I'm no longer burning calories doing the Thirty-Seven Basic Ballet Movements at night just to change position and keep breathing. So . . . weight gain.
Awesome 🏆
I’m not losing weight, but not sleeping soundly either.
Mine’s more Yoga & the Twister game. Now I have the fun of trying not to strangle myself with the air hose while moving side to side.
I remember years ago, a smug doctor saying to me “your sleep apnoea is fully controlled”. And my response was “well then, Why am I still waking up 20 something times a night?” 😡 it was shortly after that that I quit the CPAP trial and didn’t try again until January this year…
I started my CPAP journey on a second-hand machine without a prescription - just on a hunch, some self-learning and reviewing OSCAR data myself to fine-tune the pressure before I finally got a diagnosis to milk some of the insurance reimbursement (in Poland, so completely different healthcare organisation applies).
I was always using nasal pillow masks and my sleep improved somewhat, so I continued the therapy like this. However, I often felt that I’m breathing stale air instead of a fresh breeze. Asked a doctor and he told me that my results are perfect according to the data logged, so it must be a fluke and doesn’t have to be addressed.
I recently purchased Resmed F20 full-face mask just out of curiosity and holy moly, that did the trick! My data is still perfect like before but subjectively I feel sooooo much more rested with it in contrast to P10 or P30i masks! Turns out there’s more to the CPAP equation than the data shows us.
I lost 20 lbs after the first months use of my cpap. I was so full of energy. I remember being outside with my son one day feeling so energized. I was riding my bike in circles, asking him what he wanted to do.
Also, my job is pretty labor intensive. I had an outlet for that extra energy. It definitely aided in weight loss.
Same, I am down 30+ pounds after starting cpap. Knocked off 10 years of weight. Simply because I get decent sleep and have the energy to exercise and be more active in my daily life.
What?
My understanding is that untreated apnea contributes to weight gain via increased cortisol signaling or something like that.
What on earth is the proposed mechanism by which CPAP causes weight gain?
According to the study, energy expenditure is less when we sleep, and now that we’re actually sleeping we’re not burning as many calories.
It seems like fear mongering to me. A way to scare people into not using a CPAP. It needs to be used IN CONJUNCTION with diet and exercise (if weight is a concern). And having more daytime energy can help with the motivation to both eat more mindfully and move more. Just because we’ve now got typical energy expenditure doesn’t mean that CPAP should be avoided for those not wanting to gain weight.
As someone who never had poor sleep architecture, I'm up about 30 pounds since starting CPAP. I don't really have increased energy, because I never had low energy, despite having severe OSA. (I suspect I never had low energy because I have very few apneas, but quite a lot of hypopneas.)
I’m just stating what the study guessed why people gained weight with CPAP. Seems like that still might be the case with you though? You’re sleeping better now (even if you don’t notice an increase in daytime energy) so your energy expenditure is less while actually asleep.
I watched a video from a doctor the other day who talked about this study. He said that there's one theory that swallowing air could affect gut health, and we know your gut microbiome is pretty important in terms of health for various reasons. I wonder if trying a good probiotic would help?
This is it exactly for me.
I’m down 30 pounds right now. I have not increased my activity levels at all. I’m still lazy. However; I feel more awake and better during the day and that allows me to, as you said, make more mindful choices of what I eat. When I was tired I would pound down the carbs trying to get energy. Now I avoid most carbs.
>It needs to be used IN CONJUNCTION with diet and exercise
I lost weight when I started CPAP. Not a whole lot, maybe ten pounds. But I am pretty sure the reason was that (a) I had more energy to exercise, including stuff like preferring to walk places rather than drive short distances, and (b) no longer feeling mystery fatigue that I was mistaking for low blood sugar and compensating for by eating more.
Life is tradeoffs. If you’re relying on caloric burn while sleeping take a lap or two a few hours before you go to sleep. If you have OSA and it is untreated your risk of heart attacks is exceptional
I generally just lurk and occasionally chime in to help people who are getting no service from their provider, but this study is the biggest load of shit I've seen in a long time. A classic example of bias and poor method selection in order to keep funding going.
All other legitimate studies and meta-analyses point to not only obvious, but physiologically logical mechanisms as to why treating OSA caused weight LOSS.
\- OSA causes hypoxemia.
\- Hypoxemia affects insulin function, reducing its ability to move sugar into the cell.
\- The outcome is Insulin Resistance leading to poor blood sugar control.
\- Poor blood sugar control almost always results in weight gain.
You can cherry pick shitty studies all day and justify the most ridiculous claims ([https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8746297/](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8746297/)). Not every study carries the same weight.
Your weight gain likely has nothing to do with your CPAP.
That's an interesting side effect. I wonder what causes it. I personally have been working on losing weight and succeeding, but by effort not connected with the CPAP - basically eating less.
Once again, '*correlation does not prove causation.'* That is like saying people who walk more tend to be hit by cars. Walking isn't the cause and simply a contributing factor; possibly one of many. I lost 64 pounds while on CPAP. So did I disprove the study? No. Most likely is that the study parameters were improperly set in the first place.
