Research

Energy balance

Sleeve Gastrectomy (SG) in adolescents results in a blunted reduction in Resting Energy Expenditure (REE) relative to total body weight loss compared to lifestyle-induced weight loss, potentially aiding long-term weight maintenance.

For adolescents with severe obesity, Sleeve Gastrectomy appears to preserve metabolic rate better than lifestyle-induced weight loss, which typically causes a sharp drop in energy expenditure. This 'blunting' of metabolic adaptation may help explain why surgery often leads to more sustained weight loss compared to diet and exercise alone.

ModerateSupportsMEDIUM confidence
Interestingly, our cohort who underwent SG, lost a similar percentage of body weight to the biggest loser participants, however had a far lesser decrease in REE after 12 months. The smaller reduction in energy expenditure after SG or a 'blunting' of adaptive metabolic change may be an additional mechanism to explain how SG is more effective as a weight loss strategy than conventional diet/exercise weight loss over time.
Frances Rickard et al. · Frontiers in Pediatrics · 2019

Why this rating

Small longitudinal cohort (N=12) compared against a historical adult cohort ('The Biggest Loser'), limiting direct comparability.

Source

Comparison of Measured and Estimated Resting Energy Expenditure in Adolescents and Young Adults With Severe Obesity Before and 1 Year After Sleeve Gastrectomy

Frances Rickard et al. · Frontiers in Pediatrics · 2019

DOI 10.3389/fped.2019.00037

cross_sectional · n=64Cited 9×
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DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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