Can I Cure Lipedema with Diet and Exercise?
Is it possible to cure lipedema with diet and exercise? That’s a question many sufferers ask. Unfortunately, the answer is no. There is currently no cure for lipedema. There are treatments available that can help sufferers to manage the condition. But none of the available options are a cure. Lipedema continues to progress, and no amount of dieting or workouts can help.
Why Do People Believe a Healthy Lifestyle Can Cure Lipedema?
Many people have never heard of lipedema, even within the healthcare field. It’s rare for even those who are aware of it to understand it or its symptoms. Many lipedema signs are very similar to those seen in other conditions like obesity. It isn’t surprising that many doctors misdiagnose lipedema sufferers with obesity. Their doctors then tell them to diet and exercise to lose excess fat. Due to a lack of awareness of the condition, many sufferers don’t know they have lipedema. They simply believe they’re obese. Naturally, they take the same approach to treatment as they would for obesity – dieting and exercising more.
Why Won’t Dieting and Exercising Help?
Normal fat and lipedema fat are very different from each other. The biggest difference is that lipedema fat doesn’t respond to usual weight loss methods. Any weight a sufferer loses will be from unaffected areas such as the torso. That can make the disproportion between their upper and lower bodies look even worse.
Healthy eating and regularly working out won’t help eliminate any lipedema fat. Nevertheless, it can help in other ways. It can assist sufferers in improving their overall well-being so they don’t develop other comorbidities like hypertension and diabetes. Unfortunately, exercising can become very difficult as the condition advances because the extra bulk makes movement painful and challenging.
Also Read – Is a Special Lipedema Diet the Answer?
How Can Lipedema Be Cured?
There is no cure for lipedema. Nevertheless, there are treatments available to help sufferers manage their condition. Patients can choose either a conservative or surgical approach to the disease.
Conservative treatments for lipedema include wearing compression garments and undergoing regular manual lymphatic drainage massage. They also include living a long-term healthy lifestyle. These treatments bring some short-term relief from the pain and discomfort of lipedema. However, the condition worsens over time due to its progressive nature.
Surgery is the other treatment option for lipedema. Although some patients worry about undergoing surgery, it’s the best solution for long-term relief.
What Does Lipedema Surgery Involve?
Liposuction is a surgical procedure to treat lipedema that permanently removes the fat cells from the affected areas. Unlike cosmetic liposuction, though, the focus isn’t on flawless perfection. The aim is to help improve the patient’s mobility and reduce their pain.
Surgeons carry out this procedure with the patient under a local anesthetic. They make incisions in the affected areas, pass a cannula through, and use it to break up the fat. They then suction the fat out. The result is long-lasting relief from pain while also improving mobility. As an added advantage, surgeons can restore a more proportionate appearance to the patient’s body. That means patients enjoy a far better quality of life after their procedure.
If you’ve tried to cure lipedema with diet and exercise and failed, seek a consultation with Dr. Su at ArtLipo. He can help you find relief through his surgical approach.
