A lot of people over the past five years have undergone weight-loss surgery. What researchers are starting to notice is that many are acquiring new compulsive disorders like alcoholism, gambling addiction or compulsive shopping.
The New Science of Addiction (WSJ subscriber firewall)
The behavior has long been explained as a psychological phenomenon as patients seek new strategies for filling an inner void. But as substance-abuse experts learn to decode the brain's addiction pathways, some researchers are coming to believe that swapping behaviors may have a neurological basis.
So now the growing focus at the National Institute on Drug Abuse is to find new drugs that could treat craving and addictive behavior,
Bupropian, marketed by GlaxoSmithKline as the antidepressant Wellbutrin and the smoking-cessation drug Zyban, is currently being studied as a treatment for gambling, obesity, nicotine dependence and alcoholism. And Rimonabant, made by Sanofi-Aventis is being reviewed by the Food and Drug Administration as a treatment for obesity and associated health problems, but it is also being studied as a treatment for alcoholism.
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Bankole Johnson, chairman of the department of psychiatric medicine at the University of Virginia, says gastric-bypass surgery provides a mechanical solution that leaves the underlying neurobiological problem untreated. "It's like a thirst," says Dr. Johnson. If you're thirsty -- and there's no water -- you'll drink lemonade."
Posted by Jill Fallon at July 18, 2006 2:49 PM | TrackBack | PermalinkIT'S NOT ADDICTION TRANSFER - IT'S MALNUTRITION AND MALABSORPTION
I had the Roux en Y in 2000 and my husband in 2001. He rapidly became and alcoholic and I slowly became addicted to prescription medication - where this behavior had never been an issue before. This forced me to look at why this happened to us now (and also to so many others that are suffering secretly). It is not addiction transfer - that is a cop out answer and is doing a great disservice to those in crisis. The rapidity and severity seem to be linked with the compliance with supplementations (ie., Calcium, B-12, protein). I have been doing tons of research at the Brain Institute at Shands, nutritionists, medical journals, endocrinologists, and there just isn't a lot of information out there. However, I'm convinced by what I've learned that this IS NOT addiction transfer but rather malnutrition and malabsorption induced psychoses.
We know that after this surgery the body cannot absorb B-12 and calcium, but what else can't it absorb and how does that affect you? No one seems to have a good answer (and I've been looking and looking). There is a direct link to nutrient absorption and brain function - but how do we compensate?
There is hope and you can help yourself heal, but it requires quite a bit of nutritional supplementation to get the nutrients you need that you can no longer absorb. Specifically they are amino acids, calcium, B-12, protein, D3, etc. You have to consider you no longer have the functionality of the duodenum and the upper portion of the jejunum.
I noticed significant improvement in 3 weeks and a complete turnaround in 8 weeks after hyper-supplementation. At the time I started this I had a bunch of unexplained bruising (like someone hit me with a ball ping hammer), depression, exhaustion, and it was all I could do to shower that day.
I don't quite agree with your thoughts on this (malabsorption). I have faithfully been taking my supplements and having the necessary follow-up with physician and blood tests and have been w/i normal limits. Yet, after 1.5 yrs after GBS, I started abusing alcohol. I don't believe anyone could prepare us for the emotional changes with this type of weight loss; I believe that these issues were most likely present prior to GBS and never addressed. I tend to believe that we don't know how to fill the void.
Posted by: Mary Gilbert at April 20, 2007 3:37 PMI agree with Mary. Even though I am faithfully taking my supplements and eat a very healthy, low-fat, high protein diet, I too began to have issues with alcohol about 2 years after surgery. I believe that the "comfort" I found in food after a long day is now found in a glass of wine. I had no idea this would happen! I feel scared, confused and worried about what the future holds for me.
Posted by: Lynn at May 8, 2007 7:50 PM