Sleep Apnea is regarded as a potentially harmful sleep disorder. It occurs when breathing repeatedly stops as well as starts. If someone snores loudly and also feels exhausted after sleeping the whole night, they may be experiencing sleep Apnea. Below are some Sleep Apnea causes & symptoms that you should look out for.

Causes of sleep Apnea

There are some things that can cause sleep apnea. These are explained below.

Obstructive sleep apnea

This happens when muscles located in the back area of the throat relax. These muscles tend to support your soft palate, i.e., the triangular piece of tissue which hangs from your soft palate or uvula, the tonsils, side walls of one’s throat as well as the tongue.

At the time that the muscles relax, the airway tends to narrow or closes whilst you breathe in. It is not possible to get sufficient air, that can lower oxygen levels inthe blood. The brain senses the inability to breathe and then briefly wakes you from sleep allowing you to reopen the airway. You may probably not even remember this awakening.

A person may snort, choke, and gasp. The pattern may repeat itself around five to 30 times and even more every hour, all night, disturbing your ability to get deep and restful sleep.

Risk factors of obstructive sleep apnea

Factors which help in increasing the risk to get this sleep apnea are:

• Being overweight
• Having a thicker neck
• Having a narrowed airway
• Being a man
• Being older
• Your family history
• Consuming alcohol, sedatives, and tranquilizers
• Smoking
• Nasal congestion

Central sleep apnea

This is a less common type of sleep apnea. It happens at the time that the brain fails to transmit signals to the breathing muscles properly. Therefore you do not make any effort to breathe for some time. You may wake up with shortness of breath. You may find it tough going to sleep or even remaining asleep.

Risk factors for central Sleep Apnea

The risk factors for this kind of sleep apnea are:

• Being older
• Being a man
• Having heart disorders
• Employing narcotic pain medications
• Having had a stroke

Symptoms of Sleep Apnea

The signs, as well as symptoms of obstructive along with central sleep apneas, tend to overlap. This can sometimes make it tough to figure out which kind you have. The signs and symptoms that are the most common of these sleep apneas are:

• Snoring loudly
• Times when you stop breathing whilst sleeping, this would be told to you by someone else, i.e., your sleep partner
• Gasping for air whilst sleeping
• Waking up having a dry mouth
• Having a headache in the morning
• Finding it tough to remain asleep or insomnia
• Extreme daytime sleepiness or hypersomnia
• Finding it tough paying attention when awake
• Feeling irritable
• Having heartburn
• Experiencing reduced libido as well as erectile dysfunction

Feeling exhausted during the day

Repeatedly waking up due to sleep apnea make your normal and restorative sleep be impossible. You, therefore, may get extreme daytime drowsiness, fatigue as well as irritability. It may be tough concentrating, and you may fall asleep when at work, whilst watching TV and even when driving. It is possible even to feel quick-tempered, moody, and depressed.

High blood pressure and heart issues

Sudden drops within blood oxygen levels which happen whilst sleep apnea is occurring increase blood pressure as well as strain your cardiovascular system. Those with sleep apnea have a higher risk of getting high blood pressure.

Obstructive sleep apnea may even increase the risk of getting a recurrent heart attack, stroke plus abnormal heartbeats, like atrial fibrillation.

Type 2 diabetes

If you have sleep apnea, this increases the risk of getting insulin resistance as well as type 2 diabetes.

Liver issues

People who have sleep apnea tend to be more likely to get abnormal results when it comes to liver function tests. Their livers are even more likely to display signs of scarring, i.e. nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.

Complications with medications plus surgery

Obstructive sleep apnea tends to be a concern with some medications and general anesthesia. Those with sleep apnea may experience complications after a major surgery as they are likely to get breathing issues, mainly when sedated as well as lying on the back.

If you think that you have sleep apnea, it is important that you consult your doctor immediately. They will be able to guide you on the best way to solve your problem. You need to get it addressed before it is too late.