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Obesity is a well-known health issue experienced by so many people. It can lead to other serious illnesses that can negatively affect your life in the long run. There are many ways one can deal with it. I chose to get gastric band surgery, which has helped me manage my weight.

Also called lap band surgery, it is just one of the surgical options one can opt for to deal with their obesity. If you want to know more about this, and if you’re considering it, here’s more on what lap band surgery is about, what I prepared before doing so, and what you should expect should you do it.

What is Lap Band Surgery?

Gastric band surgery, also known as Lap-Band surgery, is a procedure where a gastric band is placed around your stomach. This will, in turn, limit the food that you can consume, making you feel full sooner. It is one of the several surgeries you can take to help lose weight, and this is one of the least invasive and, therefore, safer types. The procedure is also reversible.

Lap band surgeries are available in specific clinics, particularly the specialty ones like obesity clinics. If you currently reside in Perth or are nearby, you could do this procedure with Perth Obesity Solutions, the clinic I entrusted to undergo this surgery.

Why Get the Surgery?

This surgery is to help you lose weight. It helps you eat less, preventing further weight gain. Obesity has been a growing concern in Australia, with 67% of adults being overweight or obese in 2017-2018, and it could increase as it keeps going.

There is more than one way to lose weight, like a more appropriate diet and exercise. However, there are times when you may need a different approach; in my case, the usual fitness routine didn’t work for me.

You can get lap band surgery if you find weight loss difficult. Lap band surgery’s benefits include a safer and less invasive process, easier recovery than other weight loss surgeries, and is meant to be permanent. You can also reverse the procedure.

Before going on board with the surgery, double-check or see a physician to see if you qualify.

Who is Qualified?

Certain people can be eligible for gastric band surgery. There are qualifications one has to meet to ensure there will be fewer risks as possible, healthwise. Two main conditions can qualify you as a candidate: first, you must be over 18, and second, you should have had genuine unsuccessful attempts at weight loss.

You can check for the additional qualifications to undergo surgery afterwards. These qualifications typically are: have a BMI of 30-40, have a comorbid illness related to your obesity, and ideally, not be an alcoholic or pregnant.

What and How to Prepare for the Surgery

While the surgery only took about an hour, preparations had to be done as early as a week. I had to take care of myself, approach my doctor, ask what to consume in the days leading up to the surgery, and be well rested.

Ideally, if you have a job, it’s best to have the week off and be well-rested, so you may want to get a leave if you can. If you are a stay-at-home parent, it would be best to ask someone for help with the kids or the household. You should consult the clinic or tell your physician about the surgery and ask what and what not to eat or drink.

You need to be in a perfectly healthy condition. Be sure to get adequate sleep, ample time for exercise, and the like. Moreover, it helps not to eat anything after midnight the night before the day of the surgery, as it’s best to have an empty stomach during the procedure.

Day of the Surgery

Going to the clinic can be a nerve-wracking experience. I was nervous on the way, but I was eventually reassured that I was in good hands. You will be placed under anesthesia at the time of the surgery, and the surgeon will begin the procedure. You will feel some discomfort here and there due to the insertion and tightening of the band.

Adjustments will be made to the tightening of the band by adding or removing liquid to a port that connects to your band through a tube. Once this is all sorted, the procedure ends. It can take an hour or even less, depending on how it goes.

Recovery, Side Effects, and Weight Loss

The surgery will cause after-effects. I’ve felt pain in my abdomen or in parts to which my abdomen may be connected. However, these are only mild pains that can go away after a couple of days and can even be relieved by painkillers. You may be recommended a more liquid diet for the first two weeks after surgery.

The side effects I’ve had were nausea, vomiting, and minor complications from surgery, like wounds or infections, but these can be dealt with by adjustments to the band or additional treatments.

As for weight loss, the results may vary regarding your lifestyle. You need to maintain a healthy routine of proper sleep, enough exercise, and healthy food. Restricting what you can eat can also mean restricting nutrients, so it’s better to consistently eat healthy food, especially those that can help you lose weight.

You can lose around 40% excess weight in two years. I’ve been consistently having a healthy weight loss with a recommended healthy diet and enough exercise.

Afterword

Lap band surgery is one of the many options for weight loss. While not necessarily for everyone, it has worked excellently for me, and I have gotten significantly healthier. If you want to know if it may work for you, it’s best to consult your doctor, research, and make inquiries with clinics that offer the service.

Infertility is not being able to conceive after a year or longer of unprotected sex. There are two types of infertility: primary and secondary. Primary infertility is a woman who was never pregnant and still can’t conceive after a year of not using any birth control and contraceptives. Secondary infertility is when women can’t conceive after at least one unsuccessful pregnancy or a miscarriage. 

