Smoking and Gastric Bypass Surgery

We are   very strict  about smoking before surgery,  plain and simple smoking has been shown to  increase the incidence of pulmonary  complications,  postoperative infection rate, cardiovascular complications, healing time, just to name a few. We ask our patients to stop smoking at least one month  before surgery in addition to quitting long term.  The surgery should be part of your path to wellness, if you are start smoking again, you are sabotaging those efforts.

Hello,
Thank you for your question. Your surgeon is in good company and clearly has your best interest in mind. 
Smoking increases your chances of having life-threatening complications after the surgery, such as a leak in the new connection from your stomach to your intestines and blood clots (deep venous thrombosis) that can travel to your brain or hears resulting in stroke or heart attack. Months after surgery, smoking increases your chances of suffering an ulcer that can cause significant pain and even life-threatening bleeding.
Of course, these risks are on top of the increased risk of heart attack, stroke, and cancer in ALL people who smoke.
Quitting smoking will serve you well both before and after the surgery. Ask your surgeon to connect you with smoking cessation resources in your area.
Best wishes,
Dr. Moein

I do not operate on smokers.  This is for many reasons.  Smokers do not heal well and have a higher risks of leaks and developing ulcers.  Also if we are going to perform a surgery to increase your lifespan by 12 - 15 years, what is the purpose if you just die from lung cancer?