Obesity Cherry Healey: Old Before My Time

# I got this feeling on a summer day when you were gone

# I crashed my car into the bridge

# I watched, I let it burn... #

We all know that drinking, drugs and fast food are bad for you..

The bit that I like the most is the skin.

..but when it comes to young Brits,

nothing gets in the way of a good time.

Do you think you're invincible Oh, aye, yeah!

My motto is, you only live once

There are health consequences, but... Worry about them later!

Why dwell on something you may not get? Who cares?

# I don't care

# I love it... #

But, these days, a life of excess isn't just leaving young

people hungover, it's accelerating their age.

I can't even walk t'shop.

You know, like a 90-year-old woman or summat.

Hit by chronic conditions usually the preserve of pensioners...

She's got no quality of life at the moment.

Walking for her is a problem.

..their young bodies and minds are ready for retirement.

I'll always walk into a room to go and get something

and then wonder why I've gone and done it. It makes you feel old.

It makes you feel, "What's going on?"

I'm on a ward with people who are 40 years older than me

and probably are fitter than me

You know, I struggle to walk properly.

That young person mentality of "I'm going to live for ever."

You don't think of the ramifications it's going to have on your body

Is there any hope for their prematurely old bodies...

# I love it! #

I didn't even think that I could damage my heart through taking drugs.

Deep breath, right in, right in

My lungs feel like they're actually collapsing.

They have got the lungs of an old man.

..or are they past the point of no return?

Having to cope with gout and liver

and heart problems in your 20s is kind of unbelievable.

She's very young. She has already gone into super-obesity.

The likelihood is it will shorten her life 15 years.

become old before their time.

Do you think you can stop? Yeah

It's just going to take a hell of a lot of willpower.

# I love it. #

In tonight's film, I'm going to meet young people whose bodies

have aged because of their excessive eating.

I was eating enough for myself and somebody else.

If I don't do something quick about my weight, I could die.

I'll discover how they got so out of shape

and the chronic conditions that have hit them 30 years too soon.

They will get arthritis,

type 2 diabetes, liver disease, at a much younger age.

That genuinely petrifies me,

the fact that I will die of a heart attack.

And I'm going to see them

undergo radical surgery to save both their youth and their lives.

They are sewing...

Her bowel is being cut under her stomach.

And it is...really gross.

Clair is a 30-year-old mum-of-two from Telford whose size is

fast-forwarding her to an early grave.

Clair was never a skinny child

but a combination of steroids after a bout of pneumonia

and the stress of divorce have seen her balloon to 20 stone.

# You never wanna see me like this... #

Clair now has all manner of obesity-related illnesses

and is on more medication than your average OAP.

It feels as though I spend half of my day taking medication.

I take up to 30 tablets a day.

I take omeprazole for acid reflux,

fluoxetine for depression,

montelukast as part of my asthma control,

prednisolone, which is a steroid,

just to give my lungs a bit of a back-up.

Because I take that, I have to take alendronic acid,

which helps put coating on your bones,

because the steroids can make your bones brittle.

I take allopurinol for gout.

So, yeah, it's quite a routine in the morning.

And at night as well.

# Gimme your, gimme your, gimme your attention, baby... #

Gout is an acute form of arthritis,

causing painful inflammation of the joints.

It's something that is very rare in premenopausal women.

A recent study found that people who were obese as young adults

developed gout symptoms 11 years earlier than those of normal weight.

Clair's dodgy joints and difficulty breathing means she can't

even play with her kids, so Granny Teresa has to step in instead.

Obviously, being big

and running around isn't the best thing in the world.

The joint pains that I get if I've exerted myself carrying

a lot of weight, you just make yourself tired.

# Let me treasure you

# Oh, whoa, ohhhh! #

Dinner.

Clair's weight gain has dramatically shortened her life expectancy.

I definitely feel old. Grandad is 85.

But I might never get to that age.

Obesity can cause a whole host of health problems

and knock years off your life.

Extra weight can cause joint areas to become painful

and lead to arthritis.

Extra fat around the abdomen can lead to intestinal

problems like constipation, cancer and diabetes.

Fat can build up in liver cells causing inflammation

and eventually liver disease.

It can cause high blood pressure and blocked arteries,

leading to heart attacks and strokes.

Obesity can also result in low self esteem and often trigger depression.

As a last resort,

Clair is turning to the most extreme form of weight loss surgery.

She's having a gastric bypass, an irreversible operation.

Feeling nervous now it's got close to going.

I'm going to put my body through a lot to have it done.

But I know it's for the greater good.

Ah, are you going to jump?

Are you ready then, Clair?

'It's not for vanity,

'not for the sake of wanting to be a size 10 or what other people think.

