The impression is growing that to a large extent many cases of obstructive sleep apnea and snoring may be a concomitant of Western culture. The risk of significant obstructive sleep apnea increases with the numerous factors described below, many of which are problems endemic to our society. At times, elimination of these factors completely resolves the problem. Conversely, in a large percentage of patients weight loss, aided by exercise if medical conditions don't counterindicate doing exercise, down to an ideal weight has reversed the process. Smoking Smoking has numerous undesirable effects on the body as Surgeon General Koop's report has by now made well known.
Alcohol relaxes the imbiber, but also causes too great a relaxation of the airway during sleep.
There are two periods of sleep which, given the right circumstances, are especially vulnerable to the development of unstable breathing. If a person, for instance, goes to bed at 10 PM and awakens at 5 AM each workday, but then waits until several hours later to go to sleep and wake up on on-work days, both Stage 1 sleep and REM behave oddly. The result in both cases can be the development of very significant respiratory instability during sleep. In our experience for these people correction of this problem minimally requires stabilizing bedtime hours across the week. Sometimes, this is all that is required.