Sleep apnea is often thought primarily as affecting males. The notion that men are more susceptible leads to and overlooked diagnosis of sleep apnea in women. But the reality is, women also experience sleep apnea. The dangerous part, untreated sleep apnea contributes to several other serious health risks including heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, stroke, weight gain and depression.
Sleep apnea symptoms can be subtler in women which causes sleep disorders to be overlooked. Women with sleep apnea may experience insomnia, restless sleep, restless leg syndrome, heartburn at night, forgetfulness, a lack of energy the next morning as well as feeling irritable, anxious, depressed, or overwhelmed and may be more likely to experience being accident prone.
Current research shows that men are 2 to 3 times as likely to be diagnosed with sleep apnea as women, but the gap closes to a 1:1 ratio as women enter menopause. However, with more and more research and data understanding the differences in symptoms between the genders the gap closes even more each year.
