SLEEP STUDIES

Sleep study Overview

Sleep Study Information

Before Your Sleep Study

Pediatric Sleep Studies

Sleep Disorder Studies

Sleep Disorder Symptoms

Common Sleep Disorders

Obesity and Sleep Apnea

Obesity and Sleep Disorders

Children, Obesity and Sleep

SLEEP APNEA

Sleep Apnea Overview

Sleep Apnea evaluations

Childhood Sleep Apnea

Causes of Sleep Apnea

Sleep Apnea Symptoms

Sleep Apnea Treatment

Central Sleep Apnea

Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Sleep Apnea Surgery

Same Day Surgery

SLEEP APNEA TREATMENT

CPAP

CPAP Side Effects

CPAP Benefits

OTHER RESOURCES

Highland Pain Institute

Highland Bariatric Institute

Highland GERD Institute

The Link Between Obesity and Sleep Apnea

Many overweight people suffer from sleep apnea and have difficulty staying awake during the day because stopping breathing interferes with deep sleep, causing them to wake up tired each morning.

A recent report in Archives of Internal Medicine shows that obese people are at high risk for suffering from daytime sleepiness (1), even when they do not have sleep apnea. If your spouse notices that you stop breathing for more than 10 seconds more than 10 times an hour during sleep, you may have sleep apnea.

If your doctor suspects sleep apnea, he will probably refer you to a sleep specialist. Most of the time, you will be diagnosed as having sleep apnea. Since there are no effective drugs, you will usually be given a special CPAP machine.

Some people adapt easily to the CPAP machine and benefit from it, but others find it uncomfortable and cannot sleep with it on. Doctors used to think that sleep apnea causes heart attacks, but recent research shows that this may not be so. It may be caused by having asthma or blocked heart arteries.