Weight Loss From Bariatric Surgery Appears to Reverse Premature Aging

According to a new study released by the European Society of Cardiology, weight loss achieved from undergoing bariatric surgery can delay the aging process.

“Obese people are prematurely old,” said lead author Dr Philipp Hohensinner, a researcher at the Medical University of Vienna in Vienna, Austria, in a press release. “They have an increased level of inflammation, with higher levels of inflammatory cytokines (small proteins important in cell signaling) in their fat tissue. Obese people also have shorter telomeres at the end of their chromosomes.”

Telomeres are the caps at the end of each strand of DNA that protect our chromosomes and act as the internal aging clock of each cell. Telomeres naturally shorten as we age, but can also be diminished due to an unhealthy lifestyle (i.e. smoking, lack of exercise, poor diet).

The study authors collected blood samples of 76 patients before surgery, as well as one and two years afterwards. By year two, these patients had telomeres that were 80 percent longer than they had been before the procedure.

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“I find this interesting, and from the summary I’ve read, these researchers are spot-on with what they have found,” Peter C. LePort, MD, bariatric surgeon and medical director of MemorialCare Center for Obesity at Orange Coast Memorial Medical Center in Fountain Valley, CA, tells Yahoo Beauty.

He explains how he witnesses the improvement in health and overall quality of life in his own patients who undergo weight loss surgery. “The metabolic syndrome goes away, and it’s the metabolic syndrome that decreases these patients’ lifespan.”

Defined as a group of risk factors (such as having a large waistline, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and high fasting blood sugar) that raises your chances for heart disease, diabetes, and stroke, metabolic syndrome has become more common due to the rise in obesity rates among adults. However, reducing your weight can lower your risk for metabolic syndrome, which in turn will boost the health of your cells.

“By increasing the health of the body, in general, the telomeres don’t get shortened,” continues LePort. “Once the telomeres get to a really short state, they cannot divide. The cells in the body are constantly dividing and regenerating themselves. And if that can’t happen, you will shorten the lifespan of the entire organism—and the person.”

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Keep in mind that while shedding some pounds can slow down the hands of time, being underweight can have the reverse effect.

“If you’re too thin, you’re also not healthy,” says LePort. He adds that multiple health issues can occur when someone is below the body-mass index (BMI) number of 18.5—including a compromised immune system, nutritional deficiencies, and anemia—which can also have a negative effect on the cells.

“Although it is subjective, if someone is too thin, they can look sick, which can make them look older.”

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