The classic sign of sleep apnea is low blood oxygen during sleep. But I recently did a data analysis and was surprised that, out of the top 10 signals

The cardiovascular signals most correlated with sleep apnea

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2024-12-25 18:00:09

The classic sign of sleep apnea is low blood oxygen during sleep. But I recently did a data analysis and was surprised that, out of the top 10 signals correlated with high sleep apnea risk, 5 are cardiovascular.

This analysis is based on the sleep apnea risk assessment feature of Empirical Sleep. If you want to check your risk — and talk directly with a doctor about follow-up testing — then download Empirical Sleep for Apple Watch on the App Store.

Cardio recovery—also called called heart rate recovery—measures how how fast your heart rate returns to normal after exercise. It’s a good measure of your heart’s health and how well your autonomic nervous system (the system that controls involuntary actions like heart rate and digestion) is working. People with sleep apnea often have problems with this system because their breathing stops and starts throughout the night, which stresses their heart.

Your resting heart rate (RHR) is the number of times your heart beats per minute when you’re at rest. It gives a snapshot of your overall heart health. For those with sleep apnea, the constant interruptions in breathing can activate the fight-or-flight response (part of the autonomic nervous system), which keeps the heart working harder even at rest. This leads to a higher RHR.

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