Overview

• The study analyzed sleep recordings from over 116,000 people across diverse regions using mattress sensors paired with climate projections
• Elevated night temperatures exacerbate airway obstruction by impairing thermoregulation and disrupting sleep architecture, intensifying nocturnal hypoxia
• Researchers estimate climate-induced OSA already cost roughly 800,000 healthy life years in 2023 across 29 countries and forecast US$68 billion in wellbeing losses plus US$30 billion in productivity declines
• Low- and middle-income regions and areas lacking cooling infrastructure face disproportionate increases in OSA burden and underdiagnosis
• Authors call for targeted screenings, expanded access to cooling, and incorporation of sleep health into climate policy to mitigate the rising burden