New York Bariatric Group Conducts National Survey to Reveal America's Views On Commercial Dieting vs. Surgical Weight Loss

NEW HYDE PARK, N.Y., Sept. 23, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Dr. Shawn Garber, New York's Top Laparoscopic Weight Loss Surgeon and founder of the New York Bariatric Group, announced today the results of a national survey entitled, "Commercial Dieting vs. Surgery: Who wins the Weight Loss battle?," which asked over 2,000 men and women across the country to share their perspective towards commercial weight loss programs vs. surgical weight loss procedures.

In light of the recent announcement released by the American Medical Association (AMA) officially recognizing obesity as a disease, thousands of overweight Americans are at even more risk for severe health issues such as diabetes, sleep apnea, hypertension and cardiovascular problems. However, many are still turning to the ease and convenience of commercial weight loss programs when trying to shed the pounds. With studying the success rates of these commercial diets research has found that the average amount of weight kept off in a two year span is only 5-15lbs. While these numbers may suffice for those who are a bit overweight, this small number does not help those Americans who fall into the obese or morbidly obese range.

To gauge a better understanding of how the nation views weight loss and weight loss programs, the survey, conducted by The New York Bariatric Group in partnership with SurveyMonkey, asked participants to share their thoughts on the safety and effectiveness of bariatric surgery compared to the success rate from commercial diet programs. While there have been instances of failed commercial diets leading to consumers – and celebrities - gaining back the weight they have lost, there is still a huge lack in understanding the success rate of bariatric surgery; mostly the fact that it is a proven way to keep the weight off for those who suffer from obesity and multiple obesity related health issues. The survey was used by The New York Bariatric Group to obtain statistics regarding how the average consumer understands obesity and the various weight loss options available. The survey found that over 60% of its respondents admitted to being overweight or obese.

"Surgical weight loss procedures such as the Lap Band or the Gastric Sleeve have often been misconceived as dangerous, and nearly half of the responses admitted to having this opinion," said Dr. Shawn Garber, Founder and President of the New York Bariatric Group. "In July of 2009, the New England Journal of Medicine found bariatric surgery to be safe and effective. These survey results will help us educate the American population on the misconceptions of commercial dieting vs. weight loss surgery procedures and stress that weight loss surgery performed by experts in the field of bariatric surgery is very safe. In fact, there are fewer risks involved with surgical weight loss procedures as there are with staying obese and suffering from multiple life threatening health issues."

The poll surveyed over 2,000 participants, with 981 respondents being male and the remaining 1082 female. Key findings of the survey include:

• 61.2% of people who took the survey were either overweight or obese and would likely qualify for weight loss surgery
• 58% of people said they have considered some sort of weight loss, yet, 46% of people don't have an opinion on weight-loss programs
• 46% of people said they don't have an opinion on weight loss programs, 23.5% of people chose Weight Watchers, while only 6.3% would consider weight loss surgery
• When participants were asked how much weight loss the average person maintained 2 years after completing a commercial weight loss program, more than half said 5-15 lbs
• When they were asked how much weight loss the average person maintained 2 years after receiving weight loss surgery, 57.6% said between 30-80 lbs
• 41.5% of people perceives weight-loss surgery as the best solution for those who have a serious weight-related issue, while 35.5% of people believe that people should be able to diet and exercise long term, and not resort to surgery
• 52.5% of respondents perceive weight loss surgery as either safe or very safe, while 47.5% still believe it's not very safe or extremely dangerous
• 56.5% of respondents have no idea of their health insurance coverage for weight loss surgery and 25.7% would assume that their health insurance does not cover weight loss surgery

"One of the most interesting results we found was that 56.5% of respondents have no idea of their health insurance coverage. As obesity is becoming a serious, common health threat and is now being formally recognized as a disease, more insurance companies are covering bariatric procedures because of their effectiveness. That said, insurance companies should be doing more to make their members aware of the coverage available for bariatric surgery," said Garber. "I also find it interesting that 41.5% of people perceive weight-loss surgery as the best solution for those who have a serious weight-related issue, while 35.5% of people believe that people should be able to diet and exercise long-term, and not resort to surgery. This proves that there is a common belief that diets work long-term, when in fact, 95% of the time, they do not work for those who suffer from obesity."

As a result, the New York Bariatric Group has compiled these results and will be executing a tailored and more focused marketing initiative to address some of the concerns and findings reported in the survey.

For additional information on the survey and the New York Bariatric Group, visit www.newyorkbariatric.com.

About Dr. Shawn Garber of the New York Bariatric Group:
Dr. Shawn Garber completed his general surgery training at Long Island Jewish Medical Center and went on to complete a laparoscopic surgery fellowship at the The George Washington University Medical Center with world famous laparoscopic surgeon Dr. Jonathan Sackier. Dr. Garber then trained with Dr. Alan Wittgrove (known for operating on singer Carnie Wilson) mastering the laparoscopic gastric bypass procedure for obesity. Dr. Garber is the only surgeon on Long Island and Queens who has performed more than 3500 laparoscopic gastric bypass procedures and 3000 Lap-Band procedures and over 300 laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomies. Dr. Garber helped develop the single incision Lap-Band and sleeve gastrectomy techniques and teaches other surgeons around the country this virtually scarless technique which he helped develop. He has been seen on Good Morning America, ABC news, NBC news, NY55 news and featured in the New York Times as the premiere bariatric surgeon on Long Island.

About SurveyMonkey 
SurveyMonkey is the provider of web-based survey solutions, trusted by millions of companies, organizations and individuals alike to gather the insights they need to make more informed decisions. SurveyMonkey strives to make tools powerful enough for professional researchers, yet easy enough for a survey novice, packing their solutions with over 10 years of experience in survey methodology and web technology so you can be confident in the quality of the data.

SOURCE New York Bariatric Group