Sleep apnea is a condition where the tongue and other soft tissues at the back of your throat relax too much and block your airways while you sleep. A decrease in oxygen causes you wake up slightly to reopen the airways.
This type of micro-waking is usually not enough to bring you to full consciousness, but it definitely disrupts your sleep cycle, and it can happen dozens of times an hour throughout the night without you knowing it. As a result, people with OSA can spend a full eight hours “sleeping” and still wake up exhausted.
This chronic lack of restful sleep leads to daytime dizziness and reduced cognitive function, but it also limits your body’s ability to repair damage and fight off disease, and leads to more serious problems like heart disease, strokes and yes, even diabetes.