Some believe diabetes is primarily a body weight issue, but studies have shown that more so than weight, the severity of the sleeping disorder can elevate someone with sleep apnea’s risk of developing diabetes, reports CBS 13 WJZ.

“One of the things the body does when we don’t get good sleep is release stress hormones during the day. When you don’t sleep well, and when morning comes and we have to get up and function, our body releases all of these catecholamines, or stress hormones, to keep us awake,” Xenakis says. “