Woman warns gastic bypass won't address self-esteem issues

A woman who had a gastric bypass in order to lose weight has warned others that it won't cure their self-esteem issues - meaning after they lose the weight as a result of the surgery, they risk putting it back on again.

This is exactly what happened to Lana Harber, who lost eight stone after her gastric bypass surgery. However, she has now started to put the weight back on, which she blames partly on deep-rooted psychological issues.

"I blame no-one but myself, but my experiences have made me realise that gastric operations, which are often viewed as a quick fix, don't make any difference if the root causes of obesity aren't addressed," she explained to dailymail.co.uk. "I've had low self-esteem rooted in difficult experiences from my childhood that have caused me to comfort eat over the years."

Ms Harber also suffers from polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), which makes weight loss even more harder for her, but she puts her weight gain down to comfort eating. She now weighs 14st but is confident she can lose three stone, as she is undergoing counselling to deal with her self-esteem issues and has started eating healthily again.

Her story comes after news that England is experiencing an obesity crisis, as new data reveals that over three-quarters of Brits are now either overweight or obese, reports metro.co.uk.

Professor Kevin Fenton, director of health and wellbeing at Public Health England (PHE), said that obesity is a complex issue and needs to be tackled at all levels. He added that there is no quick fix, but the new data from PHE will help local areas track how well their progress is going in terms of tackling obesity.