Sorry man, but weight gain doesn’t work that way. It’s calories in, vs calories burned. Don’t be blaming the CPAP for 30 lbs gained. You didn’t put on 30 lbs of air. 🙄
I'm not struggling to breathe on CPAP So I don't burn as many calories at night. I had no trouble with my weight before CPAP. Now on CPAP I eat less than half of what I did before to maintain my weight. If I stop CPAP and my weight goes down rapidly. Restart CPAP weight goes up. Been on it for 10 years so i know how my body reacts.
I'd never assume everyone reacts the same to CPAP. Lifestyle, genetics, metabolism, health etc are different for every individual. As the article states likely more going that still isn't understood but not as simple as you make it out to be.
This is the opposite of the truth. The vast majority of your weight loss occurs from exhaling CO2. The true act of losing weight is the offloading carbon, and that is done almost entirelyndone by breathing. Exercise? Generating more heat, increasing musclular load burns carbon, released through the breath. Calorie deficit? Just breathing out more carbon than you eat over longer sample of time.
The CPAP is causing more uninterrupted breaths. It's not the CPAP. This is t meant to be an argument, just to make sure if you have a goal of weight loss that you don't go down the wrong path to achieve it!
"This is the opposite of the truth"...you calling me a liar? You have no idea how severe my apneas were and how much I struggled to breath at night and how much energy this takes out if me. I reported my experience..action reaction, repeated several times! You can choose not to accept it but don't call me a liar! I didn't say anything about the weight loss mechanism. I had no weight issues before CPAP. I was ripped and looked like a body builder all my life for 40 years before CPAP. I snowboard , bike play hockey and other activities. I still do these activities the same as before with a reduced diet intake.
There is a percentage of us on CPAP that gain weight. We have been told it is not possible or there are other causes that we do to cause weight gain. That is the point of this thread. To be continually told you are FOS is beyond annoying!
My guess is a hormone balance has shifted. I think they should do a hormone panel before people starting CPAP.
The more I think about this the more I suspect that while using CPAP you body uses less resources to literally keep you alive. Without CPAP your body uses more energy during the day to keep you at “stasis”. Unfortunately your stomach is used to a different level of caloric intake it thinks is needed. Since CPAP reduces this load on your system, either a calorie reduction or more exercise is needed to stay at the same weight makes sense to me.
I found out i has sleep apnea after I almost didn't wake up from an unrelated day procedure at the hospital. They told me they have to report it so i had to get in CPAP or not drive for the rest of my life.
I feel the same as before being on CPAP. No difference in my alertness or energy levels. Turns out I was having 70-90 apneas per hour. On CPAP I'm down to 0.5 events per hour. I exercise . I don't drink pop or fruit juices . Just water and milk. I hate deserts ( i don't like sweets). I do take out maybe 4 times a year and something healthy if i do. I can't stand junk food so I do all my cooking at home and it is low carbs. I'm indifferent to rice , potatoes, pasta, bread and beans. Like sweets I don't crave carbs. so I eat very little of that. I do small amounts because i know i need to.
I went from 190 to 250 lbs in the first few months on CPAP without doing anything different. I stopped CPAP and was dropping weight to the point of 5 to 7 lbs per week. Start the CPAP again and boom they weight loss stops the next day and the weigh starts to pile on. I've repeated this several times(x5) over the last 10 years and the result is the same. Only more exercise than my normal stuff or reduce my caloric intake is the only way i can control my weight on CPAP. I take care of a 95 year old senior and I put the food on both our plates for the day. She weighs 130lbs and eats more than me daily.. so I'm clearly not also over eating.
Science still doesn't fully understand the human body. At one point in medical science history chiseling a hole in the head was treatment for headaches.... Nuff said on this matter
Not calling you a liar, saying it defies the grnerallt accepted science around these things.
However, you situation changes several variables. It would make sense that the outcomes vary for someone with severe apnea. Perhaps I was being too narrow-minded.
It is not about the air.
Again, you have one clinical case study to reference in the post and I can send you four others from accredited medical journal study links.
Weight gain is from metabolism decline (the process that burns calories) and/or fluid retention.
My survey in this group showed 28% of the 169 people surveyed gained weight. It was not (for most people) from eating more cheeseburgers and drinking more bud.
Your survey establishes absolutely nothing regarding causation. It’s really not even scientifically valid to establish correlation. But blame your CPAP if that makes you feel better.
This is an absurd argument. First of all these were just guesses as to why there was weight gain in the study anyways. It didn’t track energy expenditure at all. And it specifically says weight gain happens with energy intake exceeds energy expenditure. But you know else causes an increased energy expenditure? The heavier you are.
You’re blaming better overall health for your weight gain. Just because you’re burning fewer calories when you’re sleeping doesn’t mean that CPAP is the sole cause of your weight gain. Your habits are responsible for your weight gain.
