Offering weight-loss surgery to more than a million obese people would prevent tens of thousands of cases of diabetes, high blood pressure and heart attacks, the largest long-term study of British patients suggests.
Surgery led to “dramatic weight loss” which was generally sustained for at least four years, according to the study, which led to fresh calls for the NHS to carry out more operations to control appetite and digestion.
Fewer than 6,000 operations are carried out each year and Rachel Batterham of University College London, one of the study authors, said that a huge expansion was needed.
“Bariatric surgery is safe and produces unrivalled health benefits that are life-changing for patients and cost-saving for the NHS,” she said. “Unfortunately, less than 1 per cent