Metabolic consequences of snoring in adolescents and younger adults: a population study in Chile

To investigate the potential association between snoring and other symptoms indicative of sleep-disordered breathing and metabolic syndrome (MetS) in Hispanic adolescents and younger adults using a large population-based survey.

Sleep-related information, anthropometric measurements and fasting blood samples markers of MetS were obtained from subjects aged 15-40 years collected through the 2nd Chilean Health Survey. Regression models were constructed to evaluate the associations of snoring with MetS, hypertension and serum cholesterol levels. The modulating effect of sleep duration was accounted for in the models.

A total of 2147 subjects (42% males, mean age 27.9±7.6 years) were included. Snoring and short sleep duration were present in 43.5 and 25% of the entire population, respectively. MetS was detected in 19.5% of the subjects. In the adjusted regression model, the odds of MetS among snoring subjects were 2.13 times higher (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.52-2.99; P<0.01), and 1.53-fold higher odds of elevated cholesterol also emerged (95% CI: 1.12-2.10; P<0.01). However, the odds of hypertension were not increased by the presence of snoring after adjusting for confounders. In addition, snoring was associated with an increase of 7.26  and 6.56 mg dl^-1 for total and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, respectively, even after adjusting for age, sex and body mass index. Short sleep duration was associated with a small albeit significant risk increase for high systolic blood pressure.

In this large population-based sample of young Hispanic adults and adolescents, snoring, but not sleep duration, emerged as an independent risk factor for dyslipidemia and MetS, but not for hypertension.