'It's for health reasons.'

(I...love...you.)

I'll speak to you tomorrow.

For Clair's mum, it's not the first time her daughter's life

has been in the balance.

'When I was pregnant with Clair I was seriously ill.

'My body was rejecting her.'

And I nearly lost her so many times then.

If you've seen your daughter in resuscitation, you know,

and they're really fighting for her,

you've already had an inside picture on what could go wrong.

I wish somebody could take them out my head.

# My salvation... #

I'm travelling to Shrewsbury to meet

Clair on the morning of her procedure.

She's a really young woman who is having a gastric bypass.

I've always associated things like that with much older people.

She's got two gorgeous sons and I think she just really,

really wants to change her life

# I just know I know, I know, I know, I know

# That you're gonna be OK anyway .. #

I'm Cherry, lovely to meet you Nice to meet you.

How long have you been waiting for this?

It's been quite a long road to get here.

I fell ill three years ago and was put on a high dose of steroids

and put on a lot of weight in the first 12 months.

Overall, I think I've put on about six stone.

Gosh, in the space of what time

Well, in a year, really, wasn't it? Yeah.

The weight went on so quickly that it tore all the skin under my arms

Oh, my gosh!

And was that just the steroids or was your lifestyle

kind of contributing to that? The steroids increase your appetite

And what kind of things, you know, did you find were helping? Crisps.

Crisps is the biggest thing, because I could hide crisps from everybody.

Because the boys, obviously, they love their snacky stuff as well.

And if one minute the bag is full and the next minute it's empty

"Oh, it wasn't me. I didn't eat them all, it was them," kind of thing.

'Clair knows she is facing a high-risk operation.

'A gastric bypass carries a one-in-five chance of blood clots

'or internal bleeding, complications which could potentially kill her.'

What are the main things that worry you?

I think yesterday it kind of hit me. The risks side of things hit me

And I found it really hard when it was time for the boys to go.

Just that I had a brief flicker of

"This could be the last time that I see them."

Can I get you into the theatre now then, please? Yeah.

OK. I'll let you have some peace. Thank you. Thank you very much

Good luck. Thank you. All right

This is major surgery.

She has obviously been through a massive emotional journey,

really nervous, aware of the huge risks.

Her mum is clearly nervous as well.

She is living the life of a much, much older person

and she calls today her second birthday because, after this,

she's going to have a very, very different new life,

full of energy and...

..yeah, feeling like a young woman again.

In the last five years, gastric bypasses have increased sixfold

They now cost the NHS over ?50 million a year.

And I have been truly shocked to find out that

kids as young as 15 are now having invasive weight loss surgery.

But less radical surgery is also booming

for people like 28-year-old Tom, from Surrey.

He is due to have a gastric balloon fitted at St Thomas' Hospital

in London.

It's a new procedure that is by no means a walk in the park,

but at least there's no going under the knife.

Come through, Tom. Please, take a seat there.

Hard to believe, but just six months ago, he weighed in at 22 stone

save his liver from progressing into nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.

It's now estimated around half a million children under 15 suffer

from this obesity-related condition, and the number is set to rocket

When I was younger, what I'm eating,

"Is it good for me, is it bad for me?" doesn't come into your mind.

You know, that young person mentality of "I'm going to live for ever.

You think you can eat, you know, you can

sit there and eat a whole chocolate cake or you can sit

there and eat a whole pizza to yourself, and you don't think

about the ramifications that it s going to have on your body.

Tom started putting on weight six years ago after he was prescribed

steroids to treat Crohn's disease - an inflammation of the bowel.

You feel like you need more food.

I was eating enough for myself and somebody else, pretty much

You get into a depression, you need something to uplift you.

And food was definitely...

Not just eating the food, but preparing it as well.

You know, I find that very therapeutic.

After a routine blood test, Tom s liver was showing signs of damage.

Now his liver is on borrowed time,

and it's not booze that is to blame, it's his diet.

It was mainly greasy kind of foods like eggs and bacon, chips,

sausages, burgers, pizzas.

Yeah, just anything that has a high fat content in it.

Incredibly, it's not alcohol

but obesity that is now the biggest cause of liver disease in the UK.

Nonalcoholic liver disease occurs when excess fat builds up

inside liver cells, making the liver inflamed.

When the body tries to repair itself, scar tissue builds up

and the liver develops a rough surface -

a condition known as cirrhosis which, left unchecked, can be fatal.

to help shed the fat around his liver.

Now the second stage of his treatment is on the horizon,

he is meeting old friend Liz for some support.

Once I hit that 14 stone, hopefully it won't be as bad as last time

Because last time, it was really, really bad.

The first night I came home,

I didn't sleep because I was just being sick so much.

