3 Ways Sleep Apnea May Be Hurting Your Health

If you’re tired when you wake up, feeling drowsy throughout the day, and having trouble with your memory, are you just trying to deal with it the best you can? You may try to combat your tiredness with extra-large cups of coffee or energy drinks – yet don’t experience much improvement to your alertness or energy levels. You may have accepted this as normal for you. But these symptoms may be caused by the common condition of obstructive sleep apnea.

Sleep apnea, also known as obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), results from an OSA sufferer’s own anatomy. Sleep apnea can cause disrupted sleep night after night. According to this article published by the New York Times, at least 22 million Americans struggle with sleep apnea. Leaving this condition untreated can have seriously negative effects on your health and well-being. Let’s take a look at three ways your untreated sleep apnea may be hurting you.

1. Tiredness from sleep apnea is persistent and can be severe enough to cause problems with day-to-day activities. If you have undiagnosed sleep apnea, you’re feeling tired for a good reason – your sleep is constantly being disrupted. Obstructive sleep apnea causes a person to briefly stop breathing and wake to gasp for air many times each night. Many sleep apnea patients don’t remember waking up in the night, but tiredness poor memory, and difficulty concentrating are telltale signs of this condition.

Dr. Atul Malhotra, the director of Sleep Medicine at the University of California San Diego, says that with sleep apnea “you get sleepiness, lack of energy and an inability to concentrate.” These detrimental effects of sleep apnea can have consequences at work, school, and in every aspect of your life. Treating sleep apnea in Miami can help you reclaim your energy levels and get restful sleep.

2. Systemic effects and metabolic disorders as a result of sleep apnea can include:

• The development of type 2 diabetes
• An increased risk of cardiovascular disease
• A greater risk of developing high blood pressure

Sleep apnea causes your oxygen levels to decrease during the night. Instead of resting and restoring itself during sleep, your body becomes stressed because of OSA and your vital organs receive less oxygen than they need. These decreased oxygen levels can affect your brain, your heart, and every other major organ in your body. Keeping your airway open throughout the night lets your oxygen levels remain stable and helps prevent the unwanted effects of sleep apnea.

3. Mood problems due to poor sleep quality may be another unpleasant consequence of OSA. A poor night’s sleep can make most people a little cranky, but obstructive sleep apnea patients are living with the mood effects of poor sleep, every day. Sleep apnea causes a lack of rest, which can cause or worsen depression, irritability, and relationship problems. Studies done by scientists at the Centers for Disease Control have discovered that having OSA means you also have a greater risk of depression. Fortunately, treatment for obstructive sleep apnea in South Florida is available at the offices of Yazji Orthodontics.

At Yazji Orthodontics, we help our patients with sleep apnea get the rest they need using personalized OAT treatment. Oral Appliance Therapy for obstructive sleep apnea from the offices of Dr. Maria Yazji Orthodontics is an alternative to CPAP machine treatment and low-quality over-the-counter appliances for sleep apnea. Contact our Weston, Brickell, or Miami office today to schedule an OAT treatment consultation with Dr. Yazji. Don’t let obstructive sleep apnea harm your health – get OAT treatment from Yazji Orthodontics.