Will It Lead To A Cure
If you are overweight, it is possible that losing weight will be enough to cure the condition completely. However, this wont always be the case because anatomical factors can come into play. For instance, a person could have a receded chin, a deviated nasal septum or prominent tonsils. All these issues may cause some level of sleep apnea and will not be corrected by significant levels of weight loss. That said, losing weight can have a variety of other benefits.
It can improve your joints, reduce issues with high blood pressure and provide a significant boost to your vitality. So, weight loss is certainly never going to be the wrong choice and definitely wont make your sleep apnea worse. It can only make it better.
The Relation Between Weight And Sleep Apnea
One problem between weight and sleep apnea is that sleep apnea also causes weight gain. Studies have been done showing that the less you sleep, the more calories you eat during the day. People who are sleep deprived, eat on average 385 kcal more than their well-rested counterparts.
They found partial sleep deprivation did not have a significant effect on how much energy people expended in the subsequent 24 hours. Therefore, participants had a net energy gain of 385 calories per day.The researchers also found there was a small shift in what sleep deprived people ate they had proportionately higher fat and lower protein intakes, but no change in carbohydrate intake.
Now, the problem lies in the fact that sleep apnea decreases the rest you get at night. So youre sleep deprived brain will compensate and eat more.
So here we have a classic case of a virtual cycle. Excess weight adds tissue in the back of your throat. This causes sleep apnea. And apnea in turn make you sleep worse. Which makes you eat more during the day and you gain weight. And the circle continues
Can Obstructive Sleep Apnea Make It Harder For Me To Lose Weight
Unfortunately, studies have shown that if you dont get enough sleep at night, it is very hard to lose weight effectively. This is a classic chicken/egg relationship: if you dont get enough rest, you cant lose weight if you dont lose weight, you cant get enough sleep.
The good news is that at Johns Hopkins, our weight loss specialists can consult with experienced sleep disorders specialists. Working together, they can design a sleep hygiene program that will help you get the rest you need so that you can lose weight. Coupled with an effective weight loss and exercise regimen, you should be able to find relief from both conditions. Learn more about our weight loss services.
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Increased Cravings And Decreased Willpower
Lack of energy, slow metabolism, and hormone changes can create a perfect storm of weight-gain factors. Another one of those factors is that when were feeling tired, were much more likely to crave foods that give us a quick energy boost like those high in sugar and simple carbs.
Being exhausted also decreases our willpower, making it much harder to put effort into making healthy choices.
Exercise Diet Sleep And Weight Loss
Eating right, exercising and getting plenty of quality sleep are part of a healthy lifestyle that can help reach a healthy weight, even if it cant cure your sleep apnea. And reaching a healthy weight may reduce your symptoms.
There are a variety of apps that can help you track your diet and exercise, and even your sleep. The ResMed myAir app helps you track your sleep apnea therapy for Air10 device. Download the myAir app for your Apple® iPhone® on the App Store® or for your compatible Android smartphone on the Google Play store. 5
This blog post contains general information about medical conditions and potential treatments. It is not medical advice. If you have any medical questions, please consult your doctor.
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Q: Can Weight Loss Cure Sleep Apnea
A: The short answer is no. While there are several sleep apnea treatment options available, there is no cure. However, weight loss may help reduce sleep apnea symptoms for some people, but only if you have obstructive sleep apnea.
There are three types of sleep apnea: obstructive sleep apnea , central sleep apnea , and mixed sleep apnea. Obstructive sleep apnea is the most common, making up 84% of sleep apnea diagnoses. 2
In obstructive sleep apnea, you stop breathing because air stops flowing to the lungs due to a blockage. For some people, the weight of your neck narrows and blocks the airway during sleep. If that is the case, weight loss would have a positive effect on airway obstructions and airway collapsibility.
Before starting any weight loss program, talk with your doctor about your weight loss goals and what impact weight loss may have on your symptoms.
How To Buy Healthy Food
The strategy for losing weight, even if you have sleep apnea, is simple and widely known: you just need to consume fewer calories than you consume.
But losing weight in a modern world with plenty of advertising and cheap empty calories is, in fact, very difficult to do.
The more options you have, the more tempted you are to make a bad and unnecessary choice. This rule is also true when you buy food.
Because you have sleep apnea and want to lose weight, you want to carefully read the labels from each food package. Here are some guidelines that will help you take a good decision in your search for healthy foods:
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Treating Sleep Apnea With Diet And Lifestyle
Sleep apnea is a medical condition affecting an increasing number of people in Western countries. Currently, the prevalence of moderate to severe sleep-disordered breathing conditions in U.S. adult men is 10%-17% and in U.S. adult women is 3%-9%. More specifically, obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea affects 2%-7% of the adult population. These figures have increased steadily along with the rising obesity epidemic.