But I'm hoping that because I had it done before,

my stomach won't react as badly as it did before. Yeah.

I've so noticed how you do look significantly different.

No, no, same. I noticed it as well. Even, like...

It's a bit of a weird way to judge it, but, like, bath water.

I've always had my bath set to a certain level.

When I was overweight, I'd get in and it would go to a certain height.

Now I get in and it's a quarter of that height.

You know, I'm proud of you for doing that, so hopefully in a year,

you'll look very different and we'll go out and celebrate

Yeah, definitely.

'When Tom was at his largest,

'he definitely wasn't living the life of someone in their mid-20s.'

He was living the life of, you know,

I guess someone who was much older and almost like a recluse.

Somebody who had no friends.

And he had friends, he had lots of friends,

but he just didn't communicate He often wouldn't answer his phone.

He just wasn't living his life at all.

I mean, it's like his life had almost been cut short.

Once I'm done with this,

I will never let my weight get back up to what it was, because...

Well, you know, I've seen the struggle, I've seen the pain,

I've seen the discomfort that I've had to go through.

I haven't just seen it, I've felt it.

At the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital, I'm sitting in on a major operation,

which could add years to Clair's life.

That yellow looks great on you

'There are an estimated 110,00 super-obese people in Britain.

How are you feeling? OK. Yeah? Yeah. I'm good to go.

'Clair's obesity has given her premature gout, bone weakness,

'asthma and sleep apnoea.

'To reduce these conditions,

'she's having an irreversible gastric bypass.'

What are the major things in your life that you want to be

different after the surgery?

That I can get active and run around with the boys

and take them swimming and...

do all the things that I can't do now.

And what about for you as a 30-year-old young woman?

Do you know, I think the last three years have been that long that

I've forgotten what it is to be my age, I think.

Yeah.

'There's no getting away from the risk,

'but if the operation is successful, Clair's life could be transformed.'

# Got my bad baby by my heavenly side

# I know if I go

# I'll die happy tonight... #

They're not messing about with that kit.

Clair is being operated on by Mr Sigurdsson,

the lead bariatric surgeon

at the hospital, with nearly 1, 00 gastric bypasses under his belt

How old is the youngest person you have operated on?

18 years old. Gosh. Yeah.

So would you say that for some patients, this is the only option?

Yes.

When you have reached the stage that Clair has reached,

She had already gone into super-obesity with a BMI of 57

when she came to us.

Developed serious complications like sleep apnoea

Her asthma is really, really badly controlled

because of the obesity and the reflux.

She could also develop further problems like diabetes

and high blood pressure.

The likelihood is it will shorten her life 15 years.

And the only solution at the moment is surgery.

A gastric bypass is where the digestive system is

re-routed by cutting the small intestine

and attaching it to a newly-created smaller stomach.

This new stomach needs much less food for it to feel full.

The procedure has lifelong implications,

so Clair's eating habits will never be the same again.

Right then, so it's sleep time for you.

So think about something nice as you go off to sleep.

Clair is having a general anaesthetic, but because of her

weight, she's twice as likely to have breathing problems.

OK, so we're going to start trying to get an access to the

abdominal cavity.

This is done with a specialised needle.

It's a complicated operation.

There is a one-in-five chance of blood clots or internal bleeding,

which are potentially fatal.

It is so...surreal...

sitting here, looking inside of Clair.

Right.

Dividing some fat around here in front of the oesophagus and stomach.

God, he's just tied a knot.

That is just extraordinary.

This is a stapler that does divide the stomach.

Three rows of staples each side

So seals the stomach completely off.

They've sectioned off

a very small piece of her stomach

and they've taken away a section

of her bowel that absorbs a lot of the fat.

So two ways in which Clair will be prevented from putting on weight.

Not only can she not eat that much,

but she won't be absorbing as much.

There we are.

And now this is the final bit of the gastric bypass, really.

'Mr Sigurdsson checks there are no leaks in Clair's new stomach.

'If any food or digestive juices

'get into her abdomen, she could die.

And that completes the operation.

This has just been an incredible thing to watch.

I was not expecting anything this major.

The way it's portrayed in the press is that it's a kind of

walk-in, walkout, easy option.

Carry on eating, you can always have a gastric bypass.

And I have been absolutely shocked today

to see how major an operation this is.

MUSIC: "Never Let Me Go" by Florence and the Machine

Big, nice, deep breath.

# Fractured moonlight on the sea

# Reflection's still the same to me

# As before I went under... #

'From now on, Clair will have to follow a special reduced diet

'and take nutritional supplements every day for the rest of her life.'

Oh, hello. Hello.

How are you feeling? OK.

You look really amazingly awake

considering what I've just witnessed.

