Glutathione

Low levels linked to sleep apnea. Glutathione, the body’s master antioxidant, helps repair liver damage caused by sleep apnea.

Minerals

The trace minerals zinc, copper, magnesium, manganese, and selenium are important cofactors for the major antioxidant enzymes, which are important in repairing cellular damage caused by hypoxia (lack of oxygen) in sleep apnea.

Vitamin C

Vitamin C improves endothelial function (blood vessel health) in sleep apnea patients to levels seen in people without sleep apnea.

Vitamin E

Vitamin E mitigates the oxidative stress seen in sleep apnea patients. It works synergistically with Vitamin C.

Vitamin A

People with sleep apnea have low retinol (vitamin A). Retinol supresses the growth of vascular smooth muscle, a process that causes blood vessels to clog, linking low vitamin A levels to the cardiovascular complications seen in those with sleep apnea.

Vitamin D

People with sleep apnea have a high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency. The worse the apnea, the more severe the deficiency. Studies show that low vitamin D worsens sleep apnea’s negative effect on heart disease risk.

Selenium

Selenium’s role as a potent antioxidant may reduce the oxidative stress seen in those with sleep apnea.

Copper

Copper plays an important role as a key cofactor in the powerful antioxidant superoxide dismutase (SOD) which is crucial for combating oxidative stress in obstructive sleep apnea. SOD is very low in sleep apnea patients.

Cysteine

Oral supplementation with cysteine, the precursor to glutathione, has therapeutic benefits for sleep apnea. Snore time and duration were significantly reduced for patients treated with N-acetyl cysteine compared to untreated sleep apnea patients.

Antioxidant Status

Sleep apnea patients typically have reduced antioxidant capacity and higher levels of oxidative stress.

Tips

Drink a cute tart cherry juice sleepy girl mocktail. Antioxidants like those in tart cherries (anthocyanins) may reduce oxidative stress and inflammation, which are elevated in sleep apnea.