Weight Loss Surgery in Orange County and Los Angeles County

Weight loss surgery is the most effective way to lose weight, period.

It’s time to tell the truth about weight loss.

You were probably raised to believe that maintaining a healthy weight was a matter of discipline. That all you needed to do was watch what you ate and not eat too much. And if you somehow gained too much weight, that all you needed to do was diet. Control yourself. Be disciplined.

The subtext being - if you didn’t lose the weight - you just weren’t trying hard enough.

That’s wrong, and we’ll prove it to you.

The truth is: Diet and exercise programs fail for 95% of people within 3 years.

Despite what diet and exercise programs tell you, almost all of them fail long term.

95-98%

of people fail to lose weight and keep it off.1-2

Up to 66%

of people end up heavier than they were before.1

 There’s a good reason why this happens. Your body is actively sabotaging your efforts. Why? Because it wants to keep you alive. When you start losing weight, your body immediately starts to defend against this “threat” to your health and wellbeing - so it can return itself to a state of “normal.”3

This weight that your body is trying to maintain is known as the body weight set point. It’s a biological fact that as your weight drops below the set point, your body deploys the weapons of increased appetite and decreased metabolism.3 You get hungry so you eat more calories. Your metabolism slows so you don’t burn them off so fast. The end-goal is to keep you at your set point.

Unfortunately, set points don’t come down on their own. Even diet and exercise don’t bring down the set point. Set points either stay the same or go up when you gain weight.3 (If you’re curious to understand the science behind this, read Dr. Oliak's post about the body weight set point.)

For every 1 kilogram (2.2lbs) of weight a person loses through diet and exercise alone, appetite increases by 100 calories per day.4

Not only that, metabolism goes down by 20-30 calories per kilogram per day.4 This means losing 20 kilograms (44 pounds) of weight, appetite increases by 2,000 calories, and metabolism decreases by 400-600 calories.

Is it really any wonder that you’ve failed to lose weight and keep it off with diet and exercise?

Obesity is a serious disease that’s associated with early death and more.

The chance of premature death for obese individuals is 50-100% greater than for individuals of healthy weight.5

  • There are more than 40 medical problems associated with obesity, many of them serious. They include: type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, osteoarthritis, and cancer, cardiovascular disease and high blood pressure, high cholesterol, sleep apnea, joint pain and arthritis, infertility, headaches, acid reflux, and more.5
  • Many types of cancer (at least 13) occur more frequently in the obese population, including: breast, uterine, cervical, prostate, thyroid, stomach, liver, kidney, pancreas, gallbladder, colon and rectal cancer, and more.5
  • It’s estimated that obesity:
    • Has contributed to more than 14% of cancer deaths in women and 20% of men.6
    • Caused approximately 50,000 new cancers in women and 34,000 in men in 2007.5
  • Makes people twice as likely to develop esophagus/liver/kidney cancer, 30% more likely to develop colorectal cancer.7

Bottom line: living with obesity is riskier than having weight loss surgery.

Weight loss surgery is by far the most effective and most lasting treatment for obesity.

The Oliak Center for Weight Loss performs gastric sleeve surgery and gastric bypass surgery to treat the disease of obesity.

Unlike diet and exercise, weight loss surgery can lower the body weight set point. How? Gastric sleeve surgery and gastric bypass surgery change the biology that regulates body weight. The set point is changed to a new, lower, healthier weight.8

This is why the average weight loss surgery patient can lose a large amount of weight, and maintain significant  weight loss over time.*

* Individual patient results vary. 

“In my experience, weight loss after surgery makes almost everything better.

I’ve performed thousands of weight loss surgeries and I’ve seen how much surgery transforms my patients’ lives. Medical problems like diabetes and high blood pressure improve or in some cases, are eliminated. Joint pain, sleep, energy, and mobility improve. 

Patients report being able to be more active with their kids and families. And as a result? Patients are almost always super happy and only regret not having surgery sooner!”

- Dr. David Oliak

Dr-David-Oliak

For the obese population, weight loss after surgery also brings these measurable benefits:

  • Helps prevent, improve or resolve more than 40 obesity-related diseases or conditions including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, obstructive sleep apnea and several cancers.9
  • A 30-40% reduction in risk of premature death.9
  • A 56% reduction in heart-disease related deaths.9
  • A 60% reduction in cancer deaths (biggest reductions in breast and colon cancer).9
  • A 92% reduction in diabetes-related deaths.9

Weight loss surgery patients, on average, live longer lives and enjoy a significantly better quality of life.

Weight loss surgery is only the beginning of successful weight loss, however.

Dr. Oliak’s experience has been that successful weight loss is 50% the surgery (and having a good operation), and 50% behavior change.  

After surgery, you’ll still need to change your eating, exercise, and lifestyle habits for maximal success. But this time will be different, because your body weight set point will be lower. Your biology will be on your side. It will be much easier for you to make the changes your body wouldn’t let you make before. 

That’s why the Oliak Center for Weight Loss program prioritizes patient education, follow-up, and support to help our patients change their habits for good. 

Our focus on high-quality weight loss surgery and high-quality patient care has enabled us to achieve a record of excellent, industry-leading patient outcomes.*

*Individual patient results vary. Past performance is not a guarantee of future results.

Explore your bariatric surgery options

Gastric sleeve surgery

If you have at least 50 pounds to lose (BMI 30+), gastric sleeve surgery may be an option for you.

Gastric bypass surgery

If you have at least 75 pounds to lose (BMI 35 or greater), gastric bypass surgery might be an option for you.

Gastric revision surgery

If you’ve had prior weight loss surgery but not had a good result, a revision operation may be an option.

how to choose a weight loss surgeon

Which weight loss surgeon is right for you?

Download this guide of criteria you need when choosing the best weight loss surgeon for you.

To learn more about the weight loss surgery option that's right for you, attend a free, no-obligation educational consultation with Dr. Oliak in Brea or Torrance.

  1. “Doctors Need to Focus Less on a Patient's Weight.” Scientific American, Feb. 2020, https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/doctors-need-to-focus-less-on-a-patients-weight/
  2. Brown H. “It’s Time to Stop Telling Fat People to Become Thin.” Medical Examiner, Mar 24 2015, https://slate.com/technology/2015/03/diets-do-not-work-the-thin-evidence-that-losing-weight-makes-you-healthier.html
  3. Kaplan LM, Seeley RJ, Harris JL. Myth 1: Weight Can Be Reliably Controlled by Voluntarily Adjusting Energy Balance Through Diet and Exercise. Bariatric Times. 2012;9(4):12-13
  4. Hall KD, Kahan S. Maintenance of Lost Weight and Long-Term Management of Obesity. Med Clin North Am. 2018 Jan;102(1):183-197
  5. “Obesity in America.” American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, 10 Mar. 2016, https://asmbs.org/resources/obesity-in-america
  6. Adams KF, Schatzkin A, Harris TB, et al. Overweight, obesity, and mortality in a large prospective cohort of persons 50 to 71 years old. N Engl J Med. 2006;355(8):763–778
  7. Steele CB, Thomas CC, Henley SJ, et al. Vital Signs: Trends in Incidence of Cancers Associated with Overweight and Obesity - United States, 2005-2014. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2017;66(39):1052–1058
  8. Kaplan LM, Seeley RJ, Harris JL. Myth 2: Bariatric Surgery Induces Weight Loss Primarily by Mechanical Restriction and Nutrient Malabsorption. Bariatric Times. 2012;9(4):12-1
  9. “Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery.” American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, Nov. 2013, https://asmbs.org/resources/metabolic-and-bariatric-surgery