Is Snoring Harmful & Treating Sleep Apnea

Is Snoring Harmful & Treating Sleep Apnea

Nearly 1 out of 2 people in America snores, so chances are good that either you or your significant other snores. Snoring is no laughing matter, especially if you are the one in the relationship who doesn’t snore. All kidding aside, besides being disruptive to your sleep, your mate’s sleep and a strain on your relationship, snoring is often a symptom of a more serious problem called sleep apnea. Many people think their snoring is caused by their busy lifestyle or that is just happens with age. So snoring is only harmful to your health if it is also a symptom of sleep apnea. The truth is according to the National Sleep Foundation over 18 million Americans have Obstructive Sleep Apnea and most of them don’t know it.

Obstructive Sleep Apnea is a potential dangerous condition that occurs when the muscles in the back of the throat relax and block the airway causing you to snore, gasp for air and sometimes stop breathing. People with sleep apnea often stop breathing repeatedly while they sleep effectively depriving the brain and the body of oxygen. Untreated sleep apnea can lead to serious complications including stroke, cardiovascular disease and much more.

Often snoring is one of the 1st symptoms of sleep apnea. Common symptoms of sleep apnea include chronic fatigue, morning headache, sore throat or dry mouth and attention problems. If you have some of these symptoms, or if your partner notices you are choking and sometimes not breathing while sleeping, see an ENT Specialist immediately to be properly diagnosed.

The good news is sleep apnea is treatable. Often changes in lifestyle such as losing weight, quitting smoking or avoiding alcohol can cure sleep apnea. A CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure) machine is the most common treatment for sleep apnea. You wear a mask over your mouth and nose at night while you sleep and the mask is hooked to a machine that provides continuous air to keep your breathing passageway open. There are alternative treatments- however, we can recommend the best treatment option for your specific condition.

To find out more about treatments for Snoring or Sleep Apnea call Odalys Alfonso at (954) 389-1414 or fill the short form below.