New research finds significant health benefits associated with weight loss surgery in people with obesity.

Weight loss surgery may have a host of beneficial effects in people with obesity.

More than 1 in 3 adults in the United States are overweight or have obesity, according to data from 2013–2014.

Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, and stroke are only some of the complications associated with obesity.

New research presented at the European Society of Cardiology Congress, which takes place, this year, in Paris, France, suggests that bariatric, or weight loss, surgery can reduce the risk of premature mortality and cardiovascular problems more than standard medical care.

Dr. Steven Nissen, Chief Academic Officer of the Heart & Vascular Institute at the Cleveland Clinic, in Ohio, is the senior author of the study, which also appears in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

A 40% lower risk of cardiovascular events

Dr. Nissen and the team looked at data from 13,722 participants, 2,287 of whom had obesity and type 2 diabetes and had undergone weight loss surgery. The researchers compared data from this group with information from 11,435 matched controls who had only received standard medical care.

Of the 2,287 participants who underwent weight loss surgery, 75% had a body mass index (BMI) of 40 or above, which constitutes “extreme obesity.” The minimum BMI in the group was 30, which is the lower threshold for obesity.