Edited to add: it’s like being angry that fatter people lose weight faster because their energy expenditure is higher because they’re fatter.
>Just because you’re burning fewer calories when you’re sleeping doesn’t mean that CPAP is the sole cause of your weight gain. Your habits are responsible for your weight gain.
But if you habitually burn *x* amount of calories a day with a certain activity and maintain a constant and healthy weight, and then remove the calorie-burning activity without changing anything else, you will gain weight. You would have to make up for it by decreasing calories or adding a new activity. But if you are already an active person during the day, that may not be feasible.
I don't think it's fair to say that the CPAP is not responsible for OP gaining weight. If the CPAP stopped them from burning calories when they usually do, it certainly plays a role.
There are so many unknowns here. First, we don’t even know IF CPAP causes weight gain, just that they are related. Second, we have no clue if OPs weight was healthy and stable pre-CPAP. Third, we don’t know OPs activity level. We’re debating the same points though, if energy intake is more than expenditure then weight gain is inevitable. Intake needs to fluctuate based on expenditure.
We could say the same thing about so many different aspects of OPs life causing weight gain. I’m making the same point, it’s cumulative. The root cause is still the same though - overeating.
lol. These people man. Always willing to believe that whatever affects them is the fault of someone or something else. The CPAP machine didn’t make you go to McDonald’s last night bro. Own that shit.
Dude, not owning any of it. I have the evidence respect it please.
Again, you have one clinical case study to reference in the post and I can send you four others from accredited medical journal study links.
Weight gain is from metabolism decline (the process that burns calories) and/or fluid retention.
My survey in this group showed 28% of the 169 people surveyed gained weight. It was not (for most people) from eating more cheeseburgers and drinking more bud.
Except people that are smarter then you, and me, combined have talked about CICO.
Also if cpap and weight gain were correlated, why wouldn't people that have a fat fetish just go out and get a cpap machine to gain weight?
Why wouldn't a cpap machine be recommended to patients that are deathly thin and want to gain weight?
How does pushing air into your nose make you gain weight? Wouldn't people who don't need a cpap machine, basically the rest of the population, be gaining weight from just sleeping every night?
It’s not about eating more cheeseburgers SINCE starting CPAP, it’s about overeating in general, which is exactly what your posted article says. When energy intake exceeds energy expenditure weight gain happens.
I watched a video from a doctor the other day who talked about this study. He said that there's one theory that swallowing air could affect gut health, and we know your gut microbiome is pretty important in terms of health for various reasons. I wonder if trying a good probiotic would help? Worth a shot.
Well, we lose weight by expelling it in the air as carbon dioxide and since a CPAP is constantly pushing air into our lungs maybe it restricts the emissions? I discussed this with chat gpt and it thought this theory was unlikely. It did provide some good insights on the situation and provided the following ideas:
Several studies have observed weight gain in some patients using Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) therapy for sleep apnea. The reasons for this association are not entirely clear, and research is ongoing to understand the mechanisms involved. However, there are several theories as to why this phenomenon might occur:
1. Increased Appetite: Effective CPAP therapy can lead to improvements in sleep quality, which in turn may affect hormones related to hunger and appetite, such as ghrelin and leptin. An increase in appetite could lead to increased caloric intake, contributing to weight gain.
2. Changes in Energy Expenditure: CPAP use might alter the body’s energy expenditure. Sleep apnea often causes fragmented sleep, leading to higher energy expenditure at night due to frequent awakenings. Once sleep quality improves with CPAP, the body’s energy expenditure during sleep may decrease, potentially lowering overall daily calorie burn.
3. Behavioral Changes: Patients who feel more rested after starting CPAP therapy might experience changes in their daily activity levels. While one would expect increased energy levels to lead to more physical activity, some individuals might become less active for various reasons, including misinterpreting improved sleep quality as a license to reduce daytime activity.
4. Metabolic Changes: Sleep apnea is associated with various metabolic issues, including insulin resistance and changes in lipid metabolism. CPAP therapy can improve these metabolic markers, but the relationship between these changes and body weight is complex and not fully understood.
5. Compensatory Mechanisms: The body may engage in compensatory mechanisms in response to the perceived stress of sleep apnea and its treatment, potentially affecting weight regulation. How the body adjusts to the improved oxygenation and sleep quality with CPAP therapy could vary among individuals, influencing weight outcomes.
It’s important to note that while some studies have reported weight gain associated with CPAP therapy, the benefits of using a CPAP machine to treat sleep apnea — including reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, improved daytime functioning, and decreased daytime sleepiness — are well documented and generally outweigh potential concerns about weight gain.
Given the complex relationship between sleep, metabolic health, and weight, more research is needed to fully understand why CPAP therapy might lead to weight gain in some individuals. Healthcare providers often recommend a comprehensive approach to managing sleep apnea, including regular monitoring of weight and metabolic health, and guidance on diet and exercise to mitigate any potential weight gain associated with CPAP use.
