How obesity is linked to Sleep Apnea

Although some associate snoring with a pleasant sleep, the truth is that obstructive apnea syndrome, which includes these annoying noises, is the product of several unresolved health problems, including obesity.

Obstructive sleep apnea occurs when the upper airway becomes blocked due to a collapse in the throat muscles during breathing. This condition causes breathing to stop for 10 seconds or more while sleeping.

Between 2% and 4% of the population suffers from this obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS). Of the total number of people who suffer from this disorder, up to 70% are obese and of the obese up to 40% have OSAS, a figure that rises to 70% in the case of morbidly obese.

Overweight and obesity are the main risk factor for this disease, since the adipose tissue in the pharyngeal region, with narrowing and collapse of the airway, prevents the correct oxygenation of the body, causing obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS).

Obese patients tend to have more fat accumulated in the cervical region than a person with a normal weight. This concentration of fat, in turn, leads to secondary hormonal changes that, in many cases, are usually the origin of OSA. Furthermore, it has been shown that leptin (a hormone that controls hunger and satiety) has an effect at the level of the respiratory center.

The most common symptoms to detect this syndrome are fatigue, lack of attention and concentration, morning headaches, memory loss, low productivity and, of course, snoring.

The obesity specialists comments that “Apneas should be treated as a chronic condition, which requires long-term management and follow-up by an interdisciplinary team made up of a clinician, nutritionist and in some cases the sleep medicine doctor.” The importance of maintaining weight within normal parameters in order, in addition to reducing the risk of OSA and improving cardiopulmonary function, to have a good long-term quality of life.

Furthermore, as the Doctor explains, bariatric surgery such as gastric banding or gastric bypass, among others, “has proven to be effective in reducing respiratory events such as apneas and hypopnea during sleep.

A healthy diet

The best prevention for this type of disorder is a balanced and healthy diet, in addition to regular exercise, to maintain a correct weight and avoid health problems.

Let us remember that people who suffer from OSAS have, in addition to a tendency to obesity, a high risk of suffering other types of problems, especially cardiovascular problems, such as high blood pressure, myocardial infarction, heart failure, arrhythmias, pulmonary hypertension and stroke.