Sleep apnea is a disorder that happens when regular pauses in breathing interrupt sleep. As a result of these interruptions, a person might begin to gain weight. Each condition reinforces the other, so it becomes very hard to separate from them. Improving health requires knowing the relationship between sleep apnea and gaining weight.
Getting to know Sleep Apnea
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and central sleep apnea are the two main kinds of sleep apnea. With OSA, the problem is that the throat muscles relax too much as you sleep, blocking the airway. Central sleep apnea is not as common, because the brain stops it from sending signals to breathe.
Sleep apnea is easily recognized by how much it disrupts a person’s sleep. Suffers from this illness will wake up many times during the night, quite often without being aware. They may cause someone to feel drowsy in the daytime, become cranky and experience mental fogginess.
Is weight gain related to sleep apnea?
A hormonal imbalance can occur when your hormones are out of balance.
Sleep apnea often leads to weight gain thanks to hormonal imbalances it causes. Breaks in sleep change how the body makes the hormones leptin and ghrelin. There is a drop in leptin which tells us we are satisfied and a rise in ghrelin which prompts us to eat. If there isn’t a balance, hunger might increase and make people overeat.
More Time Being Inactive
Sleeping poorly can greatly reduce a person’s desire and vigor to do any kind of physical activity. Too much time sitting can cause your weight to increase. Having less energy often results in taking less exercise and a more sedentary way of life.
Metabolic Disturbances
Sleep apnea can increase your risk of insulin resistance and, as a result, type 2 diabetes. When the body’s response to insulin weakens, it becomes harder for it to use glucose and end up with higher blood sugar and more accumulated fat. A troubled metabolism may cause weight gain and hinder your efforts to drop pounds.
The body has to handle a higher amount of calories
When you’re hungrier than usual but haven’t been moving much, it’s natural to consume more calories. Many people who have sleep apnea often find themselves snacking late at night, when the body isn’t working as effectively to process food. Adding extra calories to your diet, many of them low in nutrients, increases the chance of weight gain.
The way weight gain affects sleep apnea
Sleep apnea leads to weight gain and gaining weight can cause sleep apnea. If you have sleep apnea, you may gain weight, but being overweight makes it much more likely you will develop sleep apnea.
People may develop excess fat deposits more easily.
Having extra weight in the chest and abdomen raises the risk of breathing problems at night. While we sleep, fat on the upper airway can cause the airway to contract and lower our oxygen levels. This applies most often to OSA, since the main cause is a blockage in the airway.
Having Inflammation Often Leads to Being Tired
Having extra weight causes chronic inflammation and often leads to fatigue which both make sleep apnea symptoms worse. The swelling of the airway brought on by inflammation leads to even less air coming through. In addition, being tired from extra pounds makes it hard for individuals to be active, leading to more weight and poorer sleep.
It’s important to break the cycle that’s holding us back.
Stopping sleep apnea and weight gain takes many different strategies. Let us provide some ideas to break this cycle:
Dealing with Weight
Reducing your weight can ease many symptoms of sleep apnea. Losing just 10% of your weight may trigger a big improvement in your apnea episodes. Taking care of your weight involves both a good diet and physical activity on a regular schedule.
Try eating more food from the fruit, vegetable, lean protein and whole grain categories. A good way to control weight is to limit late night meals and foods with a lot of calories and little nutrition.
Try to exercise or work out on a regular basis. You don’t have to exercise hard; some exercises like walking, swimming or cycling can still make you healthier.
How to Improve Sleep
- Better bedtime habits can make it easier for those with sleep apnea to get a better night’s sleep.
- Same Sleep Hours Each Day: Timing your sleep hours the same way on all days, even during weekends.
- Make sure your room is a good place for sleeping, with it cool, dim and not noisy.
- Don’t have caffeine or nicotine in the last few hours before you plan to sleep.
Using Medical Treatments
There are cases where people require medical help to handle sleep apnea. CPAP is a frequently used machine to treat sleep apnea. They keep the airway open all night by sending a continual flow of air to the user through a mask. The mouthpiece device, called an MAD, moves the jaw forward to maintain an open airway. At times, surgeons need to operate by removing extra tissue or fixing problems in the airway.
Changing Your Daily Choices
- Changing your daily habits can greatly assist in controlling sleep apnea and avoiding extra pounds.
- Yoga, meditation and deep breathing may help control stress, so people don’t experience poor sleep and overeat.
- Avoid both alcohol and sedatives, as they can cause the muscles of your throat to relax more, increasing your chance of having obstructive sleep apnea.
- Give Some Elevation to the Head of the Bed: A lift to the head at night may ease breathing for some individuals.
Conclusion
Because there are two-way links between sleep apnea and weight gain, it’s not easy to escape this difficult cycle. Still, by knowing what causes these problems and using methods that focus on losing weight, better sleep, medical treatments and making healthy choices, it’s possible to improve your health. Getting free from this cycle can bring major health benefits and improve your quality of life. If there’s a chance you have sleep apnea or are dealing with weight control problems, you should see a healthcare professional for personal advice.
Break the cycle—start with better sleep
Visit apacdsm.com to learn more about the link between weight and sleep apnea, and explore treatment options that fit your needs. With guidance from experienced dental sleep medicine professionals, you can take meaningful steps toward better rest, improved weight management, and lasting health.