You have a greater risk for sleep apnea if you have any of these conditions:  • Excess weight Carrying extra weight is the primary risk factor for obstructive sleep apnea.  Fat deposits in your neck and around your tongue and palate make the airway much narrower and smaller, paving the way for sleep apnea. Even so, obstructive sleep apnea can also affect thin people, and not everyone who is overweight has the disorder.  • Large adenoids Some people have large tonsils or adenoids, as well as smaller airways, which can cause breathing difficulty while sleeping. In children, larger-than-normal adenoids and tonsils are the most common cause of sleep apnea.  • Jaw misalignment Certain conditions or genetic factors can create an imbalance in facial structure, causing the tongue to sit farther back in the mouth. A lower jaw that is shorter than the upper jaw can cause sleep apnea, as can a palate (the roof of the mouth) that is shaped a certain way and collapses more easily during sleep. • Diabetes People with Type 2 diabetes are significantly more likely than those without diabetes to be diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea. Insulin resistance in diabetes may increase the risk of apnea on its own, just as inflammation from apnea may increase the risk of diabetes.  • Chronic nasal congestion Because of the restricted airways, people who experience continuous nasal congestion at night are more prone to develop obstructive sleep apnea.  • Asthma Asthma is linked to sleep apnea. If you have asthma, you’re more prone to develop sleep apnea. And symptoms of one disorder might exacerbate symptoms of the other. Sleep apnea can make asthma worse, and asthma can make sleep apnea worse. • Heart failure People with heart failure can have both obstructive and central sleep apnea. Heart failure can cause sodium and water retention, which may trigger sleep apnea.  And heart failure is linked to issues with the respiratory control system, which could be a contributing factor in central sleep apnea.