Weight loss after bariatric surgery isn't automatic, as so many people wrongly think. In fact, it's possible to gain weight as Season 6 "My 600-lb Life" star Lee Sutton nearly proved. You'll be shocked at how and why the morbidly obese man almost packed on 100 pounds in two months after gastric bypass surgery.
Bariatric patient crippled by obesity and delusion
"My 600-lb Life" follows people who are hundreds of pounds overweight on their journey to weight loss.
It explores not only the crippling effects of obesity but also the delusion, dysfunction, and self-destruction behind the weight gain. In a Reality TV show full of dangerous behavior, Season 6 patient Lee Sutton is the piece de resistance. His bizarre overeating just about did irreparable damage and would have had it not been for Dr. Younan Nowzaradan.
530-lb overweight man is afraid of what?
Other "My 600-lb Life" celebrities, like Penny Seager, failed to lose weight after bariatric surgery. Sutton only shed nine pounds and very nearly gained after having his stomach shrunk. How is this possible?
Prepare to have your mind blown: Nausea made Lee Sutton throw up a lot. He was afraid all the vomiting would leave him malnourished so he ate much more than his 80 percent smaller stomach could hold.
Dr. Now sets Lee straight
You have to wonder how "My 600-lb Life's" Dr. Now keeps a straight face with all the crazy things patients tell him. But a complaint of malnutrition from a man who weighs as much as five grown adults was too much. He ranted that vomiting was Lee's stomach rejecting the extra food. The reality TV surgeon predicted that without gastric bypass, Lee would have gained (are you sitting down?) 100 pounds in 60 days--nearly two pounds a day. Pregnant women eating for triplets or quads shouldn't gain that much.
The old 'water weight gain' excuse
"My 600-lb Life" reality television viewers have heard every excuse in the book from patients. James King ended up nearly dead of sepsis recently, thanks to all his self-pitying lack of responsibility. There is a Facebook page devoted to exposing Steven Assanti as a "fraud." When confronted with weight gain, Lee blamed "water weight gain." But you can't fool Dr. Now, who quickly debunked it. Don't despair, because the story ends happily.
Lee and Rina do it together
The episode ends well for the weight-loss surgery patient. Apparently, Lee got out of denial, and into reality, because it's clear that he's lost weight. He's got a long way to go but with his girlfriend Rena Kiser (another TLC series patient), they'll do it on the buddy plan. Maybe Sutton will even shed enough for the coveted plastic surgery of skin removal? Fans of the show wish the couple all the best.