Men’s fertility generally starts to reduce around ages 40-45 when sperm quality decreases. Fertility among women decreases ten years earlier than men, at age 30, and declines more as women reach their mid-30s. When they reach age 45, getting pregnant at this age is unlikely. 

Are you trying to conceive? If you don’t match the age factor of infertility, continue reading to learn more about infertility, its prevalence, the risk factors in both sexes, and how to treat it. 

How Common Is It?

Infertility is a global health issue that affects millions of individuals of reproductive age around the globe. The World Health Organization (WHO) found that 186 million individuals and 48 million couples have infertility issues around the globe.

Undoubtedly, it’s a common problem, and the United States isn’t safe from it. A total of 6% of married women in the United States face infertility problems, while 12% have trouble carrying the pregnancy until the due date. Male infertility also plays a role in a couple’s difficulty; among couples, it ranges from 35 to 50% of the cases in the United States.

South Korea has the lowest fertility rate at 0.9% children per woman. In another country, researchers found that the average age of first-time mothers in Australia is 29.6 years old, which is already an age where fertility is starting to decrease. Infertility also affects 1 out of 6 Australian couples of reproductive age, in addition to the increasing infertility rates in Australian women. 

Due to the alarming increase in infertility among Australian women, there have been numerous companies that help couples check for their chances of conceiving. Fertility North in Australia specializes in providing an excellent, supportive fertility treatment experience for couples who need it. 

Risk Factors of Infertility

Infertility among people has numerous risk factors, including age, including:

• Age (over 40-45 for men; 30 for women)
• Stress
• Eating disorders (bulimia and anorexia nervosa)
• Diabetes
• Excessive alcohol use
• Over-exercising
• Smoking
• Exposure to environmental toxins (pesticides and lead)
• Radiation therapy or other cancer treatments
• Substance abuse
• Weight problems (underweight or obesity)
• Sexually transmitted infections (STIs)

Risk Factors of Female Infertility

The following are the specific risk factors for females:

• Thyroid disease
• Abnormal menstruation
• Kidney disease
• Sickle cell anemia
• Blocked fallopian tubes
• Uterine problems (endometriosis, uterine polyps, and uterine fibroids)
• Pelvic inflammatory disease
• Past ectopic (tubal) pregnancy
• Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)
• Ovarian Cysts
• Primary Ovarian Insufficiency
• Pituitary gland disorders (Cushing’s syndrome)

Risk Factors of Male Infertility

The following risk factors are specific for men only:

• Undescended testicles
• Enlarged veins (varicocele) in the scrotum 
• Testicular cancer (and treatments(
• Low sperm count 
• Low testosterone (hypogonadism)
• Genetic disorders (cystic fibrosis)
• Injury to testicles or scrotum
• Misuse of anabolic steroids
• High heat exposure (frequent use of hot tubs, saunas, or use of tight pants)

How Is a Female Infertility Diagnosed?

When you consult a physician about your fertility, you should expect they will ask you about your ovulation. They may also ask you to record signs of ovulation, such as cervical mucus and basal body temperature. You can utilize a home ovulation kit or a mobile app for these. 

The following tests can help diagnose or rule out if a female is infertile:

• Pelvic exam. A healthcare provider will perform your pelvic exam, including a Pap smear, to check for any structural problems, disease, or cancer signs.
• Laparoscopy. In this test, a thin tube with a camera or a laparoscopy will be inserted in a small abdominal incision. This test helps identify problems like scar tissue, endometriosis, and uterine fibroids. 
• Blood test. A blood test is utilized to check a female’s hormone levels and if there are any thyroid hormones. 
• Hysterosalpingogram (HSG). It’s an X-ray operation utilized by physicians to check if the uterine cavity or the inside of the uterus is normal or if the fallopian tubes are open. An injectable dye would travel through the fallopian tubes to check for blockages.
• Hysteroscopy. A hysteroscope or a thin, lighted tube would be inserted into the vagina to examine the uterus. 
• Transvaginal ultrasound. An ultrasound wand would be inserted into your vagina to look for any problems in your reproductive system. It’s a pelvic ultrasound called endovaginal ultrasound, and some women may experience mild discomfort from the pressure of the probe, but in most cases, there’s no reported pain.
• Saline sonohysterogram (SIS or SHG). A physician will fill the uterus with saline solution or sterilized salt water to conduct another transvaginal ultrasound. It’s used to evaluate the uterus and the uterine cavity’s shape. This test makes it easier to see inside the uterus.

How Is Male Infertility Diagnosed?

The tests to check for male infertility are the following:

• Semen analysis. For most men, this is the only test needed in the workup to check for infertility. Semen analysis checks for any problems with the sperm, e.g., poor mobility or low sperm count. Some men would need a needle biopsy to remove sperm from the testicles to test it.
• Scrotal ultrasound. A man’s scrotum will be checked using ultrasound to identify varicoceles or other testicular problems. 
• Blood test. It can detect a man’s thyroid, other hormone levels, and testosterone. Also, blood tests that can check genetics look for any chromosomal abnormalities.

