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Effect of Weight Loss on Obstructive Sleep Apnea: The Importance of Tongue Fat

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Re: Effect of Weight Loss on Obstructive Sleep Apnea: The Importance of Tongue Fat

#81

Post by thrav »

_gwlb wrote: post #68
AnIdiotOnTheNet wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'd just like to chime in as someone who has lost and kept off about half his bodyweight, that yeah, losing significant amounts of weight is a very demanding undertaking. It requires a significant lifestyle change, large investments of time, is emotionally and cognitively draining, and to top it all off does not positively impact your quality of life nearly as much as is touted. To be successful at it requires a leve…

This is the most accurate description of a "weight loss journey" I've ever read. I was obese (40%+ body fat). Now I'm fit and healthy. Like you, it took me a decade to get there. Anyone who thinks it's easy or simple to make the lifestyle changes that requires, hasn't done it themselves. It's not about the diet - most diets actually work, if you can stick with them for the rest of your life, but that's a huge if. CIC…

"The only way that happens is through practice and painful failure."

There are other ways to do this, but they require you to leave your world behind. For many, their environment is what built and maintains their unhealthy relationship to food.

For me, the day I left Texas was the day I started dropping pounds. Then, the day I left Utah for London was the day I dropped even more pounds. Then, the day I started running was the day I began approaching my lower limit (likely bordering into unhealthy body fat % on marathon race day).

The biggest challenge of you and the commenter above you was that you were swimming up stream. Hopping into a stream that leads away from fat behavior, instead of toward it can do much of the work for you.

I fully appreciate that's a luxury, but it's something people who have a choice should consider.

Re: Effect of Weight Loss on Obstructive Sleep Apnea: The Importance of Tongue Fat

#82

Post by tdburn »

elric wrote: post #47
verisimilitude wrote: post #2

I'm a dentist who regularly treats OSA with dental appliances; they work by posturing the mandible forward with a maxillary and mandibular (two-arch) device as a way to increase the cross sectional area of the posterior airway, reducing apneic events -- but it is important to know that the gold standard remains the positive airway pressure (CPAP) device. I would also like to point out that I see an incredible amount…

As someone with OSA - and a busted TMJ, so no mandibular advancement for me -, let me tell you: CPAP sucks. Sure, you die slower, you snore a hell of a lot less, and you feel more rested and energized. That's all (truly, no snark) great. But it sucks. Spontaneous sleepovers become impossible. Travel becomes a chore. Sleeping with bedfellows now comes with a noisy attachment. You have to rent or buy a relatively expen…

Have you looked into the portable CPAPs they are much smaller, Resmed has one. Still a pain but nice for travel. I’ve also seen online cpap companies that send you a at home test that qualifies for coverage.

Re: Effect of Weight Loss on Obstructive Sleep Apnea: The Importance of Tongue Fat

#83

Post by xazo »

_gwlb wrote: post #68
AnIdiotOnTheNet wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'd just like to chime in as someone who has lost and kept off about half his bodyweight, that yeah, losing significant amounts of weight is a very demanding undertaking. It requires a significant lifestyle change, large investments of time, is emotionally and cognitively draining, and to top it all off does not positively impact your quality of life nearly as much as is touted. To be successful at it requires a leve…

This is the most accurate description of a "weight loss journey" I've ever read. I was obese (40%+ body fat). Now I'm fit and healthy. Like you, it took me a decade to get there. Anyone who thinks it's easy or simple to make the lifestyle changes that requires, hasn't done it themselves. It's not about the diet - most diets actually work, if you can stick with them for the rest of your life, but that's a huge if. CIC…

> requires the much harder task of fundamentally changing your brain's relationship to food. The only way that happens is through practice and painful failure.

I've been on this journey for over ten years now -- basically on the practice and pain path you describe. But it wasn't until I read Allen Carr's "Good Sugar Bad Sugar" book that I began to mentally relate to sugar and carbs like any other significant addictive drug like nicotine or heroin. The sugar and carbs are not just passive calories that you ingest -- they actively affect how your brain and body relate to food.

Once you make that mental switch, then it's much easier to drop and stay off them. I mean who would say it's okay to have heroin cheat days?

Re: Effect of Weight Loss on Obstructive Sleep Apnea: The Importance of Tongue Fat

#84

Post by tashi »

sdwa wrote: post #43
issa wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I couldn't agree with this more. It is possible for me to lose and keep off weight if I literally devote all my energy towards it. It's important to remember that everyone is different. Some people would struggle to gain 100 pounds, others could do it easily, and most people understand that. But for some reason when it comes to losing weight instead of gaining, understanding goes out the window.

