NSW to fund weight loss surgery

[Rouge]

I don't agree with this at all.

I would rather see a ban a tax on junk food (to be reabsorbed by making healthy foods cheaper) than I would seeing this. Or better yet take on what some city's in the world are doing and ban fast food chains.

Those operations aren't cheap, and I think the money could be better spent elsewhere especially given so many other areas are in dire need.

And FYI I'm a goddessly sized girl so I'm not having a go at anyone's size etc.

I agree with society's need to change, but some days I really do wonder if we are getting too PC. Like the clothing chain "Big City Chick" recently removed "Big" from their name! I mean C'MON surely people look in the mirror, I am big its not offensive its the bloody truth! People should get over themselves, seriously. Maybe if we stopped tip toeing around the issue people wouldn't be sitting around thinking they didn't have a problem.

[C~Q]

seriously. Maybe if we stopped tip toeing around the issue people wouldn't be sitting around thinking they didn't have a problem.

Exactly! And Pixie is right, it's not about the way people look. Heart disease, Diabetes etc can affect people of all sizes. It's what you eat and the exercise you do. Just because you happen to be blessed with a superfast metabolism doesn't mean you can eat junk and sit on your bum and not be affected by these diseases.

I would say people need to be better educated about food, portion sizes, nutrition etc but honestly the info is all out there and it is readily available. Who doesn't know that a Whopper with cheese and bacon and a large coke isn't good for you?!!

[Nai]

I would rather see a ban a tax on junk food (to be reabsorbed by making healthy foods cheaper) than I would seeing this.

I agree Cai - I would also like to see PE reintroduced as a daily activity for primary schools and Home Economics in secondary schools to teach kids about healthy choices and how to cook fresh food.

I would prefer to see a more holistic approach from the government rather than just funding surgery. I have seen a number of people go through this surgery however the outcomes have never been what you would call succeessful in the long term.

I really think the focus should be on health and long term sustainable lifestyles combined with approprite messages and education.

[visitor1]

I would also like to see PE reintroduced as a daily activity for primary schools and Home Economics in secondary schools to teach kids about healthy choices and how to cook fresh food.

When i was in primary school (hmm some 20 years ago now when i started) we had 30 mins of physical exercise every morning. Whether it be dancing, skipping with rope, jogs, a game of something etc.....it was a morning MUST. Plus we had sport day on top. Our canteen never sold one piece of junk food!

HS was a different matter...was the complete opposite....junk food galore, sport day was a hit and miss event and PE classes were so easy to get out of!

[Macca79]

I just want to begin by saying it is not my intention to start anything the following is simply my own observations as a teacher and my personal opinions.

I can't speak for High School but as a teacher in a primary school in the NT we have two hours a week compulsory PE a week and have had for a long time but I can tell you this is not helping with childhood obesity. Too often I see a child do an hour of active sport to only watch them open a lunch box from home filled with lots of little packets of tiny teddies, roll ups, chips, chicken shapes etc. Once lunch from home was a sandwich and a piece of fruit. these days it seems to me that even the simple piece of fruit has been replaced with something processed. Last year I did a 10 week unit of work on nutrition with my 5/6/7 class and was amazed when kids had to ask me if what they had was healthy. They honestly didn't know. I would ask though how much is school responsibility and how much is parental?

On Lap banding...Im obese and looking at having surgery. Why? Because I feel it is for me. If a person has this done under the public system why deny them. I am not a nurse or doc but do we deny a person who has cancer from smoking treatment or even a person who has an STD from not practicing safe sex? At the end of the day if we can make a healthier society I say lets do it. anything to get the message out there that a healthy life is the best way to go.

And as for the rise in obesity I think we have to look at our society. If so many people are becoming obese it is more then just having a few too many whoppers and cokes!

[*Efjay*]

There would have to be a very strict policy as to who is accepted into this programme. It would have to only be for people who have tried everything & are on the brink of death if nothing is done. Like those stories you see on Foxtel.

I look at most people around these days who are overweight & yes Obese but I rarely see a person who I think would need to be a part of this programme. The reason for that would be these people would be house bound.
Sure there are plenty of fat people around who could use the help but this isn't the anwser. Healthy eating, exercise & an active life will see the majority of people back to a healthy weight.

Im not over weight, never have been so I wont pretend I know what its like to diet etc & fail. But my mum is overweight & I have watched her all my life wonder why she can't shed the kilo's. I know why & I'm sure deep down Mum knows why also. Let just say she didn't say No to the offering of birthday cake on the weekend.

I look at people on the biggest looser, especially that guy thats now doing ad's for diabetes Australia. THat guy was FAT, Yet he lost the weight & looks fantastic. He had alot against him, yet he still managed & has turned his life around.


at the end of the day I don't think my tax dollars should be spent on people who just can't stick to a diet or a healthy life style.

[C~Q]

I would ask though how much is school responsibility and how much is parental? !

I totally agree that it is parental responsibility but by teaching the children at school you can be sure that you are passing on correct information and educating the parents of the future.

[/QUOTE] I am not a nurse or doc but do we deny a person who has cancer from smoking treatment or even a person who has an STD from not practicing safe sex? [/QUOTE]


I know i'm going to get lynched for saying this but I believe that if someone is being treated for lung cancer and they smoke or is waiting for a new liver and is still drinking alcohol then they don't deserve the money/time that is spent/wasted on them. In reality I know there is no way of monitering this but deep down it is the way I feel. I am not comparing this in any way to Obesity, mearly responding to the earlier comparison.