I'm out the other side, which is the main thing.

What are you most looking forward to?

Seeing my boys tomorrow.

See them properly tomorrow.

When you're feeling a bit better. All right, honey.

# Never let me go, never let me go... #

Really, the journey starts here for Clair.

She still has to change her eating habits,

she still has to change her lifestyle.

And there are side effects.

She has to take vitamins for the rest of her life.

She can't eat out normally,

she can only eat tiny, tiny portions.

And she may have a lot of excess skin,

so this is not just the easy, magical option.

This is the beginning of Clair's hard work.

'Whilst Clair and Tom have had to opt for extreme surgery,

'someone who's not dealing with their super-sized shape

'is 22-year-old Octavia from Exmouth.'

Really? Surprised you...

MUSIC DROWNS SPEECH

'I'm fascinated to find out what her story is

'and where better than over a nice cup of tea?'

When were you first aware that you had a problem with your weight

I was probably about seven or eight.

Is that you?

Yep. I always had a chubby face

I was just bigger than everyone else, you know?

I had proper chubby legs.

Do you how much you weigh at the moment? No.

I have no idea.

As a child, constantly being poked, prodded, put on scales,

put off scales, told I was fat

it's made me associate numbers which are on a scale

with how happy I should be.

And I think that's where it's wrong.

I think, without making myself sound arrogant,

I've been able to do something that a lot of people can't do,

which is, you know, from the top of my head to the bottom of my feet,

I pretty much love myself.

'I really like Octavia,

'is more about self-defence.

'No-one knows her better than her mum Caroline.'

I think Octavia does put on quite a front.

She'd never like to admit it, but she does.

'It's just the way she is.'

I'd much prefer to live my life for a short period of time

fat and happy than I would live a very, very long time

skinny and miserable.

You and me both. Yeah, absolutely.

Counting calories for the rest of my life. Oh, neurotic about your weight.

Apart from anything else, you're boring to other people.

But, with a diet high in saturated fat,

Octavia's putting herself at a huge health risk.

Right, brioche. Not good.

Cheese. Pastrami, cos I love it

Crispy potato slices.

Also, chicken!

The bit that I like the most is the skin.

Which is everybody's favourite bit.

I don't really know why I'm fat

I'm not going to pass the blame to the fact that I was a heavy kid.

I think some of it is to do with me.

Like everyone in this country,

I'm guilty of putting too much on my plate.

For instance, I had the option to have a smaller steak.

Did I take it? Did I hell.

'But, the recent death of Octavia's dad

'has given her a major reality check.'

My dad pretty much had a heart attack.

He had basically an enlarged heart

and just one day it gave up.

For the first time ever, I actually thought to myself,

"Oh, my God, I'm going to have a heart attack."

I was convinced, I was convinced.

I was like, "Oh, no! I'm going to have a heart attack! Oh, I'm fat!

"I'm even more at risk!" Cos my dad wasn't a fat person

Losing my father has made me aware

And it's not just the fear of heart disease

that's making Octavia feel older than her years.

At the age of just 13, she was diagnosed with

polycystic ovary syndrome,

or PCOS, a condition that affects fertility.

'My periods just stopped and I was constantly thinking to myself,

"Am I having premature menopause "

Cos, like, you do associate

not having a period with, you know,

going through the menopause.

Polycystic ovary syndrome makes me feel older, because you're

thrust into something that is associated with people who are older.

'You're constantly told very adult things,

'like Type 2 diabetes,

'not being able to have children '

You are made to face things as a younger person

that usually would be associated with

someone who was a lot older than you.

A weight loss of just 5% can lead to a massive

improvement in PCOS symptoms.

But, I'm not sure Octavia is ready to take on that challenge

It will be really interesting to see how Octavia's weight is

really affecting her health, cos, at the moment,

she's living in blissful ignorance.

And I think she's scared to really look at that directly.

But I completely understand how she must feel.

Not every young person ends up at the extreme end of obesity,

but it is all too easy for the pounds to pile on.

I've been so shocked at some of the things the people I've met

have had to deal with.

People like Tom, Clair and Octavia.

They should be out having fun,

they should be carefree,

not worrying about major life-changing surgery.

'As a mum-to-be, it's the next generation

'that worries me even more.'

'Britain now has eight different weight loss camps for kids,

'and the stats tell us why.

'The British Heart Foundation recently warned our nation's

'children are in grave danger of developing coronary heart disease,

'with 85% of girls and 73% of boys aged 13

'not doing an hour's daily exercise

'and 83% of 15-year-olds not eating their five a day.

'To find out what's being done about this,

'I've come to a camp in Bradford for children as young as four.

'It's run by Professor Paul Gately.'

Weight loss is not the goal here.

