Steady Weight Loss through Weed?

[TransistorBass]

I'll set the scene with a bit of preamble.

I'm almost 100% sure that since starting taking Cannabis for Neuropathic pain some 3-4 years ago that I have been slowly dropping weight, around the same timeframe I've had back issues that also effect my lower guts and I found that stopping drinking beer stops exacerbating the back-induced gut issues, so overall over the last 3-4 years I've drunk very little alcohol, mostly just a few beers once a month. In the same timeframe I have also been much more consistent in eating breakfast and I have not changed the amount that I eat though you could say with the occasional bit of Munchies I will have increased my calorie intake in the evenings.

I always use a balanced THC/CBD bud, I've tried THCV bud and it still gives me the same munchies even though its billed as 'Diet Weed'.

I think this is quite hard to pick apart, but I am still losing weight in a very steady way and it shows no sign of stopping. This could also be the fact that I've tipped over into my early 50's and the body's natural changes, maybe lower testosterone etc? Maybe I should get a Testosterone test, if its low and needs a boost it may help other aches and pains.

I've been the same waist size since leaving school until recently when I'm definitely going to have to buy a smaller size for my workwear even if my regular Jeans still fit fine.

So, is Cannabis regulating my Blood sugar better? Is cannabis lowering my Cholesterol? I'm inclined to think these things are true.
I'm currently about 6kg lighter than my preferred weight which had been stable within +/-1kg for years and years.

I think there needs to be some serious studies to answer these questions, there's not a lot out there from what I can see.

 

[universecannon]

It could be less beer as well

Weed kind of kills my appetite but my response to it is fairly atypical

 

[TransistorBass]

It could be less beer as well

It could, though for many years longer than my Cannabis use my Beer drinking has been very measured with only 1-Pint days and exercise days were Zero beer days meaning 3 days each week totally dry, maybe 1-2 pints Saturday and Sunday.

Very hard to pull apart a clear reason for losing weight.

 

[doubledog]

Stopping beer and changing your breakfast routine are likely more important factors than cannabis.

 

[TransistorBass]

Yeah, so eating more has meant weight loss.

 

[northape]

Yeah, so eating more has meant weight loss.

Weight management is a hormonal issue, so you're doing something right.
Drinking beer usually spikes insulin and stresses the system. They call it liquid bread for a reason.
I don't know about cannabis, but it could have rebalanced your hormones.

 

[TransistorBass]

Cannabis has actually rebalanced me as a human. And its the tiniest amount too!

 

[Jamie01]

There seems to be a noted correlation where long term groups of habitual users had less obesity than non users. It’s the first thing that comes up from the Google AI. I spent all of like 22 seconds on Google and a bunch of links came up but it looks like no one really knows what is going on.

Cannabis, Weight, and Weight-Related Behaviors - PMC

Review recent research regarding the relationship between cannabis use, weight, eating behaviors, eating disorders, and physical activity. Cannabis, particularly the cannabinoid Δ9-tegrahydrocannabinol (THC), is associated with increased appetite, ...

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

 

[TransistorBass]

There seems to be a noted correlation where long term groups of habitual users had less obesity than non users. It’s the first thing that comes up from the Google AI. I spent all of like 22 seconds on Google and a bunch of links came up but it looks like no one really knows what is going on.

Cannabis, Weight, and Weight-Related Behaviors - PMC

Review recent research regarding the relationship between cannabis use, weight, eating behaviors, eating disorders, and physical activity. Cannabis, particularly the cannabinoid Δ9-tegrahydrocannabinol (THC), is associated with increased appetite, ...

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Yeah, that was my impression when I was searching. Half arsed studies and the usual crap mixing 'smoking' with Cannabis use when I don't smoke it so pushing the harms of smoking which whitewashes the results.

 

[brokedownpalace10]

Wow. I generally experience steady weight gain through cannabis. It's the biggest reason I seldom smoke anymore. As a 70 year old, weight gain is a real health hazard.

