Sleep apnea affects more than sleep, experts say. It can also cause weight gain and prevent weight loss. One factor that can lead to weight gain with sleep apnea is how the condition affects overall energy levels. While having sleep apnea can cause weight gain, weight gain can also worsen symptoms of sleep apnea.
When most people gain weight, they gain it everywhere, including the neck. Excess weight in this area can narrow your airways when you lie down. When air has to pass through, it is often heard as snoring or wheezing. Obstructive sleep apnea occurs when the airways are blocked during sleep, so this excessive narrowing can increase the number of times you wake up at night.
Many Americans live with obstructive sleep apnea, and many of them go undiagnosed. Sleep apnea is a condition of breathing during sleep that occurs when the airways become blocked during sleep. When the airway becomes obstructed, you wake up frequently during the night, which prevents you from getting the sleep you need. Obstructive sleep apnea can also contribute to weight gain and obesity.
Research has shown that approximately 40 percent of people living with obesity also have obstructive sleep apnea, and 70 percent of people with obstructive sleep apnea are obese, but how and why are the two related?. Without getting the right treatment for your OSA and taking steps to maintain a healthy weight, a vicious cycle occurs. Weight gain can cause sleep apnea, which can cause weight gain, which worsens sleep apnea, leading to greater weight gain, etc. And if you're balancing other health problems at the same time, the cycle becomes more difficult to break.
As the medical community learns more about sleep apnea, several important links to excess body weight are emerging. Not only can excess weight cause sleep apnea, but it can also worsen symptoms and exacerbate their harmful health effects. Insufficient sleep can also lead to weight gain, making it a vicious cycle. Encouraging that many studies show that weight loss improves sleep apnea.
If you have problems with sleep apnea or being overweight, it's important to understand the complex interactions between the two conditions. Obesity is considered an important risk factor for the development and progression of OSA, 8,19,20,27,28. The prevalence of OSA in obese or severely obese patients is almost double that in normal-weight adults. In addition, patients with mild OSA who gain 10% of their baseline weight have a six-fold increased risk of progression of OSA, and equivalent weight loss may result in an improvement of more than 20% in the severity of OSA, 28 In addition, the higher prevalence of OSA in obese subjects is not limited to adults; data show that obese children have a 46% prevalence of OSA compared to children seen in a general pediatric clinic (33%). These findings highlight the need to develop screening and prevention for these conditions, even starting in childhood.
Appetite can also be deregulated due to sleep-related changes in hormone levels, especially the hormones leptin and ghrelin. While this may not completely relieve sleep apnea, it can be a valuable part of managing your symptoms and improving your overall health. People who sleep less than 6 hours a night may also be more likely to eat more, closer to bedtime, increasing their overall caloric intake and leading to weight gain. Therefore, when you don't get enough sleep, your hormones tell you to eat more and won't tell you to stop.
DeBanto is a physician and gastroenterologist with 20 years of experience managing obesity and related problems, such as sleep apnea. In fact, obesity itself is the most treatable cause of sleep apnea, and weight loss not only improves this condition, but many others. Adequate sleep not only makes you feel well-rested, but it also gives your body time to recover and repair itself. But losing weight if you're overweight or obese is one of the most effective treatments for sleep apnea.
Weight loss has been accompanied by an improvement in characteristics related not only to obesity, but also to OSA, suggesting that weight loss could be a cornerstone of treating both conditions. Although practice guidelines for treating OSA consistently recommend encouraging weight loss, 25 to 27 physicians should do more than just encourage. A patient with sleep apnea who loses as little as 5 percent of their body weight can expect to find some relief. And sleep apnea leads to sleep deprivation, which can be how you connect the dots to many other chronic health problems.
Studies ranging from 1 to 48 months in duration report that CPAP is associated with a 0.5 kg weight gain compared to control therapy. . .
