Tumescent or local anesthesia liposuction over the years has become a very safe method to remove unwanted fat and decrease inches over problem areas. Liposuction in fact is ranked in the number 1 and 2 spots of all cosmetic procedures, according to the ASAPS (American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery) 1
Cosmetic surgery procedures have in most instances been extremely effective in providing a fairly rapid change in body appearance, increasing self esteem, enhancing outward beauty, and erasing years of age that are so cruelly imposed upon us. Liposuction is actually the only cosmetic surgery procedure that provides several benefits beyond just beautification. The benefits consist of in most cases, a modest amount of weight loss that is of course highly variable, but can be in the 5-10 or more pound range within weeks after the procedure. There are a few surgeons who practice mega liposuction on very obese patients in which more pounds can be shed however the risks of complications is higher in that group of patients.
Liposuction, however in its strictest sense, is not an effective weight loss strategy because it is impossible to remove enough fat safely to provide most people the weight loss they are ultimately seeking. What does occur after liposuction is that in many people, at least in the initial weeks after a significant amount of belly fat has been removed, the body experiences a resetting, of its hormonal balance of estrogen dominance because fat cells are full of estrogen receptors and excess estrogen in both women and men cause fat to be stored in our body.
The thickening of women’s bodies and the softening of men’s bodies are often related to excess estrogen especially perimenopausal women and men aged 40 and up but it is also a significant cause of weight gain in the younger population as well.

When in excess, estrogen promotes the growth of estrogen sensitive tissues, leading to an increased size of adipose (fat) tissues in the waist, belly and other estrogen sensitive fat tissues: For men, typically in the belly and chest; for women, in the belly, lower butt, upper thighs and sometimes in the back of the arms. In some cases, excess estrogen causes feminization of men’s bodies with conditions such as gynecomastia.

Estrogen sensitive fat tissues are also called stubborn fat due to their high resistance to fat burning. Generally, not even diet or exercise can help remove this estrogen sensitive tenacious fat and again this is where Liposuction can come to the rescue, especially from an aesthetic point of view but the root cause still needs to be dealt with. Excess estrogen works in a vicious cycle. Estrogen promotes fat gain, and the enlarged fat tissue produces more estrogen within its cells, which then promotes more fat gain, and so on.

The problem is somewhat of a vicious cycle because the body is continuously exposed to excess estrogens. These come not only from what our own body metabolism makes, that is unfortunately enhanced in overweight individuals, and the normal aging process, but also from medicinal sources such as birth control pills or hormone replacement therapy with premarin. Another extremely significant source of excess estrogens comes from outside sources such as the meat that we eat, i.e. beef, and chicken as well as potentially some of the supplements we take such as whey protein which is made from cow’s milk. This is because the vast majority of these animals are injected with hormones to promote faster growth so that the food supply can be plentiful and relatively low cost. We also are exposed to what are referred to as Xenoestrogens or estrogen mimickers. These substances come from the air we breathe that is polluted with car fumes, and chemical plant contaminants that are airborne. Xenoestrogens are also found in detergents, paints, nail polish, lotions, soaps, plastics, pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, etc, the list goes on. All of this excess estrogenic activity wreaks havoc on our ability to lose weight not to mention the greatly increased risk of many types of cancers. The funny thing about the body is that the more fat we have the more estrogen receptors we have and the more the body is compelled to make more estrogen along with the outside sources to fill up those receptors. Now that is a merry-go round that needs to breakdown!
By removing that excess fat, the body temporarily takes a breather, at least in its normal conversion process of turning cholesterol into estrogen and the cycle slows so that some weight loss, especially in women arises.

Now in a few patients, weight gain can occur! How do you explain this? Well of course most people are quite satisfied with their liposuction results but a few factors can in fact contribute to weight gain.

