Bariatrics (Medical Weight Loss Clinic)
Dr. Montenegro is board certified in Family Medicine and has a special interest in Bariatric Medicine. He received specialized training in Idaho from Medical Bariatrics of America - founded by board certified Bariatric physician and a recognized national expert, Dr. Allen Rader.
Dr. Montenegro recently began a Medical Weight Loss Clinic at GRHS following Dr. Rader’s nationally renowned program.
What is a Bariatrician?
A bariatrician is a licensed physician (Doctor of Medicine [MD] or Doctor of Osteopathy [DO]) who, as a member of the American Society of Bariatric Physicians (ASBP), has received special training in bariatric medicine the medical treatment of overweight and obesity and its associated conditions. Bariatricians address the obese patient with a comprehensive program of diet and nutrition, exercise, lifestyle changes and, when indicated, the prescription of appetite suppressants and other appropriate medications. (The word bariatric stems from the Greek word barros, which translates as heavy or large.)
While any licensed physician can offer a medical weight loss program to patients, members of the ASBP have been exposed, through an extensive continuing medical education program, to specialized knowledge, tools and techniques to enable them to design specialized medical weight loss programs tailored to the needs of individual patients and modify the programs, if needed, as the treatment progresses. ASBP members are uniquely equipped to treat overweight and obesity and associated conditions.
A physician-supervised medical weight loss program may be the safest and wisest way to lose weight and maintain the loss. Overweight and obesity are frequently accompanied by other medical conditions, such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension, cancer and others. A bariatric physician is trained to detect and treat these conditions, which might go undetected and untreated in a non-medical weight loss program.
Should you see a Bariatrician for weight loss?
The National Institute of Health (NIH) has clearly presented guidelines as to whom and how people should try to lose weight. Their guidelines state the following:
A person should see a physician to lose weight if any of the following apply:
#1 You are trying to lose more that 15 – 20 pounds -and/or-
#2 You have any health conditions -and/or-
#3 You are taking any medications -and/or-
#4 You are planning to take medication to lose weight
What is a realistic expectation of my weight loss results?
How do you compare grapefruits and zebras? The question is fair but to try and answer it for every person is impossible. Have you noticed all the weight loss advertisements that show a person losing 100 pounds the small print that says “results not typical”?
Longer term loss and maintenance is actually more important than first month loss.
Overweight and obesity is a very complex medical disease. Very often, unrecognized or undiagnosed medical conditions are associated with the weight gain. These conditions may prevent weight loss or worse, be harmful to you if not recognized and treated. A medical weight loss specialist knows these metabolic conditions and can test for them.<
Why see a medical weight loss specialist?
A medical weight loss specialist has done extra study, training, and testing to become board certified in weight loss medicine.
As a specialist, weight loss with a Bariatrician is a total program, not just weight loss but also in weight maintenance. Bariatricians are experienced in helping overweight patients in the personal highs and lows during a weight loss program. They are experienced in the roadblocks to becoming successful in controlling the disease called overweight and obesity.
What tests do you include in your initial examination?
Dr. Montenegro does only the blood test and EKGs that he feels absolutely necessary.There are multiple causes of overweight and obesity that may be identified in some screening labs. Also, many consequences of overweight and obesity may cause abnormalities in blood testing. These must all be identified prior to beginning a weight loss program.
Most biochemical causes of being overweight and obese are fairly common. These can usually be identified with some basic lab testing. However a few causes of being overweight obesity are identified only with very unique and often very expensive lab testing.
How do you follow my progress?
Monitoring a patient active in a weight loss program is essential. The rate of weight loss, the amount of weight loss, vital signs, percent body fat and percent lean tissue, emotional stability, and biochemical health must all be considered as a patient is losing weight.
GRHS bariatric (medical weight loss) specialists and are specifically trained to know how and when to follow-up with patients. Several programs are available. Most patients are monitored monthly with visits in the office. Sometimes a person needs more frequent visits for closer observation, training, and motivation.
Training patients for weight loss maintenance begins on the very first visit. Information from national weight loss conferences, experiences from patients, experiences from his own weight loss maintenance, and information from the national health-care weight loss registry of 10,000 weight loss patients who have lost 30 or more pounds is used to help determine an appropriate maintenance plan for every patient.
We establish with the patient, weight guidelines to help every patient be prepared for relapses in their weight. All patients have a safety plan and know when to return to the office.
Patients that fall out of the program for what ever reason are contacted by the office on a reasonable basis for encouragement in maintaining their weight loss or are invited to return to the office for additional bariatric care.