Lifestyle change is the goal,

and weight loss will occur because of that.

We've seen in the last 20 years

a trebling of obesity levels in the UK.

So, in any one classroom you might go to in the UK,

one in three of those children will be overweight or obese.

'And, it seems that the kids at the camp are really benefiting.'

What have you learned, being on the camp?

To not eat as much,

cos I normally just snack on anything that's in the cupboard

How much exercise did you do before? None. Nothing? Nothing

Do you guys feel like you have more energy now?

A lot more. A lot more. Wow!

I'm glad that I come here, cos I've lost 6kg on camp.

Gosh, that's a lot!

'It's estimated that our country's lack of activity costs the NHS

'a whopping ?900 million.'

CHILDREN CALL TO EACH OTHER

'My initial thoughts of the camp are it's fantastic that these

'kids get the opportunity to learn about food and sport.'

Really, they shouldn't have to be here.

Some of them are as young as eight.

It's so strange to hear young kids talking about

how much weight they've lost.

But actually, this is still better than the alternative,

because, if they don't get a better understanding of health

and nutrition now, then they're going to be suffering

really severe health problems before they've even hit their 20s.

'I've come to Blackburn to meet a young woman whose weight has

'spiralled to a dangerous level '

Hello. Hello, are you all right

Hi, I'm Cherry. Hiya. Come in! Pleased to meet you.

'22-year-old Rebecca started putting on weight after

'the birth of her son and it's clear from her story that the

'cause of obesity isn't always simple.

'It often comes from much deeper issues.'

That's his first picture. He was only 5lb 10, so he was quite small.

We called him Finley, cos I wanted an Irish name.

Because my mum's side of the family are all Irish.

Everyone brought cards and balloons and did what you're supposed to

Everything were fine,

and then he just went downhill

He just got really poorly.

He needed to be resuscitated when he was born,

because he was born nearly dead

'Finley was born with a heart defect and only survived for two days.

Just walking out of that hospital without your baby.

You know, my life just completely changed that day.

And it's just been hard.

'and it didn't take long for their weight to spiral '

I began to comfort eat.

I didn't cook, I didn't do anything.

I just thought, "I can't be bothered."

It was the last thing on my mind.

I sort of found comfort in the takeaways and the fizzy pop

and just going out and drinking

You know, it comes on very, very quickly.

Did you think about it at all?

It crossed my mind, when I sort of gone up a size in clothes.

And then gone up another size in clothes.

I knew I was putting weight on

I could see it myself, but I couldn't be bothered to lose any.

I could see it myself, but I couldn't be bothered to lose any.

I didn't want to.

'11 months after Finley's death

'they discovered that Rebecca was pregnant again.'

Hello! And hello.

'Now baby Jack's come along,

'Rebecca and Kenny both have a reason to get fit and stay young.'

Does Jack add motivation for getting healthy? Yeah.

Just so I can play with him as well, in the park,

rather than sitting down watching him play.

I'd rather be able to have a kick about with him,

rather than five minutes later absolutely knackered.

'Rebecca has another great reason for slimming down.

'She and Kenny are getting married in six months' time.'

The last thing you want to be is fat on your wedding day.

Cos the pictures will be... Up on your wall for ever.

Wow.

Rebecca and Kenny have basically been through

every parent's worst nightmare

I think it takes amazing discipline and self-awareness,

like Rebecca has shown, to say

"Right, I'm at a crossroads, and if I go

"any further, it's going to be almost impossible

"for me to come back.

"Put on a bit of weight, I've got some bad habits,

"if I don't get a grip now, it's going to make it harder."

To have gone through such a devastating tragedy

and yet be so committed to being the best mum she can be -

I can't wait to meet up

# When you're ready, come and get it... #

'With baby Jack around, Rebecca has a whole new motivation

'to lose weight and get fit.

'So, she's managed to get onto

'a six-month healthy lifestyle course.'

'I suppose this is the first step to normalise exercise in my life again.'

I want to be healthy and lose weight.

Hiya.

'To gain a full picture of her weight and general health,

'Rebecca's fitness levels are being assessed.'

I'm nervous, obviously, being weighed in front of other people.

I don't even have scales at home.

I do try and avoid them, really

But it's not just her weight she should be worried about.

I'd say I'm quite unhealthy. I don't walk anywhere, I'd go in the car.

OK, so if you put this, kind of where your belly button is. Yeah.

I do get out of breath from running.

I am lazy, yeah. I don't exercise.

Recent studies show that any kind of physical activity can play

a big part in influencing an anti-ageing effect within

the make-up of our bodies.

We all have a genetic code or DNA, which is

carried within our chromosomes

The ends of our chromosomes are protected by caps,

known as telomeres.

