Can a Septoplasty Keep You Thin?

Longtime readers may recall the ever-growing litany of adverse health effects associated with sleep deprivation: high blood pressure, stroke, depression, anxiety, arthritis, even decreased IQ.

Scientific American recently added a new one to the pile, noting that, “Accumulating evidence also suggests that even short-term, partial sleep deprivation could pave the way for weight gain and other negative metabolic consequences.”

Translation: snoring can make you fat.

Interestingly, sleep deprivation seems to accomplish this feat by acting along several pathways simultaneously, affecting hormones, behavior, mood, even our level of daily activity. The result: subjects whose nightly sleep allocation was reduced below a 7-hour threshold often gained weight over just a few days, and suffered a cascade of secondary metabolic effects as well:

The researchers found that studies of people without sleep-related conditions who got consecutive nights of four to six hours of sleep revealed a wide range of negative effects involving appetite hormone signaling, physical activity, eating behavior and even fat-loss rates.

“From a population health perspective, this helps to get people to understand that sleep deprivation really does have an impact on your health,” Mehra says.

Sleep deprivation can arise from any number of sources. The most common are stress and anxiety, but medical difficulties such as obstructive sleep apnea aren’t far behind.

My Los Angeles sinus surgery office is among the nation’s expert sources for septoplasty, a simple procedure that can correct a deviated septum and restore more open airflow. For many patients, this approach also helps them sleep better.

If you sleep sporadically or not often enough, and labored breathing may be to blame, please contact the LA septoplasty team at the Los Angeles Sinus Institute today.

Tags: los angeles ent, obstructive sleep apnea, snoring, studies