Being one of the most common sleeping disorders1, you’ve probably heard enough whispers about sleep apnea to build a mountain as big as Aoraki.
With so much misinformation out there, we’ve decided to set the record straight by busting the top five sleep apnea myths.
Incorrect!
When someone has a higher than normal BMI, their throat and tongue muscles are generally more relaxed when they sleep, which can cause the airway to become blocked.
But while weight might be a contributing factor to sleep apnea in some cases, it doesn’t always mean that if you’re overweight you’ll experience sleep apnea. Even fit people aren’t immune to the sleeping condition!
A key cause of the problem has to do with your neck size and how narrow your airway is. Even the structures of your jaw, tongue, tonsils and palate can have a direct effect on this, regardless of your clothes size.
Other factors aside from weight can be associated with sleep apnea in adults, such as diabetes2.
It’s believed that sleep apnea affects about 95,000 adults in New Zealand, with almost 80 per cent of New Zealanders not receiving treatment for the condition3.
Not necessarily.
While there are strong links between snoring and sleep apnea, it isn’t automatically a cause for self-diagnosis.
However, you shouldn’t dismiss snoring altogether. Quite often people can put snoring down to ageing, but don’t accept snoring as a natural part of life4.
The best way to explore whether sleep apnea is a possibility is to take an online sleep assessment, which is available directly through our website.