I do believe however that it is similar to the treatment that can make an addict become clean without going through withdrawels. An addict has to go through the agony of withdrawel to stop themselves from doing it again. If there is no pain and suffering then what's to stop them getting high again? I think lap band surgery is similar. If the problem that made these people over-eat isn't cured then surgery isn't going to cure it. If you have lost weight by making life changing decisions about healthy eating and exercise then you are far less likely to put it back on again. If you can look back at the hard work and sweat that it took to lose weight then how much more proud of yourself will you be and how much less likely to do it all again?

[Neenee Jellybeanie]

know i'm going to get lynched for saying this but I believe that if someone is being treated for lung cancer and they smoke or is waiting for a new liver and is still drinking alcohol then they don't deserve the money/time that is spent/wasted on them. In reality I know there is no way of monitering this but deep down it is the way I feel. I am not comparing this in any way to Obesity, mearly responding to the earlier comparison.

I know this is off-topic here but my grandfather died from emphysema and the idea that smokers shouldn't recieve treatment is just horrifying. If you've ever seen someone smoke themselves to death, you'll know that it's not simply a case of someone being too stupid or not caring about themselves to do something about it. It's an addiction as much as heroin is an addiction, and so is alcohol. Would you deny an eating disordered person medical treatment because they should just bloody eat/not throw up already? Would you deny an attempted suicide a stomach pump because it was their own fault? Would you deny an abusive victim treatment for broken bones because they should've already left hte relationship? That's ridiculous. OF COURSE people will make the best choices for themselves if they can but not everyone has that capacity. Just letting people die because they're having trouble coping with something is callous, cold-hearted and, i think, ignorant. We accept that people with eating disorders are ill, that suicidals are depressed, and yet addicts are just morons? As a society, we have a responsibility to take care of EVERYONE whether we understand them or not. A society is only as good as its lowest and no one should be left behind.

/end rant

[Macca79]

I totally agree with you baby socks. Glad I'm not the only one in this thread who thinks like this.

[sushee]

I think as well, that the idea that weight loss surgery, is somehow an 'magic cure-all' from years of eating badly is a bit misleading. As if you say, eat drink and do whatever you like, then if you get fat, we'll slap a lapband on you is simply not true. You have to have shown a history of trying other weight loss methods. You have to show that you have or will potentially have co-morbidities from your obesity. You have to show a commitment to changing your life. The band will always only be a tool to help you change your lifestyle. It is not a magic bullet.

It makes sense already for health funds to cover the cost of much of lapbanding surgery simply because they recognise that as a generally sound and permanent solution to obesity - it can save the fund much more money in the long term from having to pay out on obesity-related health problems. It's a financial trade off they've weighed up and have since concluded that it's worth the initial cost to prevent long term payouts. If the NSW govt have come to the same conclusion, I'm not surprised. Yes I believe education is incredibly important, and more money should be spent on it, and on making good food available and affordable, but today's obese memebrs of society need help now, and as a simple financial trade off, I can see why the state govt would think it's that initial preventative cost is a sound investment.

I do believe it should not be at the expense of money spent on education though. None of my children are obese, and in part, despite my own weight, I feel I tried to make good choices for them when they were growing up. Education starts with parents, and parents should see an investment in their own education as to how best to feed their families. But I don't see why we can't have both.

Currently, if you cannot afford private health insurance, you're in the most 'no-win' section of society, because the waiting list for wls is something like 10 years in some states (yes it can be done publicly even now). So yes, help is out there, but yes, again, because you're on a lower socio-economic rung, you don't get the kind of health care someone more affluent s getting. I don't necessarily agree with that. I think there should remain strict screening measures. I think wls should not be used willy-nilly. But I do think there is a case for it to be publicly funded.

I'd rather we funded the prevention of obesity-related problems, than fund the costs of treating those same issues later in the patients' lives.

[sushee]

And just in response to something you mentioned, FJ about patients being close to death before they should qualify. The lapband is actually a far better tool for someone who has shown an inability to lose weight themselves, but who is otherwise not yet as affected by their health issues. That is to say, if someone is near death, the lapband is probably going to be too late to help them.

My brother has severe type 2 diabetes and could be helped immensely by a lapband. His doctors believe his days are numbered but he still eats more than he should. If it were as simple as 'not having another piece of cake', I'm sure he wouldn't be in this situation. It is not something someone who has never struggled with their weight would understand.

He cannot get a lapband at the moment until his diabetes is under more control than it is now, which obliges him to eat less, which he struggles with. Yet had he had this surgery BEFORE his diabetes got so out of control, he wouldn't be facing a bleak future now. He's only 36 years old too.

This is why, despite the fact I don't have diabetes, I have had lapband surgery. Because it's a preventative measure against a disease that has affected 80% of my family on my mother's side. If I didn't have private health cover, I can just about promise you that all of you would be funding my diabetes medication for the rest of my life in the near future. I know which path I would prefer, so I took it, and I feel like I will be less of a burden to society in the long term as a result of it.

[*Efjay*]

And just in response to something you mentioned, FJ about patients being close to death before they should qualify. The lapband is actually a far better tool for someone who has shown an inability to lose weight themselves, but who is otherwise not yet as affected by their health issues. That is to say, if someone is near death, the lapband is probably going to be too late to help them.

You have actually cleared up what I was trying to say. I meant, thatit shoul dbe last resort, tried everything, surgery is the last chance KIWM?
So I do agree with what you have said.