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LEHI -- A little more than a year ago Phil Garrett, of Lehi, weighed nearly 400 pounds -- at 32 the father of three tipped the scale at 390 pounds. He says he had high blood pressure and sleep apnea and knew that something needed to change. Last March Garrett underwent gastric bypass surgery to help get his weight under control.

"Basically it was have the surgery or buy a burial plot because that is the path I was on," Garrett said.

Gastric bypass is the most effective and most invasive type of weight loss surgery available. During the surgery doctors detach 95 percent of the stomach and bypass a section of the intestines, leaving a functional stomach that can hold roughly two tablespoons of food at a time.

"Patients who have gastric bypass surgery can lose 70 to 80 percent of their excess body weight over a year," said Dr. David Watts, medical director of the Utah Valley surgical weight loss program. "Of all the bariatric surgeries it is the most successful with weight loss."

But getting approved for the surgery isn't easy. Patients need to have a BMI of more than 40 or more than 35 if they have other metabolic disease like high blood pressure and diabetes. There is also a rigorous approval process to go through.

"It was brutal," Garrett said. "You have to meet with a whole team of people, a dietician, exercise physiologist, psychologist, so they can make sure you are really ready for the process."

The weight loss program at Utah Valley Regional Medical Center focuses on teaching patients about their new lifestyle long before they have the surgery.

"After the surgery patients will only be able to eat about two tablespoons of food at a time and they have to take 30 minutes to do it," said Ginny Duncan, bariatric coordinator at UVRMC. "They can't drink soda pop or eat sugar and highly processed foods. It is really intense."

Garrett says he learned quickly which foods his new stomach could tolerate and which ones it couldn't. He says he can't eat steak anymore or his body goes into dumping syndrome.

"It is like the worst flu you have ever had times 10 and it lasts for 24 hours," Garrett said. "Your body just rejects some things and for me steak is one of those things."

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Weight loss surgery patient has new lease on life

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Home » Lose Weight Quickly » Weight loss surgery patient has new lease on life