Did anyone catch Nightline last night?

[Catherine Vincent]

One of the topics was childhood obesity. The teenager that was the subject of the gastric bypass surgery was Keaira Willis. It's part three of her progress since the surgery. Since the surgery, she has lost 198 pounds! This is a friend of my sister and she told me to watch it. I am glad I did, she is doing real well. Her entire family is obese and she said on the show that she didn't want to die at a young age and was tired of all the kids teasing her because of her weight. We are all so proud of Keaira. She has a job now and have so much confidence in herself. She says she is getting better grades in school and she no longers worries about what the other kids say. Here is the link to read more about it, there's also video in case you missed it. http://www.abcnightline.com/

Offtopic by the way: Why hasn't Alberto Gonzales resigned yet?!

[Donnachaidh]

1. how old is she?

And is a doctor monitoring her after the bypass?

She looks GREAT!

[Catherine Vincent]

3. I believe she is 16.

And yes, doctors are monitoring after her surgery. She had it done at Texas Children's hospital. Her parents are well aware that she has to continue seeing the doctor on her progress. She also still attends group session.

It's too bad they didn't show a better "after" pic, like in the video. Her hair was all fancy and her outfit. She really does look great.

[Divernan]

2. She looks really happy in the "after" picture.

It's a drastic step to have that surgery. I have a friend who did it, and he will always have to be very careful about his diet. But in extreme cases, like this little girl's, it appears to be the best way to go and will give her a longer and much happier life.

[peekaloo]

4. She seems like a sweet and smart kid. Too bad her family won't follow

her advice on eating.

btw I stumbled upon that segment while flipping channels. Lately I've avoided Nightline, since they seem to have successfully neutered Terry Moran :-(.

[blm]

5. Good for her that she is handling it so well.

.

[hlthe2b]

6. I hope this is the answer for her....I truly do...

Once I get past my horror at how widely this procedure is being marketed, I can appreciate that in cases such as Keaira, it may truly be a chance to get her life back.

A toast to the honorable ethical cautious physicians doing this procedure with appropriate care and rigor. Conversely, a black hole in hell, to the charlatans who are pushing this procedure on a poorly screened population with only one goal, in mind--to make money....

[MsKandice01]

8. I have no doubt that this surgery saved her life...

Just as it saved mine. I was almost 400 pounds at only 25 years old. I was easily on my way to becoming one of those people who would become bed-ridden and unable to leave the house. It was already becoming a struggle just moving around because the pain in my feet and ankles from carrying around all that weight was excrutiating. Just being able to move around without pain made it all worth it to me.

[hlthe2b]

9. I am thankful you had that choice...

and have had such an excellent outcome.... To your (continued) good health. :toast:

[MsKandice01]

7. Good for her...

I had gastric bypass surgery in 2001 and lost over 200 pounds. Living post-gastric bypass isn't all roses and sunshine but anything is better than being over 200 pounds overweight. I wish her luck keeping the weight off in the future.

[Catherine Vincent]

10. I wish her luck too.

I met her a couple of time before the surgery and she was always quiet. It may be because she didn't know anyone (she was with her mother) but I am sure if I met her now, she would be more talkative.