4 ms·

One of the things that was a revelation to me about sleep apnea… it's not CAUSED by your weight. Here, I'd been carrying that around for years, and feeling like

by akulbe 6y ago

One of the things that was a revelation to me about sleep apnea… it's not CAUSED by your weight. Here, I'd been carrying that around for years, and feeling like a failure. I brought it up to my sleep doctor. I said I thought I had it because of my weight, he laughed at it. He said, "If you are overweight, that can exacerbate apnea, but IT ABSOLUTELY DOES NOT CAUSE IT. That's absurd." My sleep doctor is suuuuper fit, and very lean. An avid runner. He said that he has a VERY bad case of sleep apnea. I was floored! He said you either have it or you don't.

JauntyHatAngle 6y ago
I've heard different from sleep doctors, that is, it can be bad luck from genetics where weight is not the main (or even not at all) a factor, but for others it's largely caused by fat deposits blocking the upper airway, and with weight loss it entirely goes away. So case by case?
PaulKeeble 6y ago
I had a doctor in the sleep clinic tell me if I lost 10KG my sleep apnea would be cured. I lost 15KG and my prescription went up 5%. When the doctors treating you believe that nonsense and then are surprised it did not work there isn't much hope for the public. This myth actually comes from the doctors.
- DanBC 6y ago
  Weight loss is not curative, but it is a useful. About 2/3rds to 3/4ths of people with obstructive sleep apnoea are obese. https://cks.nice.org.uk/topics/obstructive-sleep-apnoea-syndrome/management/management/ https://cks.nice.org.uk/topics/obstructive-sleep-apnoea-synd... > These recommendations are based on the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) guideline Management of obstructive sleep apnoea/hypopnoea syndrome (OSAHS) in adults [SIGN, 2003]. > Advice on weight loss and exercise > Expert opinion in a clinical review article from the British Medical Journal, Obstructive sleep apnoea, concluded that weight reduction programmes are not to be thought of as curative but rather as adjunctive for people with obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome (OSAS) [Greenstone and Hack, 2014]. > A meta-analysis of 5 small studies (n = 129) found a reduction in the apnoea/hypopnoea index (AHI) by –6.27 events/hour following supervised exercise training. This demonstrated a reduction in the severity of sleep apnoea (with minimal changes in body weight) with exercise [Iftikhar et al, 2014].
  - treeman79 6y ago
    Spouse has a threshold weight. Above she snores like a train. I sleep elsewhere. Below she’s fine.
  - PaulKeeble 6y ago
    Yes they are, because sleep apnea causes obesity since lack of sleep messes enormously with your hormones. Its not causative its correlated, it is a symptom.
    - slothtrop 6y ago
      I had poor sleep for ages and was never overweight, which is true of most insomniacs I imagine. Sleep apnea may facilitate obesity but it doesn't cause it. It's calories in, calories out. I think the strong correlation of obesity with sleep apnea however should lend credence to the idea that it at least exacerbates it. But more to the point, there are conditions that are very similar to sleep apnea but are misdiagnosed as such. And these may very well be more related to weight.

by akulbe 6y ago

JauntyHatAngle 6y ago

I've heard different from sleep doctors, that is, it can be bad luck from genetics where weight is not the main (or even not at all) a factor, but for others it's largely caused by fat deposits blocking the upper airway, and with weight loss it entirely goes away. So case by case?

PaulKeeble 6y ago

I had a doctor in the sleep clinic tell me if I lost 10KG my sleep apnea would be cured. I lost 15KG and my prescription went up 5%. When the doctors treating you believe that nonsense and then are surprised it did not work there isn't much hope for the public. This myth actually comes from the doctors.

DanBC 6y ago
Weight loss is not curative, but it is a useful. About 2/3rds to 3/4ths of people with obstructive sleep apnoea are obese. https://cks.nice.org.uk/topics/obstructive-sleep-apnoea-syndrome/management/management/ https://cks.nice.org.uk/topics/obstructive-sleep-apnoea-synd... > These recommendations are based on the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) guideline Management of obstructive sleep apnoea/hypopnoea syndrome (OSAHS) in adults [SIGN, 2003]. > Advice on weight loss and exercise > Expert opinion in a clinical review article from the British Medical Journal, Obstructive sleep apnoea, concluded that weight reduction programmes are not to be thought of as curative but rather as adjunctive for people with obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome (OSAS) [Greenstone and Hack, 2014]. > A meta-analysis of 5 small studies (n = 129) found a reduction in the apnoea/hypopnoea index (AHI) by –6.27 events/hour following supervised exercise training. This demonstrated a reduction in the severity of sleep apnoea (with minimal changes in body weight) with exercise [Iftikhar et al, 2014].
- treeman79 6y ago
  Spouse has a threshold weight. Above she snores like a train. I sleep elsewhere. Below she’s fine.
- PaulKeeble 6y ago
  Yes they are, because sleep apnea causes obesity since lack of sleep messes enormously with your hormones. Its not causative its correlated, it is a symptom.
  - slothtrop 6y ago
    I had poor sleep for ages and was never overweight, which is true of most insomniacs I imagine. Sleep apnea may facilitate obesity but it doesn't cause it. It's calories in, calories out. I think the strong correlation of obesity with sleep apnea however should lend credence to the idea that it at least exacerbates it. But more to the point, there are conditions that are very similar to sleep apnea but are misdiagnosed as such. And these may very well be more related to weight.