Connection between OSA & Sleep duration

[Julie]

ScienceDaily (May 23, 2009) — There appears to be a link between sleep and weight control, with some studies indicating that sleep disruption can increase weight gain and others that diet affects sleep. Victor Uebele and colleagues, at Merck Research Laboratories, West Point, have now provided further evidence to support this association by showing that T-type calcium channels regulate body weight maintenance and sleep in mice.

These data suggest that sleep and circadian treatment approaches may be of benefit in the fight against obesity.
Previous studies have shown that mice lacking the CaV3.1 T-type calcium channel have disrupted sleep/wake activity. In this study, the researchers found that these mice were resistant to weight gain when fed a high-fat diet. Consistent with these data, when normal-weight rodents were administered a drug that specifically antagonized T-type calcium channels during their inactive phase they showed increased sleep and were protected from weight gain due to a high-fat diet.
Further, when the same drug was given to obese rodents it reduced body weight and fat mass. The authors conclude that the benefits of the drug are likely to be a result of better alignment of feeding patterns and the circadian rhythm, and that targeting T-type calcium channels might provide a new avenue of research for those developing drugs to treat obesity.
Journal reference:

[timbalionguy]

Very interesting. I bet this carries over to humans as well. I can see a pattern here that may indicate I have this deficiency. I will be paying close attention to this line of research.

I also notice that I do not sleep as deeply when eating a low carbohydrate, high fat diet. That said, the benefits of this diet for me are worth the slightly shallower sleep. CPAP therapy also seems to overcome this situation, but I need to get more experience before I can say with confidence that there may be a connection.

I have also noticed my metabolism is considerably faster, perhaps by as much as a third. And, I am not gaining weight as fast when off the low carb diet. I am also losing weight faster on the low carb diet.

[Julie]

Have you considered, while staying with the low carb diet, of 'sharing' the high fat part with more protein and less fat (which could be responsible for the higher metabolism)? I'm not sure why you think a high fat intake is going to be good for you, even Atkins didn't advocate doing that.

[Kiralynx]

I'm not sure why you think a high fat intake is going to be good for you, even Atkins didn't advocate doing that.

Fat has been demonized over the last 50 years with no evidence to support the statements.

http://www.westonaprice.org/knowyourfats/index.html is a good place to start learning. The "diet information" given by most traditional doctors and nutritionists is about as useful as the information given out about CPAP by the average DME employee.

[Julie]

Kira I know where you're coming from, and I agree that a more moderate view should be taken, but I don't think that poster is cooking steamed fish & veg. with a little butter. It sounds like he's on a dedicated diet of fat and that is not a good thing, especially for someone who may have cardiac issues.

[Kiralynx]

Kira I know where you're coming from, and I agree that a more moderate view should be taken, but I don't think that poster is cooking steamed fish & veg. with a little butter. It sounds like he's on a dedicated diet of fat and that is not a good thing, especially for someone who may have cardiac issues.

Well, my Mom did the whole recommended diet routine. Like her mother before her, who did the same, she has diverticulitis and congestive heart failure.

Me? No diverticulitis, no sign of heart issues (which Mom already had by my age). I eat carbs from fruits, vegetables, homemade yogurt, and small amounts of honey. I eat pastured meats as much as possible -- bison, beef, chicken, turkey, pork, fish, shrimp, and plenty of cheese. If I weren't doing a starch-free diet, I'd be following the Weston-Price guidelines -- because it makes sense.

[JRI]

[quote="KiralynxThe "diet information" given by most traditional doctors and nutritionists is about as useful as the information given out about CPAP by the average DME employee.[/quote]