Losing weight is hard (speaking from experience), but ultimately it's still just a question of physics. Eat less, eat food which will fill you for longer (breakfast: porridge, lunch: fruit, nuts, etc.), and eat a reasonably healthy meal you've cooked each night. Meanwhile, eat smaller portions and do some exercise. Your body can't defy the laws of physics, so you will lose weight. It is that simple. Overthinking it a…

I think overthinking and coming up with bad excuses is just a symptom, not a cause. First the human does something their rational mind didn't want to, because the rest of the brain outvoted it, and then the mind comes up with an explanation to feel more in control.

I'd actually be surprised if there's much correlation between understanding physics and having one's weight under control.

Re: Effect of Weight Loss on Obstructive Sleep Apnea: The Importance of Tongue Fat

#85

Post by amanaplanacanal »

rukittenme wrote: post #30
verisimilitude wrote: post #2

I'm a dentist who regularly treats OSA with dental appliances; they work by posturing the mandible forward with a maxillary and mandibular (two-arch) device as a way to increase the cross sectional area of the posterior airway, reducing apneic events -- but it is important to know that the gold standard remains the positive airway pressure (CPAP) device. I would also like to point out that I see an incredible amount…

> for many people weight loss is neither practical nor maintainable Hard disagree. As for practicality, weight loss is a function of thermodynamics. Caloric deficit == weight reduction. Doesn't matter your physiology. As for maintainability, well that certainly depends on how a person is taught to diet. If you tell someone they need to eat less to lose weight (which is what almost every diet does) then, yes, it will…

So where is the study which shows your method works better than all the other diets out there? Lots of people have diets that work for them, that fails totally when other people try it. If your plan is truly that successful it should be taking the world by storm.

Re: Effect of Weight Loss on Obstructive Sleep Apnea: The Importance of Tongue Fat

#86

Post by amanaplanacanal »

rukittenme wrote: post #65
AnIdiotOnTheNet wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes. your advice is not significantly different than common advice on how to make it easy, and my personal experience with trying many, many things is that it is never actually easy.

I do it and have done it many times. You're not sacrificing anything by buying products with fewer calories in them. Just read the label.

Wait. So you are saying your method allows you to lose weight but you can't keep it off long term? There are tons of diets that do that.

Re: Effect of Weight Loss on Obstructive Sleep Apnea: The Importance of Tongue Fat

#87

Post by abstractbarista »

forthac wrote: post #73
sdwa wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Losing weight is hard (speaking from experience), but ultimately it's still just a question of physics. Eat less, eat food which will fill you for longer (breakfast: porridge, lunch: fruit, nuts, etc.), and eat a reasonably healthy meal you've cooked each night. Meanwhile, eat smaller portions and do some exercise. Your body can't defy the laws of physics, so you will lose weight. It is that simple. Overthinking it a…

This is the same dismissive, ignorant, platitudinal advice that the parent commentator was directly referring to. I find it supremely hilarious that you refer to the person's own body as an external factor.

Thermodynamics doesn't lie.

Operate at an energy deficit and I guarantee you'll lose weight.

Is it going to feel horrible? Hell yes.

Re: Effect of Weight Loss on Obstructive Sleep Apnea: The Importance of Tongue Fat

#88

Post by DiffEq »

lazyasciiart wrote: post #74
DiffEq wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I understand what you are saying but, economically, treating the symptom rather than the cause is expensive; somehow there needs to be some way to create a cost high enough to encourage people to attack the cause of the problem; and shame can be a useful way to increase the cost. So "fat shaming", although politically incorrect these days, should not be thrown out as a way to encourage behavior that benefits society…

Sources for those claims?

Do you need really need "sources" to know that shame acts as a deterrent not to do something, and/or as a motivating factor to do something, for a multitude of actions good or bad and has done so for thousands of years of human history? Simple observe...and you will have all the sources you need.