Why is sleep apnea a problem? Because it increases the risk of several other chronic health conditions including daytime sleepiness, cognitive dysfunction, poor work performance, high blood pressure, abnormalities in glucose metabolism, anxiety, impotence, fatal and nonfatal cardiovascular events, and even ones overall risk of death. Cardiovascular disease risk is actually estimated to be 2.5 times higher in people suffering from moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea.
Needless to say, not sleeping well due to a sleep-related breathing disorder is serious business, and it needs to be addressed and treated properly to avoid further harm.
Weight Loss Can Cure Mild Sleep Apnea
One study2 monitored the sleep quality of 72 overweight patients with mild obstructive sleep apnea . The patients changed to a low-calorie diet and received lifestyle counseling, which resulted in a significant decrease in their BMIs. After losing weight, the subjects mean number of apnea events per hour decreased significantly. Post weight-loss, the number of patients with sleep apnea decreased by 75%.
Additionally, the results of this study were maintained for a one-year follow-up.
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Mechanisms For The Development Of Osa In The Obese Patients
There are several mechanisms by which obesity could result in OSA, and these may act synergistically. It is proposed that increased peripharyngeal fat deposition results in mechanical loading that offsets the maintenance of airway patency by the dilator muscles and that this increase in collapsibility is particularly prominent during sleep when there is a reduction in neuromuscular activity . In addition, there is some evidence to suggest that central obesity in particular may have detrimental effects on neuromuscular activity in the upper airway . Obesity is associated with a reduction in functional residual capacity . Pharyngeal collapsibility may be further accentuated by this reduction in FRC and subsequent decrease in tracheal traction on the pharynx . Finally, a self-perpetuating cycle may develop in which sleep disruption leads to increased appetite , reduced activity levels, further weight gain, and increased severity of OSA .
Losing Weight For The Long Term
Weight gain or excessive body weight is one of the strongest predictors of OSA. The good news is this means losing weight is the single best thing you can do to help find relief from your sleep apnea. Getting started on CPAP therapy can help alleviate your symptoms in the short term, but long lasting relief from the dangers of OSA can often only come about by losing weight.
If you have struggled to lose weight over the course of your life, it may not initially be encouraging to hear that weight loss is the answer for many cases of OSA. Thankfully, even if you have found that diet and exercise alone have not been enough to bring about lasting weight loss, there are still options available.
At True You Weight Loss, we are dedicated to helping people find the freedom from excess body weight. Often when people think exercise is no longer producing the results they need, it can seem like drastic measures such as gastric bypass surgery might be the only option left. Thankfully, we provide many other options that are lower cost, have fewer dangerous side effects, and in some cases are even reversible.
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Can A Cpap Help You Lose Weight
It is possible that a CPAP machine, when properly used, can help you get a better nights sleep if you are suffering from sleep apnea. This, in turn, can help your body rebalance the levels of hormones that regulate hunger, which can help you curb cravings. Getting better sleep will also help you stay more active during the day, which can help you burn more calories.
CPAP machines are not quite a silver bullet for OSA, but they are very effective for the majority of people who try them. There can be some discomfort associated with wearing a mask while you sleep, particularly during the initial adjustment period when you start using a CPAP. Despite this potential hurdle, many people begin to get better sleep within the first couple of nights after they start using one of these machines.
If you begin CPAP therapy for your OSA, the effect on hormone levels in your blood will be almost immediate. Within 48 hours of starting to sleep with a CPAP, many sleep apnea patients have been found to experience a return to normal levels of ghrelin, leptin, cortisol, and other hormones that were out of balance due to their disturbed sleep habit. Daytime sleepiness and other side effects also begin to fade, and management of glucose levels in your blood begins to stabilize as well. Soon, energy levels begin to rebound as your body heals from the stress of OSA.
Has Anyone Dealt With Their Sleep Apnea Through Weight Loss Only To Have It Come Back Again
I used to be an overweight teenager and was tired every single day, but after dropping 40 pounds before going off to college I found that I had pretty much resolved my sleep apnea issues. I went from 220 at my peak to around 165.
It’s several years later now and I find myself feeling tired every single day no matter how long I rest. My weight isn’t too bad as I’m at 180 pounds, which is what I’ve maintained for at least a couple years.
Has anyone else dealt with something like this? I’m thinking of restricting my diet to drop some weight and body fat percentage but I’m not sure if this is entirely a weight issue. Body fat percent is at least 15% and probably closer to 20% at this point.
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Sleep Apnea Symptoms Can Make It Hard To Shed Extra Pounds
Though being overweight or obese can lead to developing sleep apnea, sleep apnea can actually make you gain weight! That can create a vicious cycle that can make it difficult to achieve and maintain a healthy weight.
There may be several reasons to explain this cycle, many of which come down to poor sleep quality from sleep apnea. This may help explain why sleep apnea treatment may help you lose more weight when following a diet and exercise regimen.
Sleep Apnea Affects Hunger Hormones
Sleep apnea may also affect your appetite. Specifically, sleep deprivation from sleep apnea may impact how your body regulates hunger hormones like insulin, leptin, and ghrelin. Insulin helps your body regulate blood sugar levels. Leptin is the hormone that tells your body youre full, while ghrelin tells your body youre hungry.
