inc. How Qsymia Works. Available: https://qsymia.com/patient/how-qsymia-works. Accessed November 3, 2020.
4 Novo Nordisk Inc. How Saxenda Works. Available: https://www.saxenda.com/about-saxenda/how-it-works.html. Accessed November 23, 2020.
The TLC Surgery Doctors have either authored or reviewed and approved this content.