Re: Effect of Weight Loss on Obstructive Sleep Apnea: The Importance of Tongue Fat

#89

Post by vanderZwan »

_gwlb wrote: post #68
AnIdiotOnTheNet wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'd just like to chime in as someone who has lost and kept off about half his bodyweight, that yeah, losing significant amounts of weight is a very demanding undertaking. It requires a significant lifestyle change, large investments of time, is emotionally and cognitively draining, and to top it all off does not positively impact your quality of life nearly as much as is touted. To be successful at it requires a leve…

This is the most accurate description of a "weight loss journey" I've ever read. I was obese (40%+ body fat). Now I'm fit and healthy. Like you, it took me a decade to get there. Anyone who thinks it's easy or simple to make the lifestyle changes that requires, hasn't done it themselves. It's not about the diet - most diets actually work, if you can stick with them for the rest of your life, but that's a huge if. CIC…

It doesn't help if almost all external nudges in the domain that matter most (affordable, easily accessible food) are terrible. The few times I visited the US I was constantly shocked at how the food environment felt like it was trying to make me obese at all costs.

Re: Effect of Weight Loss on Obstructive Sleep Apnea: The Importance of Tongue Fat

#90

Post by AnIdiotOnTheNet »

rukittenme wrote: post #52
AnIdiotOnTheNet wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'd just like to chime in as someone who has lost and kept off about half his bodyweight, that yeah, losing significant amounts of weight is a very demanding undertaking. It requires a significant lifestyle change, large investments of time, is emotionally and cognitively draining, and to top it all off does not positively impact your quality of life nearly as much as is touted. To be successful at it requires a leve…

> I track every calorie I eat Why?? > and weigh myself everyday Why???? Every week AT MOST. And even then, TRACK THE LONG TERM TREND. > I can't keep food in my house Why?????????????????? YOU NEED FOOD TO SURVIVE. You need food in your house to PREPARE MEALS that YOU PLAN. A caloric deficit WILL lower your ENERGY LEVELS ... BUT you are NOT REQUIRED to be HUNGRY because of it. ---- Don't listen to me. I'm not your doc…

>> I track every calorie I eat > Why??

To keep myself honest. I've tried not tracking it and it was too easy to slip into bad habits over time.

>> and weigh myself everyday

> Why???? Every week AT MOST. And even then, TRACK THE LONG TERM TREND.

To keep myself honest. Only weighing myself once a week it was two easy to slip into bad habits because I couldn't see the consequences of my choices for a whole week. Even then, it was too easy to pass off gains as water weight, which can fluctuate 5lbs quite easily over the course of a day. By weighing every day I get more data to work with which allows me to more easily plot the trend over time and be mindful of the effect of fluid retention or loss.

>> I can't keep food in my house

> Why??????????????????

Ugh. Look, I'm sure for you it's real easy to keep yourself from just walking in to the kitchen and making food when you're bored, but like many people who got fat I am a food addict, so it isn't easy for me. If there is food in my house, I will eat it. Mindlessly. Casually. It's too much temptation that I have to expend mental effort to fight. By making sure I only have just enough food to get through the weekend I ensure that the barrier to eating is much higher and it's easier to fight temptation.

I also keep just enough food at work to get through the work week. Work is harder regardless, because people bring in free food all the time and there are convenient vending machines.

> YOU NEED FOOD TO SURVIVE. You need food in your house to PREPARE MEALS that YOU PLAN.

No shit Sherlock. I keep just enough food to meet my plan and no more. Moreover, my plan is the same every single week so I spend as little time thinking about food as possible. I even prepare meals at work thanks to my microwave steamer, the single best decision I ever made for eating better.

> A caloric deficit WILL lower your ENERGY LEVELS

Yes, which has a corresponding effect on one's ability to exercise their willpower. This is well documented.

> ... BUT you are NOT REQUIRED to be HUNGRY because of it.

First of all, I disagree, because in order to lose weight your body literally needs to eat itself. Secondly, I'll repeat that I am a food addict. Hunger is not a requirement of being tempted to eat.

> Don't listen to me. I'm not your doctor. I'm not your nutritionist.

Physicians and nutritionists, in my considered opinion, give only slightly better advice than randos on the internet. I am not in danger of accidentally listening to you, I assure you.

> The point is. I don't track my calories because I have a meal PLAN. I don't just jaunt off to a restaurant, """track""" 1500 calories, and say to myself "Welp guess I'm going hungry for the next 12 hours". That's STUPID.

What happens is I eat my planned meal, for which I track the calories, and then I go hungry anyway. That's just how it is and telling people that they don't have to be hungry to lose weight is one of the reasons people fail at weight loss.

> I'm NEVER hungry.

That must be nice.

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