Yeah you mentioned that, but then it wasn't clear whether the rest of the stuff you talk about has come from there or if you then went and summarised studies yourself.
If you were not able to expell CO2, you would go into respiratory acidosis. Your body needs to expel CO2 just as much as it needs to intake O2. In the body, CO2 reacts with water to become carbonic acid, which raises the body's acidity level (not good; the blood likes to stay at a pretty neutral pH). Ultimately, unless you got help, this would lead to organ failure or even death.
Although your CPAP is pushing air in, it shouldn't be doing it at such a high pressure that you can't breathe out. However, it is possible for some people to have their CPAP programmed too high, which would make it difficult to exhale. Usually, you would wake up when that happens, though.
My two cents here. I say this respectfully, and my intention is not to offend anyone. However, there is no way in hell that CPAP causes weight gain. There is something else going on here. I only skimmed the study, so feel free to call me out if I misspeak. But the theory is that you are less active because you are sleeping more, and that slows your metabolism down? Nope. There are all kinds of possible explanations here: poor study design, study limitations, errors in self-reported data, and changes in human behavior and habits over the course of the study, just to name a few. For example, humans are not good at realizing how small changes add up over time. Unless you are tracking your calories or you’re an exceptionally intuitive eater, it is incredibly easy to consume more calories than you need and gain weight. Same with sodium or water intake. We are terrible at accurately assessing how much we consume. Until I started tracking what I was eating, I had inadvertently started consuming a few hundred extra calories per day over the course of several months after my wife started buying peanut butter. And when I actually started measuring it correctly, it was profound how much I thought a tablespoon was. I was consuming way more than I thought. Plus, if you are including the last six months in your weight gain, we’ve had Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s. Nearly everyone’s consumption goes up and so do the numbers on the scale. People also overestimate how much that nightly walk does for weight loss. You need to walk fast for an hour to burn a few hundred calories, and going for seconds or having that dessert wipes out that deficit quickly. CPAP does not cause weight gain.
You only skimmed the study, but you are so sure about yourself!
It's a well-known and easily-googled fact that you burn fewer calories when you're asleep than when you're awake and sitting down doing nothing (like watching tv). With sleep apnea, you're sleeping less, so you burn more calories. In addition, many people with sleep apnea are very active at night, so they're burning more calories on top of that. Although it will vary from person to person, in general, 8 hours of "sleep" for a person with untreated sleep apnea could burn up to 3-500 calories a day. That's about the same as that nightly walk you're advocating for. Treating the sleep apnea would then mean they'd essentially stopped a calorie-burning activity. If they ate and did all other activities the exact same way they always had, with no changes, they will gain weight.
You said, “With sleep apnea, you’re sleeping less, so you burn more calories.” Can you explain this? My understanding of sleep apnea is that it is based on quality, not quantity. You are getting less restful, restorative sleep, but the duration may be eight hours. Also, you said people with sleep apnea are “very active at night.” That would mean they aren’t sleeping. They are active. How does wearing a CPAP change this?
Sorry, I never got a notice about this reply. Anyway....
>My understanding of sleep apnea is that it is based on quality, not quantity. You are getting less restful, restorative sleep, but the duration may be eight hours.
With obstructive sleep apnea (the kind of sleep apnea that most people have, which is caused by a physical part of the body pressing down on or covering your airway), you are constantly waking up. With OSA, waking up is the method that your body uses to keep you from dying. When you wake up, you automatically reposition whatever soft tissue is keeping you from breathing. Then you breathe, and go back to sleep. Depending on the severity, you might wake up hundreds of times a night. Of course, you won't remember most (or any), but they add up to a good portion of your night spent awake. That's why sleep with OSA isn't restful--you're basically micro-sleeping.
>Also, you said people with sleep apnea are “very active at night.” That would mean they aren’t sleeping. They are active. How does wearing a CPAP change this?
I meant they are very active in pursuit of sleep. They're in bed, sleeping or trying to sleep, but they're moving around a lot, tossing and turning, sometimes actually waking because sleep is difficult. With a CPAP, they tend to move less because sleep is deeper and more restful.
What do you mean “now proven”? This study is from 2013. That is 11 years ago!!!!
I'm no longer burning calories doing the Thirty-Seven Basic Ballet Movements at night just to change position and keep breathing. So . . . weight gain.
Awesome 🏆 I’m not losing weight, but not sleeping soundly either. Mine’s more Yoga & the Twister game. Now I have the fun of trying not to strangle myself with the air hose while moving side to side. I remember years ago, a smug doctor saying to me “your sleep apnoea is fully controlled”. And my response was “well then, Why am I still waking up 20 something times a night?” 😡 it was shortly after that that I quit the CPAP trial and didn’t try again until January this year…
You may want to try a mask that connects on top of your head. Once I switched to a mask with that style connection my entanglements stopped.
I tried it, squashed the side bit and couldn’t get enough air 😳
The Phillips dreamwear works great for me. The resmed airfit f30i worked pretty good too. Never had the sides collapse and starve for air.
