# Weight Loss / Extra Skin **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 24, 2004, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weight-loss-extra-skin/230817 "2004-02-24T03:01:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Ruiniform](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9de053/32.png) [@Ruiniform](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruiniform)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2004, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weight-loss-extra-skin/230817/1 "2004-02-24T03:01:38Z")
What’s the deal with this? Does someone have to be morbidly obese for this to happen, or can anyone losing a good amount of weight be in danger of this? Who is and who’s not susceptible? What steps can be taken to prevent it? ---
**Author:** ![Deadly\_Nightlight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Deadly\_Nightlight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Deadly_Nightlight)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2004, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weight-loss-extra-skin/230817/2 "2004-02-24T05:06:35Z")
> [@Ruiniform](#): > > What’s the deal with this? Does someone have to be morbidly obese for this to happen, or can anyone losing a good amount of weight be in danger of this? Who is and who’s not susceptible? What steps can be taken to prevent it? I have been told that drinking alot of water helps with this. In my own personal experience, exercise helps alot. Having lost more than 100 now, I am not seeing alot of sag. I cannot tell you what is helping me though. I take a multi vitamin, drink tons of water, and exercise. ---
**Author:** ![pokey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ebca7d/32.png) [@pokey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pokey)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2004, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weight-loss-extra-skin/230817/3 "2004-02-24T05:10:38Z")
I think it happens to people who aren’t obese too because I noticed on Survivor when everyone had to run around after not eating their skin was sliding around in a scary manner. I lost about 70lbs in a year once and my skin was weird on my stomach for about 2 years after. I’m not sure why it went back to normal. I just went to play with it one day and it wasn’t there. When I first lost the weight I did millions of crunches to try to make my stomach lift up again. It wasn’t too bad, really, but it was like a wrinkle from hipbone to hip bone. Very unsightly and disturbing! For a while I tried taking cooler showers too. I put lotion on it. Nothing worked. Then I lost interest in it and now it’s gone. Who knows? Maybe it missed the attention. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2004, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weight-loss-extra-skin/230817/4 "2004-02-24T13:24:19Z")
I think it has to do with the type of skin and type of fat (hard or fluffy) you have. Oprah once said she never had a problem with loose skin, and she’s probably gained and dropped a thousand pounds over the years. ---
**Author:** ![plnnr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@plnnr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plnnr)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2004, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weight-loss-extra-skin/230817/5 "2004-02-24T13:33:39Z")
Discovery Health Channel had a show about this very subject a few weeks ago. The subject was a woman in England who had lost in excess of 300 pounds and she wanted to have all the excess skin removed. IIRC, they removed about a third of entire skin surface. It took about 12 hours of surgery, is considered cosmetic and wasn’t covered by her insurance. Post op recovery took about a year. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2004, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weight-loss-extra-skin/230817/6 "2004-02-24T13:42:54Z")
> [@Kalhoun](#): > > I think it has to do with the type of skin and type of fat (hard or fluffy) you have. Oprah once said she never had a problem with loose skin, and she’s probably gained and dropped a thousand pounds over the years. That made me laugh. Is every pound different or is it the same 100 pounds put on…then taken off…then put on … With regard to the OP, we were talking about this recently at work. A guy there has had stomach surgery and has lost over 140 pounds. I checked things out and it seems that, depending on age, skin elasticity and weight lost, surgery is sometimes the only solution. So to avoid it: lose the weight as young as you can (improved skin elasticity) do it nice and slowly (skin adjusts as weight falls) surgical correction if necessary A google of “excess skin” and/or “loose skin” will turn up plenty of illustrative pictures. As I said I’ve already seen them.