RESMED’S QUEST FOR IMPROVED SLEEP HEALTH ResMed founder and chairman Peter Farrell depicts the 40-year evolution of sleep apnea treatment, what’s next, and how well Australians sleep compared to the rest of the world.
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ike paying taxes and death, sleep is something that affects all of us. But how would you rate the overall awareness and appreciation Australians have of sleep as, along with a good diet and physical exercise, one of the three key pillars for public health? Causal factors and solutions for improvement? PF: Compared to the rest of the world, I think Australians probably have a higher-than-average awareness of sleep and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) thanks to the far-reaching research that’s been conducted and promoted nationwide, celebration of Colin Sullivan, University of Sydney professor, who invented the nasal continuous positive airway pressure (PAP) machine in the early 1980s, and high visibility of ResMed, world leader in connected solutions for treating sleep apnea and an ASX15 company. However, in terms of where awareness should be, it’s still too low for Australians as it is everywhere else. According to Lancet Respiratory Medicine, over 936 million people worldwide have sleep apnea – including over 2.9 million Australians. Over 80 per cent are undiagnosed. We know that leaving sleep apnea untreated – the nightly toll these cyclical suffocations have on our body that should be resting – puts us at 2 to 3 times
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higher risk for heart attacks or strokes, impacts our daily energy, mood, safety while driving or at work, long-term mental health, and so on. Our sleep health is very much tied to every facet of our overall health and wellbeing. What is the relationship between sleep and the other two other pillars of public health? Has this been studied and reported on? PF: The links between sleep and the other two pillars – nutrition and physical exercise – are very strong. Simply put: You can’t optimize your healthy eating or your exercise goals without a good night’s sleep. If you don’t get enough sleep each night – common recommendations are 7 to 9 hours nightly for adults – you may lack the energy required to exercise as much as you’d like to the next day, as well as focus on work and other important tasks. Lack of sleep also affects how we eat. First off, if you are sleep deprived and lack energy, your body will likely seek more foods high in carbohydrates and/or fat than you may intend to eat because your body is seeking sources of energy to make up for the energy it didn’t wake up with. What’s
Australia’s Nobel Laureates VOL III
