Leeds woman has to eat 5,000 calories a day after gastric op goes wrong

A woman from Leeds has talked about how she has to eat 5,000 calories a day to stay alive after her gastric bypass went wrong.

Pub landlady Julie Dunbar, 51, lost 14 stone in a year when she underwent the operation - taking her from 20 stone to just six stone within 12 months. A rare complication in the surgery means her body is so skeletal she is now severely malnourished and has to eat the vast amount of food just to keep her alive.

Ms Dunbar calls her new diet a "full-time job", saying that she is constantly eating. She also claims to spend around £200 a week on items such as blocks of cheese, packets of biscuits, nuts, fruit, cake, sweets and curry.

Talking about the situation to dailymail.co.uk, she said: "It was enjoyable at first, but now it's a pain and I hate it. Even if I don't feel like it I still really need to eat."

According to spirehealthcare.com there are 700,000 people in the UK who are classed as morbidly obese, due to the fact that they have a body mass index (BMI) of over 40. As well as trying gastric surgery, there are also other options which could aid weight loss such as healthy eating and counselling courses.

Ms Dunbar underwent two more operations last year to increase her stomach size, however nothing more can be done and she must eat the vast amount of food to keep her at a healthy eight stone.