Snoring during pregnancy, may mean that diabetes

According to researchers, women who reported frequent snoring during their pregnancy were more likely to develop gestational diabetes, a condition than can cause health problems for the mother and baby. The study also found pregnancy increases the likelihood that a woman will snore.

The researchers report this is the first study to report a link between snoring and gestational diabetes.

Snoring During Pregnancy Could Increase Gestational Diabetes Risk

Gestational diabetes risk higher in moms-to-be who snore, study finds

Pregnant women who snore regularly are more likely to develop gestational diabetes, new research has found.

In the study, 189 healthy women completed a sleep survey when they were between six and 20 weeks pregnant, and again in their third trimester.

The researchers found that pregnant women who were frequent snorers -- defined as snoring at least three nights per week -- had a 14.3 percent chance of developing gestational diabetes, but among women who did not snore the risk was 3.3 percent.

Taking into account other factors that could increase the risk of gestational diabetes -- body-mass index, age, race and ethnicity -- the researchers found that there was still an association between frequent snoring and the disease, according to a news release from Northwestern University.

"Sleep disturbances during pregnancy may negatively affect your cardiovascular system or metabolism," study author Dr. Francesca Facco said in the news release. Facco will soon be joining the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University as an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology and as a maternal and fetal medicine physician at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

"Snoring may be a sign of poor air flow and diminished oxygenation during sleep that can cause a cascade of events in your body," said Facco. "This may activate your sympathetic nervous system, so your blood pressure rises at night. This can also provoke inflammatory and metabolic changes, increasing the risk of diabetes or poor sugar tolerance."

The study also showed more women became frequent snorers as their pregnancies progressed. Early in pregnancy, 11 percent of women in the study reported frequent snoring; by the third trimester, the number rose to 16.5 percent. Frequent snoring was defined as snoring three or more nights a week.

Facco said snoring during pregnancy may be triggered by weight gain and edema (a buildup of fluid), which can increase airway resistance. Exactly how the snoring is linked to gestational diabetes is not yet known.

About 4 percent of pregnant women develop gestational diabetes, a condition in which women without previously diagnosed diabetes develop high blood sugar levels during pregnancy. Babies born to mothers with gestational diabetes are at increased risk of problems such as being large for gestational age, which may lead to delivery complications. These babies may also have low blood sugar levels and are at increased risk of becoming obese or developing impaired sugar tolerance or metabolic syndrome later in life.

While gestational diabetes usually resolves after pregnancy, women who develop it are at higher risk for type 2 diabetes later in life.

Facco said further studies are needed to understand the association between snoring and gestational diabetes and to develop interventions to treat sleep disorders during pregnancy.