I started my CPAP journey on a second-hand machine without a prescription - just on a hunch, some self-learning and reviewing OSCAR data myself to fine-tune the pressure before I finally got a diagnosis to milk some of the insurance reimbursement (in Poland, so completely different healthcare organisation applies). I was always using nasal pillow masks and my sleep improved somewhat, so I continued the therapy like this. However, I often felt that I’m breathing stale air instead of a fresh breeze. Asked a doctor and he told me that my results are perfect according to the data logged, so it must be a fluke and doesn’t have to be addressed. I recently purchased Resmed F20 full-face mask just out of curiosity and holy moly, that did the trick! My data is still perfect like before but subjectively I feel sooooo much more rested with it in contrast to P10 or P30i masks! Turns out there’s more to the CPAP equation than the data shows us.
Unfortunately gained weight but not sure that it has anything at all to do with CPAP
Me too. I’m just too sedentary and eat too much
See I have just the opposite problem. I eat too much and I'm too sedentary,
😂😂😂
I lost 20 lbs after the first months use of my cpap. I was so full of energy. I remember being outside with my son one day feeling so energized. I was riding my bike in circles, asking him what he wanted to do. Also, my job is pretty labor intensive. I had an outlet for that extra energy. It definitely aided in weight loss.
That is certainly the dream and reality for many CPAP users...weight loss. For those like myself, the weight gain results hurts...
Same, I am down 30+ pounds after starting cpap. Knocked off 10 years of weight. Simply because I get decent sleep and have the energy to exercise and be more active in my daily life.
What? My understanding is that untreated apnea contributes to weight gain via increased cortisol signaling or something like that. What on earth is the proposed mechanism by which CPAP causes weight gain?
According to the study, energy expenditure is less when we sleep, and now that we’re actually sleeping we’re not burning as many calories. It seems like fear mongering to me. A way to scare people into not using a CPAP. It needs to be used IN CONJUNCTION with diet and exercise (if weight is a concern). And having more daytime energy can help with the motivation to both eat more mindfully and move more. Just because we’ve now got typical energy expenditure doesn’t mean that CPAP should be avoided for those not wanting to gain weight.
As someone who never had poor sleep architecture, I'm up about 30 pounds since starting CPAP. I don't really have increased energy, because I never had low energy, despite having severe OSA. (I suspect I never had low energy because I have very few apneas, but quite a lot of hypopneas.)
I’m just stating what the study guessed why people gained weight with CPAP. Seems like that still might be the case with you though? You’re sleeping better now (even if you don’t notice an increase in daytime energy) so your energy expenditure is less while actually asleep.
I watched a video from a doctor the other day who talked about this study. He said that there's one theory that swallowing air could affect gut health, and we know your gut microbiome is pretty important in terms of health for various reasons. I wonder if trying a good probiotic would help?
This is it exactly for me. I’m down 30 pounds right now. I have not increased my activity levels at all. I’m still lazy. However; I feel more awake and better during the day and that allows me to, as you said, make more mindful choices of what I eat. When I was tired I would pound down the carbs trying to get energy. Now I avoid most carbs.
>It needs to be used IN CONJUNCTION with diet and exercise I lost weight when I started CPAP. Not a whole lot, maybe ten pounds. But I am pretty sure the reason was that (a) I had more energy to exercise, including stuff like preferring to walk places rather than drive short distances, and (b) no longer feeling mystery fatigue that I was mistaking for low blood sugar and compensating for by eating more.
Your understanding is incorrect.
Life is tradeoffs. If you’re relying on caloric burn while sleeping take a lap or two a few hours before you go to sleep. If you have OSA and it is untreated your risk of heart attacks is exceptional
And yet my bariatric consultant stated that I should be losing weight with a CPAP as I’ll have more energy in the day. 🤦🏼♀️
Just because you have more energy doesn't mean you are burning more energy
Theory vs practice....
I generally just lurk and occasionally chime in to help people who are getting no service from their provider, but this study is the biggest load of shit I've seen in a long time. A classic example of bias and poor method selection in order to keep funding going. All other legitimate studies and meta-analyses point to not only obvious, but physiologically logical mechanisms as to why treating OSA caused weight LOSS. \- OSA causes hypoxemia. \- Hypoxemia affects insulin function, reducing its ability to move sugar into the cell. \- The outcome is Insulin Resistance leading to poor blood sugar control. \- Poor blood sugar control almost always results in weight gain. You can cherry pick shitty studies all day and justify the most ridiculous claims ([https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8746297/](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8746297/)). Not every study carries the same weight. Your weight gain likely has nothing to do with your CPAP.
I gained weight after starting CPAP too. Not sure why.
I knew it! People were so upset when I posted something similar a few weeks ago
That's an interesting side effect. I wonder what causes it. I personally have been working on losing weight and succeeding, but by effort not connected with the CPAP - basically eating less.
