Sleep Deprivation Can Lead to Scary Consequences Such as Sleep Apnea –
Snoring is not a joke. Snoring with daytime fatigue can be a sign of sleep apnea that can lead to greater problems if left undiagnosed.
Sleep apnea is a common but serious sleep disorder that takes place when a person’s breathing is interrupted as he sleeps. A sleep apnea episode can happen hundreds of time a night and can destroy the natural sleep rhythm. Contrary to what others know, side effects of sleep deprivation include snoring that leads to sleep apnea, too.
How can sleep deprivation lead to sleep apnea? Let us cite the different reasons how.
Sleep Deprivation Results to Weight Gain
When you are sleep deprived, it can cause weight changes. Lack of sleep can increase the levels of cortisol or the stress hormones in your brain. Increase in cortisol levels can increase your appetite, resulting in weight gain.
Weight Gain from Sleep Deprivation Can Result in Snoring
Sleep deprivation can lead to weight gain that can cause snoring.
A study published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition showed that those who do not get enough sleep eat an additional 385 calories the next day. People who are sleep deprived choose to eat foods that are higher in fat but lower in protein that can lead to increase in weight.
When you gain weight, you get more fatty tissues and poor muscle tone that can contribute to snoring or make your snoring worse. Snoring can turn into sleep apnea which causes interruptions in your breathing as you sleep. Majority of people with sleep apnea are overweight or obese.
Gaining weight can result in snoring that can turn into sleep apnea.
Weight Gain Leads to More Tissues in the Neck and Throat
Weight gain can arise from lack of sleep that can result in more tissues in your neck and throat areas. When you gain weight, the size of your neck can increase.
One of the simplest risk factors for sleep apnea is a neck size which is greater than 17.5 inches. The Increased Neck Soft Tissue Mass and Worsening of Obstructive Sleep Apnea after Growth Hormone Treatment in Men with Abdominal Obesity study concluded that the increased severity of obstructive sleep apnea in men who are obese is because of the increased volume of their necks. As you sleep, the soft tissues in your neck and throat are more relaxed. This can result in the airway to become more blocked, causing a sleep apnea episode.
Weight gain can increase the size of your neck. The larger your neck is, the more chances the airway can be more blocked, causing sleep apnea.
Acid Reflux
Sleep deprivation can cause or trigger acid reflux or gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Lack of sleep can enhance the perception of acid in your esophagus and increase your esophageal acid exposure time.
It is common for people with GERD to have sleep apnea. 3 in 4 out of the 7 million people in the United States who are diagnosed with GERD routinely wake up from sleep because of acid reflux. GERD can result in the spasms of the vocal cords, leading to a temporary obstruction of the air passages resulting in sleep apnea.
Sleep deprivation can lead to GERD or exacerbate it if the issue is already present. The acid reflux can lead to your vocal cords’ spasm which can trigger a sleep apnea episode.
Sleep deprivation can lead to scary consequences that can result in sleep apnea. If you lack sleep, you can gain weight that can lead to snoring or more tissues in the neck and throat that are risk factors for sleep apnea. Sleep deprivation can also result or worsen your acid reflux leading to OSA.