How do you think people put on weight? By overeating, right? But what causes that overeating and why is it that despite all the endless studies and articles on the bad effects of obesity, losing weight for so many remains as difficult as ever? The truth is we have no social support structure for fat people to lean upon. Once you hit a certain number on the weighing scale, an ugly reality descends upon you—clothes don’t fit, dates are hard to find, elders begin to nag and doctors begin to list out the endless diseases you are halfway to getting. None of this results in weight loss. After all, when has isolation, shame and fear ever worked as healthy motivation for emotional control? And you need emotional control to lose weight in a world where stress and junk food is everywhere.

In this episode, we are joined by a diabetes and bariatric surgeon from Wockhart Hospital in Mumbai, Dr Raman Goel, discussing the realities of weight loss. Spending the central part of his day removing body fat, Dr Goel heads the bariatric surgery division at the hospital. His surgical interventions have improved the quality of many lives. While bariatric surgery itself is not new, its use for helping to improve diabetes management in obese or overweight patients is only just gaining ground.  From who can opt for bariatric surgery to preparation as well as post-surgery recovery tips, Dr Goel gives a wholesome guide to this procedure. But first, he explains, what on earth is bariatric surgery?

Tune in to hear a fat-loss surgeon’s perspectives on weight gain, fat shaming and the difficulties of saying no to relatives who haven’t quite understood that our bodies no longer need nine-course-meals (and that love doesn’t have to be sugar and butter. An emoji will do, thank you very much!).

Produced by Anna Priyadarshini

Mixed by Kapil Dev Singh