Just curious what percentage of osa patients are overweight

[mahalo111]

I'm sure this poll has been done before but I couldn't find it in the forum. I'm just curious how many of us out there are overweight and have osa. I've included a link to a weight calculator. http://www.calculator.net/ideal-weight-calculator.html Mahlao for answering!

[Goofproof]

While weight is ONE of many factors in having Sleep Apnea, I am curious how you knowing about us is going to provide useful help in treating your sleep apnea. The only purpose I can see is upping traffic to the link you posted. Jim

[jnk]

Docs tend to more quickly believe an overweight person needs to be tested. So that skews the numbers, when it comes to who the patients are.

The big question is, "What percentage of the general population, regardless of weight, would have a better, healthier, safer life if they had cheap easy access to PAP?"

Find random people on the street. Don't even ask about symptoms. Just put them on APAP. Then ask them if life gets better. THERE'S an interesting test to fund.

Right, Ro(o)ster?

[digitalepiphany]

I didn't bother voting because I was diagnosed when I was 180lbs. I've been untreated for over 10 years now, and am now 275. I think that my OSA contributed to my weight gain, not the other way around. Weight and OSA are just correlated, there is no causation proven as of yet.

[JohnBFisher]

I developed obstructive sleep apnea in my teens when I was WAY underweight. (I weighed about 110 and should have weighed 145). Of course, as doctors are now learning, years of obstructive sleep apnea (and then central sleep apnea) led to problems with my metabolism. It led to diabetes and weight gain. The weight gain is a RESULT of the diabetes and obstructive sleep apnea - not the other way around:

http://youtu.be/U3oI104STzs

[The Choker]

60% of people with OSA are BMI < 25 which is normal weight or smaller.

Some doctor wrote a book and had some catchy sayings in it. One of them was, "It is not the size of the neck on the outside, it is the size of the airway inside the neck."

Poorly developed airways are the cause of almost all cases of OSA.

Be careful to get cause and effect in the right order. It is often the case that a slim person has OSA which makes him into a couch potato and throws off his hormones so he gets fat. Then they may get a diagnosis.

[zoocrewphoto]

60% of people with OSA are BMI < 25 which is normal weight or smaller.

Some doctor wrote a book and had some catchy sayings in it. One of them was, "It is not the size of the neck on the outside, it is the size of the airway inside the neck."

Poorly developed airways are the cause of almost all cases of OSA.

Be careful to get cause and effect in the right order. It is often the case that a slim person has OSA which makes him into a couch potato and throws off his hormones so he gets fat. Then they may get a diagnosis.

So true.

I was overweight before I started snoring enough to get complaints. But I had a small airway even as a young child when I was skinny. Even in college, I was a little overweight, but I would walk several miles a day. About 4 miles because I had to, and more for fun. I had breaks between classes, so I would put on my walkman and walk around campus. And I work a job on my feet. Probably why I am not worse than I am. I was sleep deprived back then, in terms of hours for sure. No idea when the actual sleep apnea started to get bad. It took quite a bit of time for it to really suck the energy out of me. I still walk to work (less than a mile), and I work on my feet all day. So, that keeps me from getting too bad. It doesn't help that I crave sweets, and I don't like much besides meat, dairy, and sugar.

I have always had a small airway, small throat, small mouth, etc. I can't breathe solely through my nose for more than a couple minutes without taking a larger breath through my mouth. If active, it has to be through my mouth, or I feel like I am suffocating. As a child, I got in trouble for hiding pills, and my dad had to crush them and put them in ice cream to get them down me. Even as and adult, I struggle with pills. I request smaller pills, or pills that are okay to cut up, or liquid. Just yesterday, I had a pill that I can normally take okay, go partway down and then stick. I could breathe just fine, but it set off a choking fit, and I had to drink lots of water until it continued further on. Anything slightly bigger than what I normally take, either doesn't go down, gets stuck and I have to wait for it to dissolve as it burns my throat, or it sets off my gag reflex and causes me to lose my last meal.

When I was 19, I was diagnosed with asthma, and I was told that my airway is 30% smaller than typical for my body size. I have no idea how that percentage was determined. I do know that I flunked all the lung capacity tests, even on a good day (no allergy or asthma problems that day). At first they told me I wasn't trying hard enough, but as my scores got worse, they could see I started as well as I could and went downhill from there. I haven't had any of those tests since I was 19.

[mahalo111]

Jim, I can assure you my only interest in knowing about weight is for understanding my own recent diagnosis of sleep apnia. I am overweight by 40 lbs and I would like to know if it is only because of this and that if I lose the weight I lose the machine. I haven't seen any statistics on weight and thought it would be interesting to know how many of us are overweight? The link I provided I found searching the internet and posted only as a convenience and guide to those who answer the poll. I have no association to the website .

[mahalo111]

Also, I just think it is to easy to suggest that sleep apnea is the shitty card we are dealt and not accept the fact that if we ate less and exercised daily many of us could be sleeping fine without apneas. Also if sleep apnea is what contributed to your weight gain, are you still overweight using cpap daily? How many of us are exercising more now that we have this new found energy? I'm not, and I'm as heavy as I have ever been. I can admit quite honestly that cpap has allowed me to not exercise, be fat and still have energy to get through the day. For the record, I've been on it for a month now. Cary

[Goofproof]

Jim, I can assure you my only interest in knowing about weight is for understanding my own recent diagnosis of sleep apnia. I am overweight by 40 lbs and I would like to know if it is only because of this and that if I lose the weight I lose the machine. I haven't seen any statistics on weight and thought it would be interesting to know how many of us are overweight? The link I provided I found searching the internet and posted only as a convenience and guide to those who answer the poll. I have no association to the website .

