Weight Loss Surgery Improves Women’s Sex Lives

Close to 70% of women who have weight loss surgery see improvements in their sex lives within six months after surgery. This is claimed in a new study presented at the annual meeting of the American Society for Metabolic & Bariatric Surgery.

Exactly why the women’s sex lives improved afer undergoing surgery is not yet fully understood, but several factors, such as improved body image and mood, as well as changes in their hormonal profile probably play a role. Study researcher Dale Bond, PhD and assistant professor of psychiatry and human behavior at Miriam Hospital Weight Control and Diabetes Research Center at the Brown University Medical School, says that women can experience improvements in sexual function postoperatively, and this does not solely depend on the amount of weight loss. In the study, the women undergoing weight loss surgery reported improvements in their sexual desire, arousal, ability to achieve orgasm and higher satisfaction levels. “The greater their sexual problems before surgery, the greater the improvement afterward”, says Bond.

The study was performed on 54 women who all completed questionnaires assessing their sexual function before and after surgery. The women were on average 100 pounds or more overweight before their surgery. 62% of the women reported some level of sexual dysfunction before their surgery, and after the surgery, 68% were no longer experiencing sexual problems! The new findings also held regardless of whether women had gastric bypass surgery or Lap-Band surgery.

“We really don’t think of sexual dysfunction as a comorbidity of obesity, but this suggests that improvements in sex life are an additional benefit that will matter to women who have the greatest sexual function impairment. Sexuality is an important and a distinct aspect of quality of life.”

This new study also sheds light on some of the quality-of-life issues affecting people who are overweight or obese. Shanu N. Kothari, MD and bariatric surgeon at Gundersen Lutheran in La Crosse, Wisconsin, says; “We focus on so many obesity-related comorbid conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes, and sleep apnea that we sometimes lose sight of the bigger picture, including quality-of-life issues. Sexual dysfunction is one of the hidden comorbid conditions that can improve with surgery.

Sexual function is just one aspect on improvements in life with a bariatric surgery. Others are improvements in infertility and reductions in complications related to pregnancy in women who have bariatric surgery. Even though no similar studies have been performed on men yet, experts are sure that they will reap similar benefits with improvements in energry, drive and function.

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