Sleep risk study

Sleep apnea is a disorder that repeatedly blocks breathing during sleep, and a new analysis linked it to a 71% higher risk of major heart events or death. (eurekalert.org) The research is scheduled for presentation at the European Congress on Obesity in Istanbul, Turkey, from May 12 to May 15, 2026. Investigators used linked electronic health records from 2.9 million residents in North-West London. (eco2026.org) (eurekalert.org) In the matched analysis, 20,300 adults diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea were compared with 97,412 adults without the condition. Participants were followed for up to four years, through March 2025, to track cardiovascular events or death from any cause. (eurekalert.org) Obstructive sleep apnea happens when the throat narrows or closes during sleep and breathing repeatedly stops and starts. Common signs include loud snoring, gasping, choking, and severe daytime sleepiness. (nhs.uk) (nhsinform.scot) The condition overlaps heavily with obesity: the European Association for the Study of Obesity said 40% to 70% of people with obstructive sleep apnea have overweight or obesity. The same release said 57.2% of the people with sleep apnea in this study were living with obesity. (medicalxpress.com) (eurekalert.org) Doctors already treat sleep apnea with continuous positive airway pressure, or a bedside machine that keeps the airway open with pressurized air. The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute says untreated sleep apnea raises the risk of stroke, heart attack, and other serious problems. (nhlbi.nih.gov 1) (nhlbi.nih.gov 2) The new result is not a final journal paper yet, and the study was sponsored by Eli Lilly, which also collaborated on the analysis with Imperial College Health Partners and Imperial College Healthcare National Health Service Trust. The release says the work used statistical matching for smoking, obesity, prior cardiovascular events, deprivation, and other health differences, but it still reports an association rather than proof that sleep apnea directly caused the outcomes. (eurekalert.org) (medicalxpress.com) That caution matters because sleep complaints do not all point in the same direction. A 2019 meta-analysis found no overall increase in mortality for frequent, ongoing insomnia symptoms after adjustment, while a 2024 cohort study found a 71% higher death risk specifically among men with the highest insomnia symptom scores. (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov) (europepmc.org) For now, the clearest takeaway is practical: sleep apnea is common, often missed, and treatable. In this study, the people who carried that diagnosis also carried markedly higher odds of a heart event or death over the next four years. (thelancet.com) (eurekalert.org)