Is sleep apnea associated with obesity? Dr. McPherson: Obesity is associated with sleep apnea and you don’t have to be obese, however, to have sleep apnea and also, not everyone who is obese will have sleep apnea. So, it’s a risk factor and as people gain weight, if they do have a tendency towards sleep apnea, this is going to get worse as they gain weight. On the other side of that as people lose weight their sleep apnea often gets better and often can be resolved if they are able to lose enough weight.