Every time our cells divide, these telomeres get shorter.

When they get too short, cells die, which leads to us ageing.

Leading a physically active

and healthy lifestyle boosts the activity of an enzyme,

which helps slow down the shortening process of the telomeres,

essentially keeping the cells young.

In the ultimate test of her fitness,

Rebecca's going to have her heart rate

and excursion level checked with a series of cardiovascular exercises.

It's going to measure your heart rate...

The last time Rebecca did any form of exercise was

when she was at school.

I'm not looking forward to doing exercise and being timed

and tested and coming really low on the scale

and showing how unhealthy I actually am.

Cos it's not just about being how I'm overweight, I'm unhealthy as well.

So, I've been a bit nervous about that.

Using a heart monitor on her wrist, Rebecca will tell the team

what her heart rate is doing and how hard she's finding the exercise

Three, two, one, go.

# If I'm going hard, let me tell you that it's worth it... #

It's off to a gentle start.

# I ain't afraid to work it

# Rushing right off... #

Experts now believe that a sedentary lifestyle

is as dangerous as smoking but tragically Rebecca is more

the norm than the exception among young people today.

# In my fantasy we're running wild, wild, wild

# Whoa... #

Better late than never for Rebecca.

# Jessie J

# Wild, wild

# Whoa

# Wild, wild... #

191. Stop stepping...

I'm absolutely knackered but I feel really good for doing it.

But the results might come as a bit of a shock.

These are the numbers, are the ones that came up off the scales.

So, number 3 shows you've got higher than average amounts of

body fat, which you, kind of, already knew anyway. Yeah.

Your BMI works out 36.4, OK?

The ideal healthy level for that is 24.9 and under.

Anything over 30 puts you into the obese category. Yeah.

I feel as if people describe me as the fat person.

Not in a horrible way but if you were going to, you know, say

It's the final figure that's a real eye-opener.

Metabolic age is the last one and it does make people go,

"Oh, my Gosh!" Yeah, it's quite embarrassing though, isn't it?

Rebecca's body could be functioning as a 37-year-old.

That's up to 15 years over her actual age.

In terms of what we're expecting over the next six months,

we're looking at around minimum of 10% weight loss.

Right. OK?

To increase her life expectancy Rebecca will need to get to

a moderate level of physical activity, two and half hours a week.

That's the government recommended minimum.

Last one on this one.

Like so many young people out there,

Rebecca's weight has just spiralled out of control.

And unfortunately now,

she's on the verge of developing some pretty serious illnesses.

But she is at the point that

if she makes some big changes in her life,

if she tries to be more active and she really sticks to it,

she could actually stop her body prematurely ageing.

Back in London it's a big day for Tom.

He's having a replacement gastric balloon fitted to treat

nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.

It's a condition that's increasing among Britain's young

and can cause cirrhosis of the liver.

This usually occurs in the over 50s and is potentially fatal.

The first balloon, six months ago,

has already helped Tom lose five stone.

You look very, very different. Yeah, I know that.

Your friends must be delighted Yeah.

Tom's being treated by Dr Jude Oben,

Essentially it's a silicon balloon that we put into patient's

stomach via the mouth and the balloon is then filled with

saline or salt water solution

and we also put into the balloon a blue dye.

The reason for that is, if the balloon then deflates,

the patient passes blue urine.

That is a code red, they must come into the hospital

and have the balloon removed

and essentially we use the balloon as part of a

multi-disciplinary approach to losing weight or downsizing.

So, when you're ready, boys and girls... Yeah, that's fine.

OK, so just imagine you're on some fantastic beach somewhere

Although Tom doesn't need a general anaesthetic, he's being sedated

Which means he'll stay conscious throughout as tubes are sent down

his throat to his stomach to check there are no issues like ulcers

At the moment, so far so good.

Now it's safe, Jude can start the procedure. Well done...

So, this is the balloon.

It's a silicone balloon.

We'll just put some jelly over it to make it easier to put down.

OK, just relax for me. Well done.

OK, so the balloon is now in the appropriate position

and now we put the blue dye into the balloon.

Inject, please, yeah, thank you

It's then filled with salt water, the aim being to reduce

the capacity in Tom's stomach so that he feels fuller, quicker.

Where are we at? More than half

More than half, fantastic. OK, brilliant.

The balloon is less costly than banding

and less costly than gastric bypass.

heading towards obesity.

We're seeing more and more young people who are obese and,

of course, they will get arthritis, type two diabetes, liver disease...

They will get them younger than they should do

because they are obese at a much younger age.

We're done. OK, fantastic. Wasn t so bad? Yeah...no. Good man.

The operation has only just finished

but Tom is already looking forward to a slimmer future.

