Have to lose 10% before WLS -anyone ever tried Fullbars?

ReJon2 · 06-12-2009, 02:33 PM

I'm in the process of approval for WLS but the ignorant insurance company is saying I have to lose 10% of my weight before they will approve. If I could lose 10% don't they think I would have done so already!! My BMI is 38 right now but I have co-morbidities so I'm under consideration. I saw the commercial for fullbars and I was wondering if anyone had tried them and if they worked. I'm also wondering... insurance says with co morbidities I can have surgery if my BMI is 37 or higher. If I do manage to lose the 10% or more, what if this puts me under 37 BMI? Will I not be approved? I would love to lose so much before the surgery that I wouldn't have to have it!

rosemarys_babee · 06-14-2009, 02:58 AM

Hey Becca, my doctor required that I lose 7.5% of my body weight before she would do surgery on me, so I feel your pain. All of those questions are really good, but I think you should be asking your insurance company those questions. I think I spent three hours on the phone with mine while we were trying to get some issues straightened out with the doctor's office. I always did think it should be classified as cruel and unusual punishment for insurance companies to require weight loss for having weight loss surgery. As far as the fullbars go, I have never tried them but I went to their website to check them out. I think they are expensive and for the calories in one of those I could have the breakfast I was having prior to surgery. So, I don't think they are worth it, but that's a decision you have to make. Good Luck!!!

TDoern · 06-16-2009, 07:48 PM

Becca - believe it or not from what I've read it's quite common for surgeons to ask that their patients lose a certain amount of weight prior to weight loss surgery. I can't give you each doctors/insurance companies reasons but for some it's as simple as finding out those that are committed to the life change and those that aren't.

What I mean by this is that your life changes so dramatically after surgery (or it should) that some people simply can't handle the changes they need to make. Believe it or not losing 10% of your body weight is hard yes, but it's possible. Keeping the weight off was always the hardest part for me.

I personally advise avoiding anything that seems to easy. My advise would be to take your post op guidelines for your surgeon and work a diet around that. For example if you are having the Roux-en-Y (RNY) surgery your post op life will revolve around protein and water. Very similar (at least in my opinion) to the atkins diet, except much stricter. For example, my post op requirements required two protein shakes of at least 35g protein for two meals a day, and then one regular meal until you reach goal weight. So trying something close to that might work. I was also required to get in at least 64oz of water each day, so that would be a start. Carbs, due to dumping and just that they don't do anything for your body really nutritionally, were out.

Not sure if this answers your question or helps, but that's some of it. As far as the "if you lose the weight and then don't meet the BMI requirements" thing I would definitely call the insurance company on that one.

Don't forget that some surgeons require the same type of weight loss, six month doctor supervised diets, and worse prior to surgery, so 10% weight loss while difficult could be worse.

saturnrider · 07-10-2009, 12:05 AM

I tried the fullbars... first their really disgusting and hard to get down without wanting to throwup... second their way too expensive and about 230 cals (if i'm remembering correctly) each...

so far i have found that water aerobics have been my best exercise & I lost 16lbs in about 3 months but had a platue and stopped going & gained twice that back and while I'm rejoining the class I fell that the best way is to do the lab band so hopefully i can get approval on it soon but i deff don't recommend the fullbars

goddess819 · 07-10-2009, 04:28 PM

GL getting the weight off prior to WLS approval. Your surgeon and insurance company should use your start weight and BMI of 38 to approve or not for surgery, not what your end weight/BMI is.