Studies have found that even 30 minutes of lost sleep can affect how your body releases these hormones. In one study, researchers found that levels of ghrelin hormone was higher in those with sleep apnea than people who did not, even though the participants had the same body mass. However, after just two days of CPAP sleep apnea treatment, their ghrelin levels came down to be more equal to those who didnt have sleep apnea. Therefore, CPAP therapy may help your body balance the hormones related to appetite.
Sleep Apnea Treatment for REM Sleep to Burn Calories
Other Symptoms Make it Hard to Follow a Healthy Lifestyle
How Weight Loss Can Help Reduce Sleep Apnea
There are times when the breathing of a person is disrupted while they are asleep, and this common disorder is relatively known as sleep apnea. The commonest kind of sleep apnea is obstructive sleep apnea or OSA, where there is a disruption in breathing due to the narrow or blocked airway on the upper region of your body.
It is quite similar to like breaking through a straw here. Every night, individuals suffering from severe OSA might have an upward 30 breathing disruptions.
There are several vital links towards excessive weight gain emerging while the medical community is researching more on sleep apnea. Excessive weight gain can make the symptoms worse and exacerbate its detrimental effects on health, leading to sleep apnea.
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Detecting And Treating Sleep Apnea
The two main reasons to detect and treat OSA are to improve symptoms and decrease cardiovascular risks. There are good data to show that treatment of OSA improves symptoms and quality of life.
The gold standard for diagnosing OSA is through a sleep study called polysomnography. In this test, the severity of OSA is given a rating based on the Apnea Hypopnea Index . A test will show the hourly rate of apneas and hypopneas averaged over the total sleep time.
- Normal: 4 per hour or less.
- Mild: 5 to 14 per hour.
- Moderate: 15 to 29 per hour.
- Severe: 30 per hour or higher.
Therapeutic options for snoring and sleep apnea include reducing nasal congestion or obstruction, positional therapy, nasal continuous positive airway pressure , oral appliances, the nasal expiratory positive airway pressure device, oral pressure therapy or surgery. CPAP/BiPAP remains the most effective therapy for OSA. The other options are viable in specific circumstances.
What To Eat When You Have Sleep Apnea And Weight Problems
There are types of food that you should avoid if you start the Sleep Apnea Weight Loss Plan, and eat only the healthy options. Here are the main categories of food with examples:
Proteins:
- Healthy Proteins: egg white, fish, tofu, skinless chicken breast, sea food.
- Bad Proteins: sausages, salami, beacon, etc.
Carbohydrates:
Good carbs are essential for a healthy diet, because they are a very important source of fiber, vitamins B, C, potassium.
Good carbohydrates can reduce the risk of high blood pressure, osteoporosis and heart disease. So include the healthy carbs in your diet, but in moderation and along with healthy proteins and fats.
- Healthy Carbohydrates: vegetables, fruits, whole grains , low fat milk and yogurt.
- Bad Carbohydrates: candies, cookies, soda
Fats:
- Healthy Fats: olive oil, nuts, avocado, nut butter.
- Bad Fats: fried food.
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Sleep Apnea And Weight
According to research, there seems to be a significant correlation between obesity and sleep apnea. Indeed, you may be more likely to suffer from an issue like this if you are overweight. Although not every patient who is obese will suffer from sleep apnea. Similarly, not every sleep apnea patient will be overweight. That said, if you are overweight, you should consider getting a physical examination. This will determine whether weight loss could help you. Typically, this will include measuring the circumference of the neck. Generally speaking, a circumference of 17 inches or higher in men and 16 inches in women will lead to a far greater chance of sleep apnea.
How Does Gaining Weight Affect Sleep Apnea
Not everyone who is overweight or obese will develop sleep apnea. However, being overweight and/or gaining weight does increase your risk of developing the disorder.
When the muscles in your neck relax during sleep, they no longer support the weight of the tissue on top of them. The more weight pressing down on the airway, the more likely it is to collapse. Because of this, people who carry a lot of weight around their neck and chest are at a much higher risk of OSA.
If you gain even 10% of your weight your risk for developing sleep apnea gets multiplied by six.
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Can Thin People Have Sleep Apnea
Thin people can be diagnosed with sleep apnea. Individuals born with a naturally narrow airway may also have sleep apnea regardless of their weight.
Additionally, those individuals with high blood pressure or chronic nasal congestion also tend to lose sleep as a result of sleep apnea.
Studies are also showing that individuals who smoke are more likely to have OSA as are those individuals with diabetes.
Even sex can be a determiner. Men tend to have sleep apnea more often than women.
Thus, while weight is a major factor with sleep apnea, weight alone does not determine if youll have trouble sleeping as a result of untreated sleep apnea. Blood pressure, nasal congestion, a nicotine habit, and gender also plays a part in if you have sleep apnea.
