Snoring, obesity and more: what are the consequences of poor sleep

According to Dr. Reyes Haro, a sleep specialist and former director of the Sleep Disorders Clinic of the National Autonomous University of Mexico: “1 in 3 Mexicans we have a sleep disorder, the most common being insomnia and drowsiness caused by snoring mainly”.

But these disorders are also directly linked to overweight and obesity, which is a public health issue since Mexico ranks second most obese in the world, just after the United States.

According to the specialist, there are two conditions that can lead to overweight: one physiological and metabolic and the other behavioral. Of the four stages we have in sleep, the third is responsible for the restoration of the body; it lasts about 20 percent of the night and there are hormones, neurotransmitters, new cells, tissue and muscle recovery, and a couple of hormones that regulate food intake and satiety are produced called leptin and ghrelin.

If you sleep badly, or if you sleep less time than the body requires, this process is affected. So people who have difficulties at this stage do not produce enough satiety hormones and that is why they eat too much without realizing it, which causes them to gain weight; that is the relationship between bad sleep and being overweight. At the same time, when not sleeping well, you have drowsiness during the day and to combat it people take stimulants: coffee, soft drinks, chocolates, they do anything to be alert and eat high-calorie foods to give them energy.

In his words: “It happens to all of us who work at night, those who reveal themselves a lot are people who easily gain weight. As one of the countries with the highest rate of overweight and obesity and, consequently, those factors are the main factors for developing snoring and sleep apnea, we are a country with high rates of snoring,” he said.

The doctor emphasized the importance of good sleep, because it is essential for the body to carry out all the restorative functions, from the physical and mental point of view; it strengthens the immune system, the brain is restored and with it cognitive functions, good sleep gives you a commensurate performance to your abilities during the day, it allows you to feel good and do things in the best possible way.

On the other hand, not only can people gain weight but they start to get sick. Physical problems such as increased blood pressure, cholesterol, triglycerides, glucose, but also pain: muscle tension, headache, back, neck pain, are consequences of this. People who sleep badly or less often get sick from respiratory tract or have digestive problems, in addition to the fact that in the last stage, where everything that has to do with the brain is restored, it causes cognitive problems such as inattention, lack of execution, everything slows down and is more prone to procrastinate.

He mentioned that nowadays, thanks to dissemination campaigns, people are paying more attention, but it is known that more attention is being taken care of by the pandemic: lockdown, complications, losses, fear of what may happen increased sleep disorders, putting the urgency of attention.

He stressed that currently the first thing that is tried to improve sleep are home remedies, then they go to the pharmacist and take medications such as antihistamines, or made from valerian, they tell them without knowing melatonin, “today it is fashionable that they try a glass of alcohol or CBD (cannabis plant), when none of that works anymore they go to the doctor,” he explained.

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