How Does Obesity Cause Obstructive Sleep Apnea?

Obstructive sleep apnea is a sleeping disorder that has a high incidence globally. This sleep disorder greatly correlates with metabolic syndrome, obesity, diabetes mellitus type 2, hypertension and hypercholesterolemia.

Due to its connection with various health conditions, lifestyle changes can help treat the condition. Severe OSA is manageable by using CPAP therapy. The rising cases of sleep apnea have made healthcare systems take preventive steps to control it.

It doesn't take a genius to figure out that to cure OSA, treating health conditions that are responsible for causing it could be your solution. To make it easier for you to understand, we have laid down the relationship of OSA with obesity and cardiovascular diseases.

Risk Factors Of Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA)

In order to understand the relationship between obstructive sleep apnea and its comorbidities, it's crucial to study its risk factors. Some of the commonly found risk factors of OSA are:

• Excess body weight
• Excessive daytime sleepiness
• Disordered breathing or stopped breathing while sleeping.
• Snoring loudly
• Headaches in the morning
• Poor cardiovascular health
• Dry mouth and sore throat
• High blood pressure
• Low concentration

Obesity Hypoventilation Syndrome

Obesity hypoventilation syndrome (OHS) is a breathing disorder in obese individuals. In this condition, an individual has slow and shallow breathing, due to which they hypoventilate. As a result, the carbon dioxide levels rise in the body, which results in the acid buildup and low blood oxygen levels (hypercapnia). All these health conditions in the OHS patient can cause congestive heart failure. The first-line treatment for OHS is continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy which also works for sleep apnea patients. The three driving factors of OHS are:

• Sleep-disordered breathing
• Obesity
• Hypoventilation

The Connection Between Obesity And Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome

Obesity is the most common health issue for many people. However, it is found in more males as compared to females. The contributing factors of obesity are unhealthy eating habits, physical inactivity and environment. In some cases, genetics and psychosocial conditions can also cause obesity.

Individuals are considered obese if they have a BMI of more than 30. Obese individuals have a decreased amount of quality sleep than non-obese people. This can further inflict the person with a sleep disorder. Losing weight can prevent it. Thus, overweight and obese patients are more likely to have obstructive sleep apnoea.

Association between Obesity, OSA and Cardiovascular Diseases

There is a direct connection between obesity and cardiovascular health. In 1995 the Sleep Heart Health study, which was a multi-cohort study, was conducted among 6,441 men and women. The study was conducted in two intervals to figure out the connection between sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) and coronary heart disease. It was found that obesity is associated with several health conditions, such as diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and high levels of C-reactive protein and fibrinogen. It was also found that all these conditions directly or indirectly increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases. Therefore, obesity is associated with cardiovascular disease, sleep deprivation, or sleep disorders.

Can Sleep Apnea Cause Weight Gain?

While it's true that obesity can cause sleep apnea, some studies have shown that it could be the other way around; in some cases, sleep apnea can cause weight gain. Sleep specialists had observed excessive weight gain in sleep apnea patients just before they were diagnosed with this sleep disorder. It can happen due to the lack of sleep, which causes fatigue and hormonal changes, ultimately leading to increased appetite and cravings. This series of events can cause weight gain in the patients. OSA is also responsible for increasing leptin levels in the patient's body. As a result, leptin resistance occurs, which can cause the patient to eat more, causing them to gain weight. Leptin resistance is a disorder in which the patient doesn't feel full or satiated after a meal and keeps eating more. Weight gain is inevitable if the individual is suffering from this disorder.

Weight Loss Treatment For OSA

Since studies have shown that excess weight can cause sleep apnea and cardiovascular diseases, OSA patients can start by losing weight. It would solve a lot of health-related issues. Whether excess weight is the cause of sleep apnea or sleep apnea is the cause of excess weight, weight loss is the only viable solution to fight this sleep disorder.

Conclusion

Sleep apnea is directly or indirectly related to obesity. It is also found in pregnant women or women who hit menopause. Postmenopausal women who do not receive hormone replacement therapy are at higher risk of developing sleep apnea than women who do. All in all, it won't be wrong to say that sleep apnea is associated with obesity and cardiovascular diseases.