Many people who suffer from obstructive sleep apnea could eliminate the condition by losing a significant amount of weight, a new study suggests. Without realizing it, people with sleep apnea wake up multiple times throughout the night as they struggle to breathe. The condition can cause severe daytime tiredness and other symptoms. In many cases, patients are treated with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP), a treatment that uses a machine to keep their airways open during sleep. According to Dr. Virend Somers, a professor of medicine and cardiovascular diseases at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., there seems to be a connection between sleep apnea and extra pounds. But exactly how they’re related is not exactly clear, he said. “Although the majority of patients are obese, not everyone with sleep apnea is obese,” said Somers, who was not involved with the new study.
