Dr. Charles Mok explains two endoscopic alternatives to surgery: gastric balloons that fill the stomach to trigger fullness, and endoscopic gastric sleeve procedures that shrink stomach capacity. Both work when diet and exercise aren't enough and avoid the risks and costs of traditional bariatric surgery.
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These are services people can do if they're struggling with weight loss and traditional means haven't worked and they don't want to do bad bariatric surgery and they do not want to use medications. Perhaps they've had problems with the medications or they just made too expensive. The surgery in the long term tends to be cheaper, less expensive. Some people have side effects from the medications, which they can't use them. So the gastric balloon fills the stomach up with a balloon. There's less space so you feel satiety or fullness sooner, so you eat less food and the weight comes off. The gastric sleeve pinches the stomach smaller. Endoscopic gastric sleeve, it makes the stomach smaller and it doesn't have as much capacity. And these are less invasive than traditional surgical procedures and alternatives to weight loss medications. When diet and exercise are not cutting it for you.