Katharina Buczek
Researchers from Tel Aviv University in Israel recently found that women over the age of fifty-five who snore have a greater risk of developing sleep apnea.
According to the National Institute of Health, sleep apnea is when “your breathing stops and restarts many times while you sleep. This can prevent your body from getting enough oxygen.”
Sleep apnea, which falls under the umbrella of sleep disorders, has become a growing problem in the United States. Currently, about twenty-two million Americans suffer from the disorder.
The researchers’ new study, published in the Journal of Clinical Medicine, included over two hundred and fifty women. Half were between the ages of twenty and forty, while the other half were fifty-five and over.
The research team discovered that only about 3.5% of the younger women are at an increased risk of developing sleep apnea. However, about 15% of the older women were found to be at significant risk.
Moreover, the 11% of women who snored were also found to be at higher risk of developing the sleep disorder.
While sleep apnea can be properly treated– ranging from lifestyle changes in milder cases to using a CPAP air pressure machine during sleep in more severe cases– early diagnosis is vital.
If left untreated, sleep apnea may become fatal due to low blood oxygen concentrations. Additionally, the disorder can contribute to hypertension, stroke, and cardiovascular disease.
Professor Ilana Eli, one of the study’s researchers, explained how older women are very likely to go undiagnosed.
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