Do you snore loudly? Are you tired during the day even after a full night's sleep? You may be suffering from sleep apnea, a dangerous condition that can cause your breathing to stop while you sleep. The good news is that The South Beach Diet™ can help.
In the most common form of sleep apnea (known as obstructive sleep apnea), the muscles in your larynx collapse, preventing the flow of air to the lungs. The brain, recognizing a decrease of oxygen in the blood, sends a signal to the body to arouse you from sleep in order to take a breath.
In addition to preventing a good night's sleep for you and your spouse, sleep apnea can cause high blood pressure and an increased chance of heart failure or stroke. If you suffer from sleep apnea, you may find yourself unable to stay awake at work, while watching TV, or even while driving.
Men over the age of 40 (Like Me-Ed.) are most commonly affected by sleep apnea, but overweight or obese people are also at a higher risk of developing the condition. (That's two strikes—Ed.) Excess weight, especially around the neck, can obstruct the breathing passages. Losing weight on The South Beach Diet™ may relieve the obstruction, lessen snoring, and help you to breathe easier. (It's all true, see "Sweet Puffs of Air", Ibid)
Sleep apnea should not be taken lightly. Consult your doctor if you believe you suffer from the condition and weight loss is not helping. Your doctor can recommend alternative treatments
Breakfast
1 Big and 1 tiny Slice of When Pigs Fly Harvest Bread
with Australian Cheddar
Tea
Snack
1/4 cup Almonds/Cashews
8 Dried, Turkish-Style Apricots
12 oz Coffee (half decaf)
1 Apple (I thought it was a Jonagold but it said "Cameo" on it. See below for more details)
Lunch: Chinese
1 Pizza-Shaped Slice of Scallion Pancake
Hot & Sour Soup
Shredded Pork, Cabbage and Peppers
"Peppered" Chicken
Dinner
93% Chopped Sirloin
Broccoli
Peppadews
Pickles
So I have a fear about picking out apples because I love apples but if you're like me and you're used to the crappy supermarket apples, and you know the experience of eating an apple off a tree, you are always hesitant to pick out apples because of the dread fear that they will be brown, soft, mealy or powdery when you bite into them, causing you to have to go "off" apples until you disgust recedes. To avoid this, I started buying apples at Whole Foods, but even though I'm paying twice as much, I wasn't any happier. So I start going to Russo's for apples but they have so many kinds that I always freak out that I'm going accidentally buy just-out-of-season apples that sit next to something that is just in, crisp and delicious. Whatever I got was yummy, and I think it was a Cameo because the label said so. But the label also said "geewhizfruit.com" and so I went there and Cameo is not one of the varieties they sell. Meaning it could have been a Gala or Pink Lady, or they just haven't updated their Web site. Amazingly, in looking around for the apple of my eye, I did find the nutrition "label" for apples, so I've included it here.
2 comments:
Sorry, I remain true to Fugi apples purchased reliably at Costco...cheap and delicious. It's true about sleep apnea which seems to gallop not run in our family. But weight loss is the first best thing to do about it. Love, MOM
Try the Honey Crisp applies iffen you can find them. We have them up in NH from the nearby orchard and they, as the kids say, totally rock.
Lurleen
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