A deep and serene rest without interruptions can help make you feel really better the next day. According to some people, it is women who enjoy the much desired restorative sleep more than men. True or false? We asked doctor Alessandra Ibba, pulmonologist at Humanitas.

“True. It seems that women rest better than men, because they are more likely to develop sleep apnea syndrome – explains the doctor. The syndrome generally affects men over 40 years of age, often snorers and obese people, although women are more likely to become ‘immune’ after menopause. Therefore, after menopause, women are protected from developing nocturnal apnea syndrome, and thus it is men of adult age who are at greater risk of obstructing the airways during sleep. The obstruction leads to a condition of apnea that interrupts sleep, causing micro awakenings of which the patient is often unaware. The effects of nocturnal apnea include feeling even more tired the next morning than when you went to bed the evening before, headaches, memory deficits, declines in concentration and drowsiness during the day, especially at work, which can increase the risk of accidents. It is often the partner with whom the bedroom is shared that is aware of the problem and encourages the snorer to seek medical advice. To solve the problem, and the pathologies that are often associated with nocturnal apnea, such as hypertension suffered by more than half of patients affected by night apnea syndrome, cardiac arrhythmias, hypothyroidism, hormonal and metabolic alterations, it is important to rely on experts to make a correct diagnosis and, therefore, prescribe appropriate therapy”.