Most commonly, this is due to poor diet, lack of exercise, excess stress, advancing age, hormonal influences, etc. that are not addressed after the procedure . Another reason that this can possibly occur is that Liposuction removes only subcutaneous fat, which is defined as deposits located just below the skin The Visceral fat, fat deposits located inside the abdominal cavity is left behind as liposuction does not and cannot remove this type of fat. Visceral fat is actually much more contributory to various disease syndromes, such as cardiovascular disease, Diabetes, etc. While no studies to date have clearly shown a causative relationship between liposuction and weight gain, some studies have shown that surgical removal of subcutaneous fat MAY contribute to increased visceral fat. This can then cause an increased risk of developing insulin resistance (a precursor to diabetes which does tend to encourage weight gain) and elevated triglycerides. This effect appears to be magnified when large amounts of fat are removed, when the patient is obese, and or when the fat is removed specifically from fat deposits in the lower body butt, hips, and thighs.
There are other theories about this phenomenon which point to the body’s natural drive to restore balance. Most of us have heard how the body has a certain weight set-point to which it will always try to return if weight is lost. This is especially true if we go on a crash diet and lose weight quickly. The problem with this is that we are losing muscle mass, which is the fat burning furnace for our body. Yes weight is lost rapidly but when one goes back to a regular eating pattern then the weight returns with a vengeance because the metabolism has slowed to a crawl and even what may be considered a good calorie intake may cause excessive weight gain.
The last theory is of course, that liposuction is a free pass to eat at Burger King and eat Hagan daz ice cream because 6 months from now one can just have the fat sucked out again if need be.

So with all that info being processed, what can I do?

With the myriad number of diet plans, exercise plans, alternative physicians, health coaches, life coaches, hormone physicians, etc it is especially important to do good research so that you are well informed. In my practice I offer a more whole patient approach because liposuction itself for most patients is not the end all be all answer. I have numerous patients that have the procedure that just have pockets of fat that just won’t go away and other patients who want the ultimate sculpted waist and or abs.The vast majority of my patients, however, have an excess 30-50 pounds that is not only undesirable from an aesthetic point of view but also in many instances is a smoldering cause of early cardiovascular disease, diabetes, stroke, cancer, etc. Quite a number are already on cholesterol lowering drugs, diabetic drugs, anti-depressants, anti-hypertensive drugs etc all of which generally have quite a number of unwanted side effects. For this reason, I focus intently on assessing the blood work that may give me a clue as to ones blood sugar, cholesterol, thyroid and magnesium levels. Also paying close attention to cortisol, C – reactive protein, homocysteine, Vitamin D and in expanded cases estrogen/progesterone, and serotonin values. Another culprit, that I play the role of detective in, is food intolerances, overgrowth of yeast and bacteria, digestive enzyme deficiencies,etc all of which play vital roles in the overall success of a patients weight loss goals. If one or more of those are not in balance, then it can be quite problematic in the arena of weight loss success

Diet is paramount in that it needs to be based on high protein, preferably grass fed hormone free meats and fowl, as well as 1-2 servings of fish per week like tilapia that are low in mercury levels. Carbohydrates consumed must be low glycemic index and low glycemic load which keeps insulin surges to a minimum thereby inhibiting fat storage and the sparing of lean muscle. One must consume 5-6 healthy meals per day as this is key so that you keep the metabolic rate high and thus the fat burning engine running. To actually make that a more doable goal in terms of eating, I highly suggest supplementing with a high quality, organic, grass fed, hormone free, non denatured whey protein. The health benefits alone are outstanding by adding this to your daily eating regimen but to ensure ultimate success of actually consuming food every 3 hours, this cannot be beat as an addition. It is extremely important that it is not from the traditional whey companies as they utilize cows that ultimately have been injected with hormones. Since whey protein comes from cows milk, you can just imagine that the load of hormones is tremendous in the whey that is produced from that milk and ultimately when you ingest that type of whey you are increasing your own load of excess hormones.

Exercise is the next critical rung on the ladder of success in that one must commit to a minimum of 3 days of Interval training exercises that focus not on aerobic type activities, but on building a reasonable amount of lean muscle mass so that you are always burning fat. You will be surprised that you can start with just a few minutes a day working up to an ideal of 20 minutes a day to achieve great success
Next we must provide the body with superior natural supplements that we are all lacking in our diet despite eating correctly and well because simply our food sources have become devoid of the necessary nutrients. We must supplement with what the body is craving such as arginine, Vitamin D3, resveratrol, selenium, zinc, trace minerals, omega 3 fatty acids, etc, etc
After the above have been addressed, diet and exercise and supplements still may not allow for the goal that one wants to achieve simply because your body is totally out of balance for one or more reasons that needs to be addressed by a physician who is skilled in hormone balancing and functional medicine. Only then, in many cases will you see the best results from a well done liposuction surgery.

To find out more about Total Body Transformation, contact Dr.Carter who is a board certified physician and in practice for over 20 years.To schedule a consultation, visit http://www.sculptrx.com

Dr.Michael Carter is a Board certified physician who specializes in Cosmetic Surgery, Weight Loss, BHRT-Bioidentical hormone replacement, and superior natural supplements as well as alternatives to traditional medications.
visit him at the below websites

http://www.sculptrx.com