Not for monetary gain, that's good! As far as loosing say 50 lb, and no longer xpap treatment, not a likely result, but one that is hoped for by all xpap patients in De-Nile. Odds are of you losing your machine, only if you trade it for magic diet pills. With xpap treatment I've gained 50 lbs, but I'm still alive, without xpap, I'd be cured, but dead! Jim

[zoocrewphoto]

Jim, I can assure you my only interest in knowing about weight is for understanding my own recent diagnosis of sleep apnia. I am overweight by 40 lbs and I would like to know if it is only because of this and that if I lose the weight I lose the machine. I haven't seen any statistics on weight and thought it would be interesting to know how many of us are overweight? The link I provided I found searching the internet and posted only as a convenience and guide to those who answer the poll. I have no association to the website .

A lot of doctors like to tell people that losing weight will solve the problem, and weight does tend to make sleep apnea worse.

But! Many people develop sleep apnea while they are skinny. Some stay skinny and some struggle with lack of energy and cravings for sugar (energy), so they gain weight. Some people do manage to get off cpap with weight loss, but the percentage seems to be low, and those people will always be prone to it again. Weight gain can bring it back on, and most people with sleep apnea tend to get worse over time, so somebody who loses weight and gets off cpap may not gain weight, but still need it again in a few years. It is best to check on a regular basis to make sure.

With a big change in weight, it is good to get a new sleep study. Some can go to a lower pressure. Some need more pressure, and a few may escape the machine. Just be careful to be realistic. Don't count on getting off the machine. And don't skip the machine, assuming that you will lose weight and be fine. That could be very dangerous.

It is hard to accept this new way of life, but once you feel the improvements, it isn't as hard. Having a good night's sleep and feeling good is rather addictive

Check out the topics at the top of the page. The success stories and adjusting to change are excellent.

[BlackSpinner]

Jim, I can assure you my only interest in knowing about weight is for understanding my own recent diagnosis of sleep apnia. I am overweight by 40 lbs and I would like to know if it is only because of this and that if I lose the weight I lose the machine. I haven't seen any statistics on weight and thought it would be interesting to know how many of us are overweight? The link I provided I found searching the internet and posted only as a convenience and guide to those who answer the poll. I have no association to the website .

That weight was probably caused by having OSA. In a study of people getting weight loss surgery only 49% also cured their OSA and they were losing much, much more the 40lbs.

Due to the wrong believe the weight causes OSA probably more over weight people get diagnosed for OSA while thinner people are left to suffer because they don't meet the mental criteria of doctors who have not kept up with research.

[Janknitz]

Jim, I can assure you my only interest in knowing about weight is for understanding my own recent diagnosis of sleep apnia. I am overweight by 40 lbs and I would like to know if it is only because of this and that if I lose the weight I lose the machine.

Just about every newbie asks this question. I think there are two reasons:
1. Thinking "did I cause this problem"? The answer is probably not. As others have mentioned, it's more likely that sleep apnea came first and caused the weight gain.
2. Grief in adjusting to the diagnosis and having to use the CPAP. The third (or is it 4th) stage of grief (Kubler Ross) is bargaining--"if I just lose this weight I won't need to use this damn machine".

Here's what we know:
SOME people no longer need CPAP when they lose weight. I'm not sure what the percentage is, but I don't think it's as high as doctors seem to suggest. Some people are overweight AND have structural issues like a narrow airway that weightloss is NOT going to be able to fix. Some people have neurological issues that interfere with their breathing--losing weight won't fix that either.

Some people on this forum have had new tests done after significant weight loss and their pressure needs went UP, not down. Others had pressure decreases, and a few (very few, from what I've seen) were told they no longer needed CPAP. If you do manage to lose weight, it's not safe to assume your OSA is "cured". You must be tested to confirm.

When you are able to get off CPAP by weight loss, it's not the end of the story. The chances of KEEPING weight off over the long term are abysmal--a very low percentage of people manage to maintain weight loss for more than a year. And the weight gain usually exceeds the weight loss, putting you back behind square one.

Aging takes its toll, too. Even if weight loss helps and you manage to keep it off, there are the effects of aging. You will need to have regular sleep studies throughout life to be certain that your OSA remains in "remission" if you manage to achieve that in the first place.

Recognize that you may be in that grieving process--we've all gone through it. Absolutely work on losing the weight, it can only be beneficial for your overall health. But be aware it may not be the cure all you are seeking.

[wardmiller]

60% of people with OSA are BMI < 25 which is normal weight or smaller.

Can you give a reference source for that number?

I just did a quick google on "OSA and high BMI" and found loads of references to the contrary. For one example, WebMD says: "More than half of people with obstructive sleep apnea are either overweight or obese, which is defined as a body mass index (BMI) of 25-29.9 or 30.0 or above, respectively. In adults, excess weight is the strongest risk factor associated with obstructive sleep apnea." The FAA recently said 95% of those with BMI => 40 have OSA.

[Goofproof]

Also, I just think it is to easy to suggest that sleep apnea is the shitty card we are dealt and not accept the fact that if we ate less and exercised daily many of us could be sleeping fine without apneas. Also if sleep apnea is what contributed to your weight gain, are you still overweight using cpap daily? How many of us are exercising more now that we have this new found energy? I'm not, and I'm as heavy as I have ever been. I can admit quite honestly that cpap has allowed me to not exercise, be fat and still have energy to get through the day. For the record, I've been on it for a month now. Cary

XPAP treatment at 100%, gained more weight, but due to heart failing I can't burn the fuel off. So my problems aren't normal. Used to be a go getter, now a no getter. Jim