ypically performed on patients who are severely obese and have not been able to lose weight through the correct diet or exercise and is recommended if you have a BMI (body mass index) of 35 or more (or a have a serious medical condition that could improve through the surgery and weight loss). This type of surgery uses a laparoscope (“thin, lighted tube put through a cut (incision) in the belly to look at the abdominal organs” – Web MD, 2017) to place an adjustable belt around the upper section of the persons stomach to help regulate their eating habits. The gastric band is made of silicone and can be adjusted by adding saline to the band to fill (tightening). The access port is placed under the skin and is connected to the band, this is then used to either add or remove saline from the gastric bad (tighten or loosen)
Gastric Banding limits the amount of food the stomach can hold by restricting the overall size of the stomach, therefore, the food passage to the intestine is slowed down. Through this slow passage of food, the gut signals to the brain a feeling of fullness and satisfaction with the consumption of less food (as it takes the food a lot longer to travel through the digestive system). It allows the person to east much less while still enjoying the foods they like and feeling stratified with the meal, by portion control and hunger control.

LAPAROSCOPIC GASTRIC BANDING PROCEDURE
Three small incisions are made into the abdomen to allow for specialised devices (i.e. Laparoscope) and surgical instruments to pass through. The camera, laparoscope, allows for the surgeon to monitor the process of the surgery through high-resolution video that is transmitted onto the screen. The silicone gastric band is then inserted through one of the three small incisions, it is then placed around the upper part of the stomach (Figure 1) and is secured into place with sutures (stitches), this creates a small pouch with a narrow opening. An injection port, which is connect via tubing, is attached to the lap band and is placed onto the “muscle layer of the abdominal wall” (Dr. Kuzinkovas, 2017). This band can either be filled or emptied through the access port (Figure 1), however, immediately after surgery the band is left unfilled until the patient has recovered, and ca