Surgery – Truss – Pad
Patent
1986-05-16
1988-04-19
Yu, Mickey
Surgery
Truss
Pad
128132R, 128155, 433 7, A61F 546
Patent
active
047382597
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The importance of maintaining proper weight for good health continues to receive increased public attention. Such increased attention adds to the frustration of overweight persons who not only desire better health, but are also conscious of their overweight appearance. In serious cases, effective weight control is best accomplished by initially coordinating training in mental discipline with specific physiological measures. Such physiological measures may be necessary because overweight persons who have made repeated attempts to lose weight experience demoralizing frustration with each successive failure. The use of more stringent methods which supplement individual self discipline by physiologically forcing a change in eating habits may be helpful in re-establishing self confidence.
The parent U.S. Pat. No. 4,471,771 discloses a general method of weight control wherein mechanical devices are used to slow down the eating process to allow the body time to naturally register the sensation of having hunger satisfied prior to the completion of a meal. It is well known, for example, that the digestive system requires approximately 15 minutes of processing time before the brain registers satisfaction of the hunger sensation. Consequently, persons who eat quickly may consume much more food than is physiologically necessary for satisfaction of hunger. The referenced patent focuses on the method of impeding the eating process by providing a blocking device which at least partially obstructs the passage of unchewed, solid foods through the mouth to the stomach. By increasing the time duration food is retained in the mouth, one automatically reduces the rate of food consumption. Accordingly, the use of dental devices which are retained at tooth structure has proven to be an effective method for weight control, when used independently or in conjunction with diets or other weight loss methods. The present disclosure constitutes an improvement subsumed within the general method set forth and claimed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,471,771.
OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of this invention to provide a device or appliance for attachment to an individual's teeth for interfering with natural mastication and transport of food within the individual's mouth, thereby impeding the rate of food consumption.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a dental appliance which impedes the passage of unchewed solid foods through the mouth to the stomach by limiting or restricting the free movement of food across the surfaces of the molars.
A further object of this invention is to impede the eating process by blocking access of the tongue to food as it is being chewed, thereby slowing down the natural process of mastication.
A still further object of the present invention is to increase the amount of effort required to chew food, thereby increasing the required time for consumption and decreasing the normal satisfaction of eating.
An additional object of the present invention is to provide a device which blocks unrestrained mastication by imposing a temporary obstacle between the occluding teeth.
These and other objects are realized in a weight loss device which comprises an outwardly projecting wing-guard or flange having an elongated configuration which is adapted to impede the passage of food there through. This flange or wing-guard projects above the chewing surfaces of the tooth and is mounted along a distal to mesial orientation at the side of the teeth such that the flange is positioned above the chewing surfaces and with the upper portion inclined away from the region between opposing teeth which occlude for mastication. Ideally, the flange or wing-guard is positioned between the tongue and teeth and prevents the tongue from manipulating the food in its customary manner. In addition, the flange prevents the food from moving freely to the tongue and into the stomach without complete mastication. With respect to more serious overweight conditions, the flange may be hinged
REFERENCES:
patent: 2593821 (1952-04-01), Welch
patent: 3307539 (1967-03-01), Petersen
patent: 3818906 (1974-06-01), Stubbs
patent: 4211008 (1980-07-01), Lerman
patent: 4439149 (1984-03-01), Devincenzo
patent: 4471771 (1984-09-01), Brown et al.
Brown Steven J.
Comstock Charles E.
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