Women who have undergone a gastric bypass surgery in order to lose weight, feel usually healthier compared to the pre-OP time. When the thought of having children comes to mind, they often have questions regarding their gastric bypass surgery and pregnancy.

Can I Become Pregnant After a Gastric Bypass ?

There is no other answer to this question than simply: “Yes”. When you don’t have any complications after your gastric bypass operation your body is actually healthier than before. Obese woman often have problems with their menstrual cycle which is usually in order after the operation. In many cases massive fat deposits around the ovaries might disable the ability to conceive before the operation. Therefore many women are even more fertile to become pregnant after a Gastric Bypass OP.

How Long Should I Wait to Try Becoming Pregnant?

Generally speaking, you should wait until you and your body are used to the new life and there are no complications anymore to expect. 1.5 years is a good mark to go for. However, some women reach their goal in less time and have no problems whatsoever, others need to lose much more weight and need a longer time for their body to adjust to the new circumstances. Successful pregnancies are reported in as little as two month after the surgery, but this is not advisable. In any case you should get in touch with your obstetrician and the doctor who guided you through the gastric bypass surgery.

Can I consume enough food for me and my baby?

More than 75% of women who undergone a Gastric Bypass Surgery have absolutely no problems with the food intake for themselves and their unborn child. However, there is a fraction which is not able to eat enough and/or absorb the needed amount of nutrition for them and their baby. In those most of those cases an intravenous nutrition is needed to keep the pregnancy without complications. This is especially important during the last 3 month of the pregnancy when the fetus grows the fastest.

There is also no problem to take prenatal vitamins. you should bear in mind that the vitamin absorption after a Gastric Bypass operation is much smaller than pre-OP. Therefore you should talk to your bariatric surgeon and follow his advices. He will be able to give you a detailed plan about your prenatal vitamin intake.

Can I Breastfeed my Baby?

There is no reason why you should not be able to breastfeed after weight loss operation, unless you undergone additional cosmetically surgeries, for example to lift up your breast. In this case you should discuss this issue with your cosmetic surgeon before undergoing that kind of operation.

What Complications are Common for Pregnancy after a Gastric Bypass?

The risks of complications are always slightly higher if a person undergone any kind of internal operation. However, the risks compared to a pregnancy before the gastric bypass surgery are actually smaller. Patients have a healthier lifestyle after the OP and the weight loss goes along with a better general health. If you are healthy and feel much better after the OP your risk is not much bigger than those of women without a weight loss operation.

There is a difference in pregnancy screening, though. Due to the nature of Gastric Bypass operations you will need more blood tests. Those tests are not necessarily to monitor your pregnancy but to observe and control nutritional effects which come along with the pregnancy.

A pregnancy after a Gastric Bypass surgery is in most cases no problem, as long you monitor your body carefully and follow all directions your obstetrician, surgeon and other qualified advisers give you.