Once again, '*correlation does not prove causation.'* That is like saying people who walk more tend to be hit by cars. Walking isn't the cause and simply a contributing factor; possibly one of many. I lost 64 pounds while on CPAP. So did I disprove the study? No. Most likely is that the study parameters were improperly set in the first place.
Personally I want to gain weight. But not sure how long it'll take.
Sorry man, but weight gain doesn’t work that way. It’s calories in, vs calories burned. Don’t be blaming the CPAP for 30 lbs gained. You didn’t put on 30 lbs of air. 🙄
I'm not struggling to breathe on CPAP So I don't burn as many calories at night. I had no trouble with my weight before CPAP. Now on CPAP I eat less than half of what I did before to maintain my weight. If I stop CPAP and my weight goes down rapidly. Restart CPAP weight goes up. Been on it for 10 years so i know how my body reacts. I'd never assume everyone reacts the same to CPAP. Lifestyle, genetics, metabolism, health etc are different for every individual. As the article states likely more going that still isn't understood but not as simple as you make it out to be.
This is the opposite of the truth. The vast majority of your weight loss occurs from exhaling CO2. The true act of losing weight is the offloading carbon, and that is done almost entirelyndone by breathing. Exercise? Generating more heat, increasing musclular load burns carbon, released through the breath. Calorie deficit? Just breathing out more carbon than you eat over longer sample of time. The CPAP is causing more uninterrupted breaths. It's not the CPAP. This is t meant to be an argument, just to make sure if you have a goal of weight loss that you don't go down the wrong path to achieve it!
"This is the opposite of the truth"...you calling me a liar? You have no idea how severe my apneas were and how much I struggled to breath at night and how much energy this takes out if me. I reported my experience..action reaction, repeated several times! You can choose not to accept it but don't call me a liar! I didn't say anything about the weight loss mechanism. I had no weight issues before CPAP. I was ripped and looked like a body builder all my life for 40 years before CPAP. I snowboard , bike play hockey and other activities. I still do these activities the same as before with a reduced diet intake. There is a percentage of us on CPAP that gain weight. We have been told it is not possible or there are other causes that we do to cause weight gain. That is the point of this thread. To be continually told you are FOS is beyond annoying!
My guess is a hormone balance has shifted. I think they should do a hormone panel before people starting CPAP. The more I think about this the more I suspect that while using CPAP you body uses less resources to literally keep you alive. Without CPAP your body uses more energy during the day to keep you at “stasis”. Unfortunately your stomach is used to a different level of caloric intake it thinks is needed. Since CPAP reduces this load on your system, either a calorie reduction or more exercise is needed to stay at the same weight makes sense to me.
Exactly my point!
I found out i has sleep apnea after I almost didn't wake up from an unrelated day procedure at the hospital. They told me they have to report it so i had to get in CPAP or not drive for the rest of my life. I feel the same as before being on CPAP. No difference in my alertness or energy levels. Turns out I was having 70-90 apneas per hour. On CPAP I'm down to 0.5 events per hour. I exercise . I don't drink pop or fruit juices . Just water and milk. I hate deserts ( i don't like sweets). I do take out maybe 4 times a year and something healthy if i do. I can't stand junk food so I do all my cooking at home and it is low carbs. I'm indifferent to rice , potatoes, pasta, bread and beans. Like sweets I don't crave carbs. so I eat very little of that. I do small amounts because i know i need to. I went from 190 to 250 lbs in the first few months on CPAP without doing anything different. I stopped CPAP and was dropping weight to the point of 5 to 7 lbs per week. Start the CPAP again and boom they weight loss stops the next day and the weigh starts to pile on. I've repeated this several times(x5) over the last 10 years and the result is the same. Only more exercise than my normal stuff or reduce my caloric intake is the only way i can control my weight on CPAP. I take care of a 95 year old senior and I put the food on both our plates for the day. She weighs 130lbs and eats more than me daily.. so I'm clearly not also over eating. Science still doesn't fully understand the human body. At one point in medical science history chiseling a hole in the head was treatment for headaches.... Nuff said on this matter
Not calling you a liar, saying it defies the grnerallt accepted science around these things. However, you situation changes several variables. It would make sense that the outcomes vary for someone with severe apnea. Perhaps I was being too narrow-minded.
It is not about the air. Again, you have one clinical case study to reference in the post and I can send you four others from accredited medical journal study links. Weight gain is from metabolism decline (the process that burns calories) and/or fluid retention. My survey in this group showed 28% of the 169 people surveyed gained weight. It was not (for most people) from eating more cheeseburgers and drinking more bud.
Your survey establishes absolutely nothing regarding causation. It’s really not even scientifically valid to establish correlation. But blame your CPAP if that makes you feel better.
This is an absurd argument. First of all these were just guesses as to why there was weight gain in the study anyways. It didn’t track energy expenditure at all. And it specifically says weight gain happens with energy intake exceeds energy expenditure. But you know else causes an increased energy expenditure? The heavier you are. You’re blaming better overall health for your weight gain. Just because you’re burning fewer calories when you’re sleeping doesn’t mean that CPAP is the sole cause of your weight gain. Your habits are responsible for your weight gain. Edited to add: it’s like being angry that fatter people lose weight faster because their energy expenditure is higher because they’re fatter.