Final Thoughts

If you’re a woman under 35 years old after trying for a year, it would be best to seek professional help. If you’re older than 35, it would be better to seek help sooner, about six months of trying. As mentioned, the chances of getting pregnant for both sexes decrease with age. 

Regardless of your sex, you should seek a healthcare provider if you have a risk factor that could affect your fertility. A physician can give you the best answer in your chances of conceiving.

When the COVID-19 pandemic entered the scene, a lot of things came to a halt and the world’s economy took a big hit. Most people moved their office workstations and started to work from home for the first time.

Companies and organisations are aware of this and they understand how important it is to retain top talent, so they offer amazing remote work perks across the globe. Today, we will explore some of the best ones!

Child Care

Some of the traditional employee perks are still important for remote employees. Child care is one of them and offering to cover the costs will lift a huge burden off their shoulders while providing them with the quiet they need to do their job well.

Mental Health

Mental health awareness has done a great job of demonstrating how important it is. Remote work can lead to burnout and loneliness, so mental health support is an essential perk.

Team Interaction

Working remotely means employees interact less and less with colleagues. Creating opportunities for team interaction through virtual team-building events is crucial to building a sense of community.

You can bring some fresh interest to the regular work-week flow and give teammates a chance to make memories. A unique activity like this can surely help take some stress off their shoulders and build overall morale!

Latest Tech

Access to the latest tech gear and gadgets allows remote employees to create an optimal work environment. Offering them a desk set up to improve their home office will make a huge difference.

Meal Delivery

Meal-kit plans and/or monthly snack boxes are one of the best remote works. Helping employees stay nourished and healthy has a huge impact on their productivity. Plus, it saves them time in the kitchen so they can focus on work for longer.

Stipend

Remote employees receive a stipend, which is a monthly, quarterly, or bi-weekly program that helps workers cover expenses. Such as phone bills, internet bills, and expenses related to education and career development.

Wellness Programs

Remote employees need to take care of their physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being. That’s why wellness programs exist and they offer passes to virtual classes and workouts, fitness trackers, access to fitness apps, and more.

At this point, we all have an idea of how harmful sedentarism can be for our mental and physical health. The constant lack of physical activity has been proven to increase the risk of heart disease, obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, anxiety, depression, and more.

Work Length

Micromanagement has never been the best way to track progress, especially not when it comes to remote employees. That’s why employees give remote workers breathing room by limiting core working hours to a specific schedule. The rest of the day is theirs to manage as they see fit.

Maintaining a healthy work-life balance is not only important for health and relationships, but it can also improve your employee’s productivity, and ultimately performance. Put simply, if your people don’t view work as a chore, then they will work harder, make fewer mistakes and are more likely to become advocates for your brand.

Book Clubs

This is an often-overlooked perk but the benefits for remote workers are undeniable. Reading books and being able to discuss them with co-workers is a great team-building exercise that’s not centred around work but a common interest.

Bonuses

Every remote worker is different and they all have different needs. Offering them a selection of bonuses to choose from is an incredible incentive that keeps them motivated and engaged.

Remote employees have unique needs and remote work perks are designed to match those needs and keep employees happy, motivated, and productive. They deserve nothing less!

Dr. Susan Manzi, Professor of Medicine and Chair of the Medicine Institute at Allegheny Health Network discusses new analyses presented at the 2021 American College of Rheumatology (ACR) annual meeting from the TULIP Phase III trials showing Saphnelo™ (anifrolumab), in addition to standard therapy, resulted in a greater reduction in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) disease activity regardless of disease duration, standard therapy type and prior treatment, compared to standard therapy alone. She talks about what these results mean for the lupus community, especially given the recent FDA approval of Saphnelo in August.

David McNally, CEO of Titan Medical, a medical device company that is focused on enhancing robotic single access surgery, discusses the development of a single-port robotic surgical system called Enos™, and the many benefits it can provide to patients, hospitals, and surgeons. Titan Medical recognized the need for single incision surgery from clinical input from surgeons performing both manual and robotic laparoscopic surgeries. The Enos system is initially being investigated for use in hysterectomies. The Enos system has not been cleared by any regulatory authority and is not available commercially. 

Mark Rothera, President and CEO of Silence Therapeutics discusses RNAi research and how the company is applying its mRNAi GOLD™ platform to precisely target and silence disease-associated genes in the liver, representing a substantial opportunity for both medicine and the company. He talks about redefining the approach to precision medicine, and the importance of treatment simplicity, to meet the needs of both rare and hard to treat diseases.