Yeah, it's been about an hour and a half since I came out.

Erm, I can feel my stomach moving around and stuff like that

but it's worth going through that bit of discomfort and pain for

you know, the end result.

The funny thing is, before I went in I was feeling hungry but now, no.

I just, yeah, I feel...I just feel good.

I want to get back to living my life, you know,

the life of a late 20-year-old again.

Which would be good

because I haven't been able to do that for the last few years.

Tom's chances of shedding even more weight

and saving his liver look good But what about Rebecca?

Two months after she started her healthy lifestyle

course in Blackburn, the pace has really picked up.

And being a fitness fan myself I just have to join in.

No slacking...

I think this might be cheating

I know it looks like I'm just having a lie down

but really there's lots going on internally.

Rebecca's clearly taking this more seriously than I am.

since her school days? It was really hard.

It was mainly just thinking that my wedding is five months away

I need to lose the weight.

Do you miss how you used to be

I do miss being able to just go and get a takeaway

whenever but not that much.

Cos I quite like the fact that I've lost weight.

It's amazing that Rebecca's decided to do this.

She knows she needs to be more active.

She'll lost weight so that her body will function better,

her organs will function better

potentially adding years onto her life

and she could actually enjoy being a mum and run around after her son and

live the life that she's supposed to be living now at her age.

Back in Exmouth, Octavia's health is still a worry.

When we last met, I discovered her fear of suffering a

heart attack like her dad had given her a wake up call.

# Girl, look at that body

# I work out... #

People obviously have this perception that I don't actually do any

exercise and the most exercise I have is going from the sofa to the fridge.

# I'm sexy and I know it... #

I come to the gym, probably, four to five times a week

and I really enjoy it.

The feeling that you get, of accomplishment, not just that

but the fact that you just feel so much better.

I feel healthier.

# I'm sexy and I know it... #

Whilst increasing her exercise is great, I still worry that

Octavia hasn't still fully faced up to what's really going on.

In terms of your fitness and health,

where do you think you're at right now?

I think I'm good by bigger people's standards

but obviously when it comes to the grand scheme of things, eeeer..

Octavia has decided to finally confront what she's spent

the last few years avoiding.

I'm meeting back up with Professor Paul Gately,

who's going to be giving her a full physical assessment

and the bare facts about how her body could be ageing her.

There's lots of different tests that we can do in here.

We have athletes, we have overweight and obese people in here,

testing them, lots of different groups.

They're going to dangle a chocolate bar from there.

No, we're not. And they're going to, like, make me run for it.

Up to now, it's been difficult for Octavia to face the facts

but I know she's scared about the risks to her health.

So, this is a big deal.

That hair is going to be a challenge for me. Here we go

It's like Rapunzel.

Paul needs to get details of Octavia's height

and weight for his first test.

Step away.

Bearing in mind,

I've got a microphone on so that s obviously an extra 20, 30 pounds.

Definitely. That's fine. Definitely, yeah, yeah...and your hair.

And you've been for a wee before hand, yeah?

Oh, no, I haven't so that's... There we go.

How am I going to fit in there You will fit in there.

You need to put that on your hair. Oh! It looks amazing!

The things I do. It's not your average test, I'll be honest.

You're wearing a swimming hat

and you're about to get into a giant egg. That's it.

Enjoy... Goodbye!

This is the weirdest test I have ever seen in my life.

So, don't you remember at school, Archimedes' principle? No.

Sitting in the bath and the water that you displace. Yes. OK.

That's how this works? It's the same principle.

So, what we do is, we measure the air in the chamber

how much space or her body volume she takes up.

And then from that

because we know the density of different tissues

and we know her weight, you can therefore calculate her body

fat levels and that's what this machine does. Right. Well done

Well done, that was good. Thank you.

How did that feel? Did you feel anything? Strange. It is strange.

Now Octavia's had her fat measured in a fancy egg,

it's on to more physical stuff

Wearing this mask while on the treadmill will monitor her

breathing and cardiovascular levels to see how fit she really is.

If I'm really honest, the perception of an obese person

is that they don't enjoy exercise, they don't do it.

So, I'm actually quite surprised to hear that she goes to the gym

sometimes five times a week.

# Work it out

# Got a gang of cash and it's all thrown out on the bar... #

Think she's doing really well.

There's a lot of pressure on her, actually.

# Play hard, work hard... #

I think she's had to work quite hard to accept herself, the size she is.

I think today is very nerve-racking as that might rock the boat a bit.

Fantastic, OK, we're going to slow you back down

and we're going to bring you back down.

OK?

I'm bringing you all the way back down. You did really well

You did very well. You didn't even break a sweat.

