He will continue to lose weight each week, according to doctors.
A morbidly obese 10-year-old boy in Indonesia, who weighed 423 pounds, has dropped more than 40 pounds after undergoing weight loss surgery.
Arya Permana of West Java underwent bariatric surgery, which reduces a person’s stomach size, in April and has since lost 44 pounds.
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Doctors put the boy on a strict diet beginning four months before his surgery that consisted of fruits and vegetables. He also began going on daily walks and swimming regularly.
The new regimen helped him lose almost 20 pounds, but his parents Rokayah, 36, and her husband Ade Somantri then urged doctors to perform a bariatric surgery on their son to save his life.
“He has now lost 20 kilos (44 pounds)," Rokayah said. "We are happy and relieved but he is still overweight for his age. We are hoping that one day he will lose all the extra weight and be as healthy as other children at his class."
Before the diet and surgery, Arya wore a sarong around his body because clothes could not fit him, and he ate two full meals five times a day.
His surgery will now cause his stomach to have the full satiety effect while eating smaller portions, according to doctors.
"He still feels hungry but I think his stomach is not able to receive large amount of food. Each time he tries to overeat, he throws up,” Rokayah told Caters News. "He drinks milk and eats just one portion at a time, unlike before, when he could easily eat meals meant for three adults."
Bariatric surgery is usually recommended for people aged 18-65 years with a body mass index of more than 35, but Dr. Handy Wing, a surgeon from the Omni Hospital, said that because Arya was morbidly obese, it was important for him to lose weight as he was prone to heart disease, diabetes and breathing disorders.
"In certain cases, such as Arya, his body mass index was 80 and he required a special handler to improve the quality of his life better,” Wing said. “If he was not immediately given the right medical treatment, Arya could have been exposed to the above complications, worse, even death.”
Every week Arya will lose weight, according to his doctors, and they hope in a year the 372 pound boy will be under 220 pounds.
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