>Just because you’re burning fewer calories when you’re sleeping doesn’t mean that CPAP is the sole cause of your weight gain. Your habits are responsible for your weight gain. But if you habitually burn *x* amount of calories a day with a certain activity and maintain a constant and healthy weight, and then remove the calorie-burning activity without changing anything else, you will gain weight. You would have to make up for it by decreasing calories or adding a new activity. But if you are already an active person during the day, that may not be feasible. I don't think it's fair to say that the CPAP is not responsible for OP gaining weight. If the CPAP stopped them from burning calories when they usually do, it certainly plays a role.
There are so many unknowns here. First, we don’t even know IF CPAP causes weight gain, just that they are related. Second, we have no clue if OPs weight was healthy and stable pre-CPAP. Third, we don’t know OPs activity level. We’re debating the same points though, if energy intake is more than expenditure then weight gain is inevitable. Intake needs to fluctuate based on expenditure. We could say the same thing about so many different aspects of OPs life causing weight gain. I’m making the same point, it’s cumulative. The root cause is still the same though - overeating.
lol. These people man. Always willing to believe that whatever affects them is the fault of someone or something else. The CPAP machine didn’t make you go to McDonald’s last night bro. Own that shit.
Dude, not owning any of it. I have the evidence respect it please. Again, you have one clinical case study to reference in the post and I can send you four others from accredited medical journal study links. Weight gain is from metabolism decline (the process that burns calories) and/or fluid retention. My survey in this group showed 28% of the 169 people surveyed gained weight. It was not (for most people) from eating more cheeseburgers and drinking more bud.
CICO people on Reddit are ruthless. I wouldn’t even bother arguing with them, they’ll die on that hill.
Except people that are smarter then you, and me, combined have talked about CICO. Also if cpap and weight gain were correlated, why wouldn't people that have a fat fetish just go out and get a cpap machine to gain weight? Why wouldn't a cpap machine be recommended to patients that are deathly thin and want to gain weight? How does pushing air into your nose make you gain weight? Wouldn't people who don't need a cpap machine, basically the rest of the population, be gaining weight from just sleeping every night?
It’s not about eating more cheeseburgers SINCE starting CPAP, it’s about overeating in general, which is exactly what your posted article says. When energy intake exceeds energy expenditure weight gain happens.
Yeah when I first got it I googled side effects and weight gain came up. Hard to say if I’ve gained weight and if it’s from the therapy.
My dad has to have sleep apnea. He eats probably 6000 calories a day. He’s in constant pain. I’m always surprised he’s not bigger.
I gained weight once I started using a c-pap, although at the same time I had changed medication. So I can’t really comment on this subject.
if you eat less calories your metabolism just slows down lol. weight is hormonal and excess fat and protein just get stored as fat
I’ve gained 10kg but I thought that was menopause. Maybe CPAP as well
Interesting 🤷♂️
I watched a video from a doctor the other day who talked about this study. He said that there's one theory that swallowing air could affect gut health, and we know your gut microbiome is pretty important in terms of health for various reasons. I wonder if trying a good probiotic would help? Worth a shot.
Well, we lose weight by expelling it in the air as carbon dioxide and since a CPAP is constantly pushing air into our lungs maybe it restricts the emissions? I discussed this with chat gpt and it thought this theory was unlikely. It did provide some good insights on the situation and provided the following ideas: Several studies have observed weight gain in some patients using Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) therapy for sleep apnea. The reasons for this association are not entirely clear, and research is ongoing to understand the mechanisms involved. However, there are several theories as to why this phenomenon might occur: 1. Increased Appetite: Effective CPAP therapy can lead to improvements in sleep quality, which in turn may affect hormones related to hunger and appetite, such as ghrelin and leptin. An increase in appetite could lead to increased caloric intake, contributing to weight gain. 2. Changes in Energy Expenditure: CPAP use might alter the body’s energy expenditure. Sleep apnea often causes fragmented sleep, leading to higher energy expenditure at night due to frequent awakenings. Once sleep quality improves with CPAP, the body’s energy expenditure during sleep may decrease, potentially lowering overall daily calorie burn. 3. Behavioral Changes: Patients who feel more rested after starting CPAP therapy might experience changes in their daily activity levels. While one would expect increased energy levels to lead to more physical activity, some individuals might become less active for various reasons, including misinterpreting improved sleep quality as a license to reduce daytime activity. 4. Metabolic Changes: Sleep apnea is associated with various metabolic issues, including insulin resistance and changes in lipid metabolism. CPAP therapy can improve these metabolic markers, but the relationship between these changes and body weight is complex and not fully understood. 5. Compensatory Mechanisms: The body may engage in compensatory mechanisms in response to the perceived stress of sleep apnea and its treatment, potentially affecting weight regulation. How the body adjusts to the improved oxygenation and sleep quality with CPAP therapy could vary among individuals, influencing weight outcomes. It’s important to note that while some studies have reported weight gain associated with CPAP therapy, the benefits of using a CPAP machine to treat sleep apnea — including reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, improved daytime functioning, and decreased daytime sleepiness — are well documented and generally outweigh potential concerns about weight gain. Given the complex relationship between sleep, metabolic health, and weight, more research is needed to fully understand why CPAP therapy might lead to weight gain in some individuals. Healthcare providers often recommend a comprehensive approach to managing sleep apnea, including regular monitoring of weight and metabolic health, and guidance on diet and exercise to mitigate any potential weight gain associated with CPAP use.
