by 9, she weighed 250. last month, at 14, she topped out at 445 pounds. does it hurt when people stare at you? yes. the first thing goes through their mind is why is she so fat? like oh, my god, she s so fast, why doesn t she just hop on a treadmill? maria s parents are overweight, too. and they admit they don t eat healthy foods. a few years back, maria pleaded with her mother to find a doctor willing to do weight loss surgery on teenagers. their search led here to washington, d.c. and dr. evan nadler. i had to help her. she was 440 pounds and going nowhere except for gaining more weight. maria was 12 and already prediabetic. her bmi, which is a measurement we use to determine how obese someone is, put her in the highest risk category.
surgery for you, you felt. yes. even so, some critics still argue, not enough is known about possible long term come me indications. i fully agree we need to study this more. but i don t think it is fair to the marias of the world to keep them from having this procedure based on their age alone. in his own study, dr. nadler followed 41 teenagers for two years after weight loss surgery. he said they lost half their excess body weight and their health had improved. last month, maria had an experimental procedure known as a gastrectomy. 80% of her stomach was removed including the area that took away her hormones. i wasn t hung rix normally i would have been starving. she has already lost 45 pounds and trimmed two inches off her waist. she is off junk food, getting regular exercise. and eating a high-protein diet.
and i knew this was my only option to do them. this was a life or death surgery for you, you felt. yes. even so, some critics still argue, not enough is known about possible long-term complications. i fully agree we need to study this more. but i don t think it is fair to the marias of the world to keep them from having this procedure based on their age alone. in his own study, dr. nadler followed 41 teenagers for two years after weight loss surgery. he said they lost half their excess body weight and their health had improved. last month, maria had an experimental procedure known as a gastrectomy. 80% of her stomach was removed including the area that makes her appetite hormones. i wasn t hungry after the surgery. normally, i would have been
last month, at 14, she topped out at 445 pounds. does it hurt when people stare at you? yes. the first thing goes through their mind is why is she so fat? like oh, my god, why is she so fat? why doesn t she just hop on a treadmill? maria s parents are overweight, too. and ad military they don t eat healthy foods. maria has always been a junk food junky. diets haven t worked. a few years back, maria pleaded with her mother to find a doctor willing to do weight loss surgery on teenagers will their search led here in washington, d.c. and dr. evan nadler. i had to help her. she was 440 pounds and going nowhere except for gaining more weight. maria was 12 and already prediabetic. her bmi, a measurement we use to determine how obese someone is, put her in the highest risk category. not just morbidly obese but actually two categories higher
larry: quickly. i think if you had a sick child and your child came to you and said i need help, you would not respond with, well, the family cannot afford to get you well. they have shown it will redue the deficit. we re going to keep working to make sure we don t overspend. it is a tough job. americans are tough as nails. we can get it done. larry: we have not heard the last of this. we thank all four for being with us. another edition of larry king live. another quiet interlude in your daily respect for the media. we shall return tomorrow. captions by vitac www.vitac.com keeping them honest on health care reform. who is new moves to kill the bill and new moves by the presidentd democrats to sell it. the latest ahead. also with health in the headlines arresting teen girl struggle with weight. 14 years old, more th 400 pounds. her fight to lose the weight. and crime and punishment tonight. seven bodies in a single day. dozens a week. americans also getting k