Sleep Apnea on the weekend? A new potential risk factor

Sleep Apnea on the weekend? A new potential risk factor

From "News From The Future" with Dr Catherine Ball by The Future Is Already Here.... Meet The Humans At The Cutting Edge

May 22, 2026 · 7 min

About this episode

The episode discusses the concept of 'social apnea' and its implications on sleep health, particularly the weekend spike in Obstructive Sleep Apnea severity linked to lifestyle choices.

Hello and Welcome to News From The Future, spoken by the eleven labs audio clone of Dr Catherine Ball. In this new short series we will be focussing on Sleep. We all do it, and we all recognise when we have not had enough of it. Dr Cath’s new book The Future of Sleep is out now and available globally in paperback, audiobook, and ebook formats. We think you’ll get something life changing from it. Today we are talking about something a bit controversial - Social Apnea Enjoy! The term “social apnea” has been introduced as a new concept in sleep health by researchers from Flinders University. This phenomenon describes the weekend spike in the severity of Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), which is being linked to lifestyle choices and irregular sleep patterns. The research, published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, analyzed data from over 70,000 individuals worldwide and found a consistent increase in OSA severity on weekends. The findings highlight how behaviors such as staying up late, consuming alcohol, smoking, and sleeping in on weekends contribute to this trend. Dr. Lucia Pinilla, a lead author and Research Fellow at FHMRI Sleep Health, explains…

People in this episode

Host: Dr Catherine Ball

Topics covered

  • Sleep Apnea
  • Social Apnea
  • Sleep Health
  • Lifestyle Choices
  • Irregular Sleep Patterns

Keywords

  • Sleep Apnea
  • Social Apnea
  • Obstructive Sleep Apnea
  • Sleep Health
  • Weekend Effect
  • Lifestyle Choices
  • Sleep Patterns

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Flinders University, American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine

Products: The Future of Sleep

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