Today, we know that to be in good health, we need to exercise, pay attention to our diet and meditate. In short, it's all about living a balanced lifestyle. What's more, people are becoming increasingly aware of the need to take care of their bodies, and that's a good thing! But among all these concerns, there's an essential one that's missing: quality sleep. But why? Because sleep is one of the fundamental pillars of our health. For example, we can go a day without eating or drinking, but a day without sleeping is a feat! And yet, the sleep of Western populations is increasingly disrupted.
Whether it's screens, insomnia or sleep apnea syndromes, in this article we try to understand what your sleep says about you and your health.
When it comes to sleep, the first question you need to ask yourself is: am I a snorer? If the answer is yes, you're like over 45% of adult Belgians who snore regularly, according to the John Hopkins Medicine study (2021). It may make you smile, but snoring can be a sign of more serious pathologies with devastating consequences for your health. In 10% to 20% of cases, snoring conceals obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSA), according to a study by Mutualité Chrétienne (2018).
The Federal Center for Health Care Expertise (KCE, 2020) defines obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) as "repeated episodes of complete (apnea) or partial (hypopnea) obstruction of the upper airway during sleep". Between 5 and 14 episodes per hour, apnea is considered mild, between 15 and 30 moderate, and above 30 severe.
Sleep apnea syndrome is a risk factor for a range of other diseases, and affects twice as many men as women over the age of 40. In fact, in 2018, the KCE estimated that 140,000 Belgians were being treated for OSA, an increase of almost 300% since 2011. However, many cases go undiagnosed, and it's estimated that around 5% of the Belgian population could be affected by this phenomenon. In the short term, the consequences can be minor, such as recurring nightmares, drowsiness or fatigue during the following day. In the long term, sleep apnea can lead to cardiovascular complications, including stroke. As you can see from the infographic below, sleep apnea can have many health consequences, and it's easy to get caught up in a vicious circle.
Factors such as excessive alcohol consumption, heavy smoking, being overweight or sleeping on one's back can favour the onset of OSA. However, according to Dr. Paul Wulleman (2021), the main source of this phenomenon is the switch from nasal to oral breathing at an early age. Mouth breathing is linked to relaxation of the muscular tissues of the throat and jaw, and this relaxation is also responsible for airway obstruction during sleep. Initially silent in children, mouth breathing becomes audible in adults, giving rise to snoring. So it's important to listen to your body, and act quickly when certain symptoms appear. In the event of noisy snoring or intense daytime fatigue, it is advisable to contact your doctor, who will be able to direct you towards appropriate treatment.
Now that we've seen the sources and consequences of obstructive sleep apnea, how is it generally treated? Conventional treatments for OSA are usually night trays (an orthosis designed to move the jaw forward), CPAP (a breathing device that increases pressure in the airways), or surgery for critical cases. However, these devices treat the consequences, not the source of the condition. Without making any medical claims, we believe that reeducating nasal breathing would strengthen the throat muscles, prevent airway obstruction and therefore treat the problem at its source.
Obstructive sleep apnea is now a real social problem, and it's important to raise awareness of the issue and treat it at source. At WeNap, we also want to be part of this movement to raise awareness of sleep in general, and our ambition is for our pods to serve as an entry point into this often unknown world for users.