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Studies on Body Image Changes After Bariatric Surgery in Adults

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Body Image, Eating, and Weight

Abstract

After the failure of various nutritional or dietetic treatments, patients with severe obesity frequently approach bariatric surgery for reasons related to both physical (e.g., weight loss, increased life expectancy) and psychological health (e.g., body image, quality of life, psychological well-being). After bariatric surgery, the majority of patients show a rapid weight loss, mainly occurring in the first 6–12 months after the procedure, and most of the time the physical health concerns (e.g., type 2 diabetes, hypertension, sleep apnea) improve. In a similar way, also body shape and its functionality undergo extreme changes.

Body image dissatisfaction is extremely frequent in patients with severe obesity candidates to bariatric surgery, particularly in patients presenting with distinct physical and psychosocial characteristics. Body image dissatisfaction tends in general to improve after surgery, but not in all the cases and not in a way that is always proportional to weight loss. Rapid and large weight loss, with associated skin excess formation, could worse body image dissatisfaction in some patients.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicine, University of Padova, Padova, Italy

    Luca Busetto, Federica Buongiorno & Sami Schiff

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  1. Luca Busetto
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  2. Federica Buongiorno
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  3. Sami Schiff
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Correspondence to Luca Busetto .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Formerly University Sapienza of Rome, Editor-in-Chief of Eating and Weight Disorders, Campiglia Marittima (LI), Italy

    Massimo Cuzzolaro

  2. Department of Neuroscience, University of Turin, Torino, Italy

    Secondo Fassino

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Busetto, L., Buongiorno, F., Schiff, S. (2018). Studies on Body Image Changes After Bariatric Surgery in Adults. In: Cuzzolaro, M., Fassino, S. (eds) Body Image, Eating, and Weight. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-90817-5_17

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-90817-5_17

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