 

[doubledog]

Yeah, so eating more has meant weight loss.

It appears that timing of eating could have some benefits, but of course, who really knows?

As no cannabis user in my circles is overweighted, there really seems to be some correlation.

 

[blig-blug]

Yeah, so eating more has meant weight loss.

You may actually be eating less, without strict tracking it's hard to know. I wouldn't be surprised if eating breakfast means you end up eating less for the rest of your meals.

How much beer were you drinking before?

 

[TransistorBass]

You may actually be eating less, without strict tracking it's hard to know. I wouldn't be surprised if eating breakfast means you end up eating less for the rest of your meals.

How much beer were you drinking before?

The most over an average week would be 7 pints at most but 3 days of exercise a week when zero alcohol used.

 

[blig-blug]

Let's do an estimation:

As 1kg of human fat (counting water content etc.) is about 7700kcal. So you need approximately a net deficit of 7700kcal to lose one kilo.

Now, you say you've lost about 6kg in 3-4 years, let's make that 6kg in 3.5 years. That's a weekly deficit of 6*7700 / 3.5 / 52 = 253kcal.

Now, let's assume a pint of beer has 200kcal, that seems to be about average. So four pints a week would be 800kcal. Just stopping drinking beer without changing anything else would have you at that weekly deficit. Assuming metabolism stays the same with weight loss, which is a huge assumption but fine for estimation purposes, you would have been expected to lose 800 * 52 * 3.5 / 7700 = 18.9kg. Now, taking into account metabolic changes (and the fact that you were unlikely to have enough fat to lose that much) it would be less, but it doesn't matter.

The point is that just stopping to drink beer explains it, and by a very wide margin.

 

[The Sofa Traveler]

I concur with what @blig-blug said. I quit booze about 4 years ago, especially beer whom I was a heavy drinker (much more than 4 pints in a week). I lost 15 kg in the interval, which I primarily attribute to the fact I don't drink anymore alcohol, and secondarily to the fact I slightly improved my food habits, being more attentive on that topic. I quit cannabis 4 months ago and it doesn't seem to affect my weight.

 

[northape]

Just stopping adding milk to my morning coffee made a significant change in my weight. You can watch videos about how insulin works and how big an influence it has on weight management. Basically, my milk coffee gave me a morning insulin spike, which led to increasing weight long term. Besides fasting, nothing much rebalances your insulin response, apart from maybe harmalas. I remember one study about harmine, which seems to repair pancreatic cells.

 

[TransistorBass]

Thanks ALL
Over a much much longer period I also went dairy free, though I do miss cheese and yogurt, it makes me feel vastly better.

 

[northape]

Thanks ALL
Over a much much longer period I also went dairy free, though I do miss cheese and yogurt, it makes me feel vastly better.

Dairy products are a whole topic in itself. I remember drinking raw cow milk when it was still warm and steaming when I was a child. Today, it's simply banned and has somehow become dangerous. What you can find in a store is just some fabricated stuff far removed from reality, imo. So, I'm slowly moving away from dairy myself, even if it was a big part of my diet for most of life. Maybe 5-10% of the food in my local store could be considered edible by my standards now. If you don't live on a farm yourself, getting something fresh and alive has become close to impossible.

 

[TransistorBass]

I never used to be intollerent to dairy it’s been something I grew into with age, took me a few years to figure out what was going on and Docs were no help at all even if they did do some investigations to rule out anything nasty. With cameras put in places etc!

Once I cut out all dairy I suddenly started feeling normal again after years of feeling just not quite right. These days I very occasionally treat myself to some good natural sheep or goat cheese and the occasional pizza with buffalo mozzarella I’m ok with.

 

[northape]

Now, would that happen if you were living on an organic farm consuming your own produce? I highly doubt it. Whatever happened with the dairy industry, it was not for our benefit. It's good that you were able to sort out your situation yourself. Medical diagnostic practice, or the lack thereof, is another big topic. Maybe it's better in some places, but I've only seen examples of complete stupidity locally.