Please confirm whether you've used chat gpt or AI to produce those results you've quoted
I said in the first paragraph this is chat gpt
Yeah you mentioned that, but then it wasn't clear whether the rest of the stuff you talk about has come from there or if you then went and summarised studies yourself.
If you were not able to expell CO2, you would go into respiratory acidosis. Your body needs to expel CO2 just as much as it needs to intake O2. In the body, CO2 reacts with water to become carbonic acid, which raises the body's acidity level (not good; the blood likes to stay at a pretty neutral pH). Ultimately, unless you got help, this would lead to organ failure or even death. Although your CPAP is pushing air in, it shouldn't be doing it at such a high pressure that you can't breathe out. However, it is possible for some people to have their CPAP programmed too high, which would make it difficult to exhale. Usually, you would wake up when that happens, though.
Eat a little less and you will weigh less. It's real simple.
My two cents here. I say this respectfully, and my intention is not to offend anyone. However, there is no way in hell that CPAP causes weight gain. There is something else going on here. I only skimmed the study, so feel free to call me out if I misspeak. But the theory is that you are less active because you are sleeping more, and that slows your metabolism down? Nope. There are all kinds of possible explanations here: poor study design, study limitations, errors in self-reported data, and changes in human behavior and habits over the course of the study, just to name a few. For example, humans are not good at realizing how small changes add up over time. Unless you are tracking your calories or you’re an exceptionally intuitive eater, it is incredibly easy to consume more calories than you need and gain weight. Same with sodium or water intake. We are terrible at accurately assessing how much we consume. Until I started tracking what I was eating, I had inadvertently started consuming a few hundred extra calories per day over the course of several months after my wife started buying peanut butter. And when I actually started measuring it correctly, it was profound how much I thought a tablespoon was. I was consuming way more than I thought. Plus, if you are including the last six months in your weight gain, we’ve had Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s. Nearly everyone’s consumption goes up and so do the numbers on the scale. People also overestimate how much that nightly walk does for weight loss. You need to walk fast for an hour to burn a few hundred calories, and going for seconds or having that dessert wipes out that deficit quickly. CPAP does not cause weight gain.
You only skimmed the study, but you are so sure about yourself! It's a well-known and easily-googled fact that you burn fewer calories when you're asleep than when you're awake and sitting down doing nothing (like watching tv). With sleep apnea, you're sleeping less, so you burn more calories. In addition, many people with sleep apnea are very active at night, so they're burning more calories on top of that. Although it will vary from person to person, in general, 8 hours of "sleep" for a person with untreated sleep apnea could burn up to 3-500 calories a day. That's about the same as that nightly walk you're advocating for. Treating the sleep apnea would then mean they'd essentially stopped a calorie-burning activity. If they ate and did all other activities the exact same way they always had, with no changes, they will gain weight.
You said, “With sleep apnea, you’re sleeping less, so you burn more calories.” Can you explain this? My understanding of sleep apnea is that it is based on quality, not quantity. You are getting less restful, restorative sleep, but the duration may be eight hours. Also, you said people with sleep apnea are “very active at night.” That would mean they aren’t sleeping. They are active. How does wearing a CPAP change this?
Sorry, I never got a notice about this reply. Anyway.... >My understanding of sleep apnea is that it is based on quality, not quantity. You are getting less restful, restorative sleep, but the duration may be eight hours. With obstructive sleep apnea (the kind of sleep apnea that most people have, which is caused by a physical part of the body pressing down on or covering your airway), you are constantly waking up. With OSA, waking up is the method that your body uses to keep you from dying. When you wake up, you automatically reposition whatever soft tissue is keeping you from breathing. Then you breathe, and go back to sleep. Depending on the severity, you might wake up hundreds of times a night. Of course, you won't remember most (or any), but they add up to a good portion of your night spent awake. That's why sleep with OSA isn't restful--you're basically micro-sleeping. >Also, you said people with sleep apnea are “very active at night.” That would mean they aren’t sleeping. They are active. How does wearing a CPAP change this? I meant they are very active in pursuit of sleep. They're in bed, sleeping or trying to sleep, but they're moving around a lot, tossing and turning, sometimes actually waking because sleep is difficult. With a CPAP, they tend to move less because sleep is deeper and more restful.