The Seriousness of Sleep Apnea

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The Seriousness of Sleep Apnea - By: Mike Herman, Posted on: 2007-04-28

Some of the people who snore are actually suffering from a condition knows as sleep apnea. A symptom of sleep apnea is snoring, and what is happening is the the snore actually stops breathing while they are asleep.

With sleep apnea the person stops breathing for 10 or more seconds five times, or more, every hour which can lead to there being low oxygen levels in the body which in turn leads to many more serious health conditions.

The three most likely people to suffer from sleep apnea are:

• Those who are overweight.
• Those who smoke cigarettes.
• Those who drink alcohol.

Regular snoring (the medical term is 'primary snoring'), is often more of a problem for the spouse, significant other and family members or the snorer. However there are some possible serious effects that may develop where the snorer's body is "struggling" to breath. This condition, a precursor to sleep apnea, is known as 'Upper Airway Resistance Syndrome (UARS) .

which is a precursor to sleep apnea which results in extreme sleepiness, with such dangerous side-effects as falling asleep at the wheel while driving an automobile.

Beyond snoring is the serious condition of sleep apnea. It occurs when the person snoring gets to the point where they actually stop breathing for ten or more seconds, possibly a hundred or more times each night.

Stopping breath and severly interuptting you sleep can cause daytime sleepiness, a big increase in automobile accidents, irritability, personality change, restless sleep, headaches, and shortness of breath.

Having sleep apnea can result in other health conditions such as high blood pressure, heart disease ... and even death. With such potentially serious problems as these, you can see why is a serious problem and it is very important to catch and treat it before it get too serious.

Signs of Sleep Apnea are;

• Waking up tired

• Daytime sleepiness

• Poor memory

• Impaired concentration

• Headaches, particularly in the morning

• Impotence in men

• Frequent need for night time urination.

There are two types of sleep apnea "Obstructive Sleep Apnea" and "Central Sleep Apnea", although neither is good, "Central" is even more serious.

Obstructive sleep apnea is thought to mainly affect men who are 40 and 60 old and it is said to occur when the nasal passages and the upper airways become obstructed during sleep. Ordinarily the obstruction is caused by the soft tissue of the throat (the pharynx) simply relaxing during sleep. This obstruction prevents breathing until the levels of oxygen in the blood fall to such a low level that the sufferer wakens and responds by taking a deep breath - accompanied by snorting, rasping and other noises associated with snoring.

Obstructive sleep apnea is generally caused by, or made worse by, being overweight.

Central Sleep Apnea occurs when the nerves that automatically regulate breathing do not work properly It is a neurological problem; no "mechanical" obstruction is involved, as is the case with Obstructive Sleep Apnea.

In both cases, and if left untreated, severe sleep apnea can eventually become life threatening.

If you snore and notice any of the above mentioned symptoms, talk with your primary doctor and have it checked out.

Article Source: http://www.girlarticles.com

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