The book is needed for several reasons. Bariatric surgery is one of the most clinically effective and cost effective services in any field of medicine, and is growing in popularity, and the non-specialist family practitioner, allied health professional and pharmacist need to know exactly what it involves. Bariatric surgery is in everyone’s interest – whether medic or patient, as it offers improvement in diabetes, heart disease, sleep apnoea, fatty liver and many cancers, whilst reducing benefits, housing costs and the general burden on the economy.