Sleep apnea is a serious sleep disorder or condition that causes interrupted breathing by stops and starts repeatedly during the night due to airway obstruction. Because of this many health problems can result. Current research shows that being overweight or obese is a major reason why people suffer from it but not always.
People who have sleep apnea also are more likely to suffer from high blood pressure, stroke, heart disease and diabetes to name just a few. If you have underlying heart disease, it can lead to a sudden death from low blood oxygen. Many diabetics are unaware that they have it. In fact a majority of diabetics who haven't been diagnosed with it are unaware they have it.
The disrupted sleep among sufferers causes disrupted hormones and metabolism and can contribute to obesity and diabetes, which only compounds matters if one is already overweight.
Among pregnant women, those who snore are more likely to have sleep apnea than those who do not. In addition, temporary sleep apnea can be a problem among pregnant women and often goes undiagnosed.
Disrupting sleep can also cause brain issues. Depriving the brain of uninterrupted sleep may make the plaques that cause Alzheimer's show up earlier and possibly more often. A high percentage of dementia patients have diagnosed, and many probably undiagnosed, sleep apnea.
In addition, you may have complications when you take certain medications or problems with breathing after surgery. Moreover, you can disrupt the sleep of anyone else sleeping in the room with you so they may suffer from sleep deprivation too.
You may have sleep apnea if you snore loudly and get tired after getting a full night's sleep.
There are three types of sleep apnea - the most common type is obstructive - this is the most common type when the muscles in the throat relax. Central is the second type when your brain doesn't send the proper signals to the muscles that control your breathing. The third type is complex and is a combination of the two other types but is less common.
Some of the signs and symptoms are daytime sleepiness, loud snoring, a period where you stop breathing during your sleep, awakening with shortness of breath, dry mouth or sore throat on awakening, headache in the morning, insomnia or difficulty in staying asleep.
If you think you have sleep apnea or your spouse or partner say you have stopped breathing during the night or you have snoring concerns, see your doctor as soon as possible if you haven't already. Meanwhile get informed and do plenty of research so you know what questions to ask and to learn all you can.
For more tips on snoring sleep apnea and sleep disorder treatments go to http://www.SleepDisorderTips.com a nurse's website specializing in sleep disorder tips, treatments, natural treatments, causes and remedies for adult, child and infant including info on snoring, insomnia and sleep disorder centers