Dallas Woman's Weight Loss Surgery
Shuffles Genetic Deck
January 28, 2005
Bobbi Sheahan Drops 90 Pounds
DALLAS -- Research has linked adult obesity to family
history, but one Dallas woman has used surgery to help
change nature's course. Bobbi Sheahan wanted to stop
the cycle that pushed her to 304 pounds.
"I decided it stops here. It stops with me,"
Sheahan said. "Weight issues have always been kind
of a big deal in my family. Growing up, my mom and I
were always dieting together, always struggling with
that."
However, Baylor weight loss surgeon Dr. Todd McCarty
said that nature's course can be altered.
"I'd say at least 70 percent of our patients,
when we ask about family history, have someone in the
family who is obese, usually more than one relative
and usually the parent," McCarty said. "It
doesn't mean you're destined to be obese and have the
medical problems associated with that and a shortened
lifestyle. It means you educate yourself and then take
extra care to try to avoid that."
Sheahan had gastric bypass surgery in September.
"I knew it was a risky surgery, and I did everything
I could to minimize the risks, but my attitude was:
This has to stop in order for me to have the best shot
at a long, healthy life with my husband and kids,"
she said.
Sheahan is now 90 pounds lighter, 10 sizes smaller
and doing things she couldn't before. She credits the
surgery with her new active life and for the opportunity
to shuffle the genetic deck dealt to her daughters.
Source:www.nbc5i.com
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