The Serious Risks of Untreated Sleep Apnea
Sleep is one of your body’s most necessary components for survival. Sleep is a chance for every cell in your body to renew itself and reset for the next day’s demand. How you sleep, therefore, can affect your whole-body health in very significant ways. There are many different types of sleep disorders, or conditions that disrupt your body’s natural and necessary way of sleeping. Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), however, is one of the most serious.
Sleep apnea refers to several pauses in breathing throughout the night due to an obstructed airway. This is often accompanied by loud snoring and frequent moments of waking up and gasping for air. People with OSA can stop breathing throughout the night anywhere from 10 to 90 seconds, and the episodes can happen up to 500 times per night! When someone stops breathing, their brain is not getting oxygen. Therefore, the consequences to chronic, untreated sleep apnea is severe, impacting on how you feel the next day as well as the condition of your long-term overall health.
It is understandable why sleep apnea can lead to daytime sleepiness and morning headaches, but it may be surprising to learn that OSA has also been linked to the following:
- Gastric reflux
- Memory problems
- High blood pressure
- Diabetes
- Sexual dysfunction
- Heart disease
- Stroke
- Sudden cardiac death
Is Your Snoring Something More?
Most people with sleep apnea are completely unaware of their condition. That’s why it is important to watch for daytime symptoms or listen to your partner’s complaints about your loud snoring. Sleep apnea is a condition that can be effectively treated by your dentist. In fact, Dr. Wayne Suway is a Diplomate of American Board of Dental Sleep Medicine to treat sleep apnea. Our office offers FDA approved oral appliances that keep the airway open and prevent sleep apnea episodes as well as its accompanying symptoms. Don’t take your snoring habit lightly. Schedule your consult with a sleep dentistry expert in Marietta – your long-term health could depend on it!
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