With the tests over, it's finally time for Octavia to hear

the truth and deal with the consequences for her future health.

Your body fat was 49.4. Yeah.

So, a healthy range for a female is around the mid 20s.

So, your body fat is on the high level. The high side.

Which is not surprising. Obvious.

OK, one of the concerns I would have is where you store your body fat...

Yeah. ..and you store your body fat more around your abdomen. Yeah

Which puts you at greater risk of things like type two diabetes,

cardiovascular disease and a range of forms of cancers.

Yeah.

so that does worry me.

My father passed away a year ago and my father had an enlarged heart.

I have been checked for various heart, kind of,

conditions cos he was born with an enlarged heart and that petrifies me.

That genuinely petrifies me, the fact that I will die of a

heart attack and that's what made me want to go to the gym.

There is a risk that your joints are more likely to be damaged,

back pain is more likely to occur, which at some point could

limit your ambitions to continue to be physically active

and then you're down on a, sort of, spiral.

In terms of your fitness level, OK, it is

at the higher end of what we would see someone of your weight

and body fat to have but it is still relatively low in comparison

to normally active or active to a certain level.

Meeting the weekly recommendations,

your fitness level is dramatically lower than that.

Does that surprise you? Not really, like, I am very realistic.

You know, I think, I do what I can. Sometimes not so much.

Sometimes a lot.

I'm doing pretty well for me

and if I feel good about it, then that's all that really matters

I suppose what I'd say,

based on what you've explained about the number of times you

go to the gym and what you do,

I feel your programme isn't giving you enough back.

So, how are you feeling about today? Apprehensive...

I think that was a really important moment for Octavia.

I think she has built up a wall around her.

She's accepted how she is

but it does seem that wall is very fragile

and she has to be really careful

because she does need to improve her health.

She knows that but in order to do that she has to feel

Now I'm back in Shrewsbury to find out how her life has changed

after her second birthday. Hi, Clair. Look at your bump.

My God, you look amazing!

How are you? Hi, how are you?

So, since I saw you last, in your gown of glory in hospital

how have you been? Really good

Erm, I've lost a stone and a half since I've had it done. Wow!

In one month? Yeah. Can I see one of your frozen baby food portions?

You can.

Clair's diet is now restricted to tiny portions and

until her stomach gets used to solid food again, she's on a menu of mush.

Amazing, so is that one meal? Yeah. I wouldn't eat all that.

When my stomach was, kind of, that size before. Wow!

How big is your stomach now? That big.

So, your stomach is that big? Yeah. The size of an egg.

Yeah. Why do you think something like losing weight,

that potentially could be thought of as not that big a deal,

why has that made such a big difference to how you feel about yourself?

How you feel about your future and how you feel as a mum?

It's all the possibilities.

There's the possibility of coming off all the medication, that I seem

to have been on for ever, that has had such a huge effect on my life.

There's the possibility of getting a job and not having that crisis

of confidence of who's going to want to employ me, when I look like this.

You know, I've got more energy I'm doing things that I haven't

done for years with the boys and my confidence has been boosted

How old do you feel now? I feel in my early 20s.

It's surprising that a month ago, waking up and being full of

dread about what the day was going to bring and now I'm ready for anything.

Ready, boys?

Yeah! Bon appetit. Ben, Lewis. Thank you.

Have you noticed Mum being different the last month?

I know she's been shrinking in size, I know that.

When I was young I had a mum who could run around and take me

anywhere but I'm happy to get that mum back again.

Is life better? 100% better.

We've now got a future.

I want to see my kids have kids and I want to see their grandkids,

like my grandparents have seen their great-grandchildren.

And now I stand a chance of it

It's been so fantastic seeing Clair today. It's just gone really well.

She seems so much happier, she's decreasing her medication

she's got some amazing goals to get off her steroids completely

she feels like a young woman rather than an old age pensioner.

I'm just so happy for her and her family.

Since filming, Octavia's got herself a personal trainer to help her

get the most out of her exercise.

She's also trying a new gluten free diet to see if that helps.

Since Tom's operation, he's lost a further stone and three pounds.

He's improved his diet and recently had a blood test,

which indicates his liver has started to heal.

Eating healthily and regular exercise have made Rebecca

a stone and a half lighter.

She still attends her classes

and is busy planning her wedding as a slimmer bride.

# Yeah, baby, it hurts a bunch

# The girls got going and we had a munch

# I promise on a dime it's the last time

# I'll ever have a liquid lunch

# Yeah, baby, it hurts a bunch

# The girls got going and we had a munch

# I promise on a dime it's the last time

# I'll ever have a liquid lunch

# Yeah, baby, it hurts a bunch

# The girls got going and we had a munch

# I promise on a dime it's the last time. #

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd