What is the best resource on choosing and preparing foods?
— Michele DiQuattro, Quakertown, Pa. The effectiveness of the operation comes from the final reconstruction of the stomach and small intestine, not the approach to doing it. Roux-en-Y gastric bypass – named for the surgeon who devised the technique and the “y” shape of the small intestine’s reconfiguration — is the safest, most effective operation. In terms of weight loss and control of medical complications from obesity, outcomes are the same from open surgery with a six-inch incision, and laparoscopic surgery. Even the surgical complications are not too different: Complications that are avoided by the laparoscopic operation are traded for others that are more common with laparoscopic gastric bypass. For the second part of your question, I’d recommend finding a dietician — your surgeon should have a recommendation — and talking to other patients who have been through this surgery. Is laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (“lap-band”) as good as gastric bypass? I’m told it is as
