Snoring Relief and Sleep Apnea

Treatments for Sleep Apnea

The Treatments for Sleep Apnea 

Sleep apnea is a potentially dangerous condition, which can lead to serious disorders such as permanent brain damage, coma or even death. A study stated that around 20% of American adults have mild sleep apnea. Many people have sleep apnea but they don’t really know it or they take it for granted. 

Sleep apnea is a condition where the person’s sleep is being disrupted due to the lack of breath during sleeping. Lack of oxygen in the blood is detrimental to the body. There are numerous negative effects that are brought about by sleep apnea such as sleepiness during the daytime, weakened immune system, irritability, lack of body coordination, decreased, lowered energy, inability to concentrate on one’s job and slowed reaction time.

There are many causes of sleep apnea. It can be caused by obesity because of the accumulated fat in the throat and neck areas. It can also be caused by gender (sleep apnea is more rampant in males than in females). Older people are also more prone to sleep apnea than younger ones. People who do not follow regular sleeping hours are also at risk. Snoring can be seen as a result of sleep apnea; however, it is also one of its main causes. The vibrations in the palate area when snoring can affect the airways and obstruct the airways. Respiratory diseases are also one of the main causes of sleep apnea.

There are two main schools of thought when it comes to the treatment of sleep apnea: the behavioral treatments and the physiological treatments. . Taking medications is not really a good way of treating sleep apnea. Let us first discuss the behavioral treatments for sleep apnea.

Behavioral Treatment 

Behavioral treatments work for mild conditions of sleep apnea. These are also referred to as self-help methods, which you can do on your own. 

-Losing weight

Sleep apnea is commonly associated with being obese or having excess fat around the throat area. Less then 50% of the people who have sleep apnea are obese. It has been found that people who lose even as little as ten percent of their total body weight will be able to reduce the occurrence of sleep apnea and will have a better sleeping habits.  

-Sleeping on your side

Special pillows and sleeping on one’s side will induce a better flow of oxygen through the body’s airways 

-Doing away with tobacco, coffee, alcohol and sleeping pills

The substances above are proven to disrupt the sleeping habits of people because of their effects on one’s systems. Doing away with them will not only improve one’s sleeping habits but it will improve one’s health also. 

-Sticking to a regular sleeping schedule

Being faithful to a regular sleeping schedule will reduce the risks of worsening sleep apnea. 

Physiological Treatments 

There are four prominent physical treatments for sleep apnea. These are: 

-Dental and jaw devices

Devices are attached to the jaw or in the teeth to be able to create more room for air to flow. These devices keep the airway open when sleeping by bringing the lower jaw and the tongue a little bit forward during sleeping.  

-Continuous Positive Airway Pressure

More commonly known as CPAP, the continuous positive airway pressure method of curing sleep apnea is a method that utilizes a machine that blows a continuous volume of air to the body through a mask. 

-Surgery

In serious sleep apnea cases, the need for surgery is imminent. The airways of the body are surgically widened by the removal of tissues that may be blocking them. There are also cases where the jaw needs to be reconstructed. 

-Oxygen administration

This is a method of sleep apnea treatment were a tube is connected to the nose from a source of oxygen. 

The different ways of treating apnea have different advantages and disadvantages. Generally, the self-help methods are usually advisable to those who have minor conditions of sleep apnea because they can correct the minor causes of the disorder. They are also cheap and non-intrusive to one’s privacy. 

Sleep apnea should not be taken for granted. One thing can always lead to another and sleep apnea is no exemption. Make sure that you go to a doctor if you suspect yourself of having seep apnea.

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