Obalon is a swallowable balloon that takes up space in the stomach to help people eat less and lose weight. This nonsurgical, noninvasive procedure, which is FDA-approved for people with a BMI of 30 to 40, takes just 10 minutes. You swallow a capsule attached to a thin tube, and your doctor inflates the balloon with gas, causing it to swell in your stomach to about the size of a small orange. Two more balloons are ingested, in two-week increments, and the balloons remain in your stomach for six months—at which point they’re removed in an endoscopic procedure.Â
The manufacturer claims you can lose up to 50 pounds when the procedure is combined with moderate diet and exercise. To help keep you on track, it provides services such as a calorie tracker, a weight tracker, online support groups, and nutritionist support.
Pros
Cons
This procedure is typically not covered by insurance.
Some patients do report significant weight loss, though reviews on RealSelf are mixed. Some experts say gastric balloons aren’t effective long-term solutions. “The main problem with the gastric balloons is that they have to be removed after six months—after which you may regain all the weight you lost,” says Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, bariatric surgeon Dr. Mark Pleatman in a RealSelf Q&A. “The idea is that you kick-start your weight loss with the balloon and then go the rest of the way on your own. This strategy rarely works.”Â
However, other RealSelf members and doctors have had success with gastric balloons. “I have successfully completed six months of Obalon and have lost 30 pounds. Pros are, obviously, the weight loss and the confidence I have in my body now. I’ve learned to portion my sizes and to make better decisions,” says one RealSelf member. Dr. Michael Dunn, a physician in Gilbert, Arizona, agrees that the procedure can be successful. “The Obalon Balloon system is changing the lives of my patients,” he says in a RealSelf Q&A.
Updated June 13, 2023