Web About Health - Weight-Loss

After Gastric Bypass: Pass the Water, Hold the Ice

I just read this conventional diet tip – and we’ve heard it before – “Burn away fat with ice cold water! Ice cold water is calorie-free and fills you up so you can eat less. Drink ice-cold water and you’ll even burn a few extra calories as your body warms it up!”

If you are in the phase of rapid weight loss or have lost quite a bit of weight you know exactly why gastric bypass patients don’t drink ice cold water - we’re already freezing – even in the heat of summer. The last thing we want to do is get colder!

People who experience the massive weight loss associated with weight loss surgery experience feeling cold for two reasons: loss of insulation and less energy generation.

Fat is a highly efficient insulator. When gastric bypass patients follow the rules: eating protein and exercising, the weight lost can only come from fat or stored energy: insulation. Less insulation increases the likelihood of feeling cold.

The second reason for feeling chilled is that the metabolic cell processes are not working as hard as when you were heavier; it takes fewer calories and less energy to maintain and move a smaller body. A heavier body must generate more energy to operate, as a result more heat is generated.

Most weight loss patients report that their body temperature regulates after their weight is stabilized, usually eighteen to twenty-four months after surgery. Patients who incorporate exercise in their weight loss program experience less chilling than patients who do not exercise.

An award winning journalist and former newspaper editor Kaye Bailey brings expertise in writing and personal experience with gastric bypass surgery to EzineArticles.com. Having spent most of her life overweight Ms. Bailey is strongly empathetic toward the obese, particularly overweight children. This compassion compelled her to found the website http://www.livingafterwls.com, a fast-growing resource of information, understanding and support for the weight loss surgery community.

The LivingAfterWLS.com site is complimented with daily blog. The blog, http://livingafterwls.blogspot.com offers readers the chance to comment or leave feedback about fresh content added daily. This site contains success stories and recipes, general information and WLS inspired topics. Complementing the site is a monthly newsletter titled “You Have Arrived” available exclusively to people who subscribe through the website or the blog.

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