Not only can untreated sleep apnea cause you to feel exhausted during the day, but it can also have a seriously harmful impact on your entire body. In particular, research shows that sleep-disordered breathing can lead to all sorts of cardiovascular problems, including life-threatening heart attacks. To help you understand the importance of having sleep apnea treated promptly, here’s a closer look at its connection to cardiovascular health.
What Happens When You Have Sleep Apnea?
People with sleep apnea experience frequent pauses in their breathing while they’re asleep. These pauses can occur anywhere from 5 to 30 times in a single hour, and they are typically the result of a blocked airway. Each sleep apnea episode forces you to wake up so that breathing can resume. These awakenings are so brief that you may not even remember them, but they can still prevent you from getting quality sleep.
The Link Between Sleep Apnea and the Heart
One of the obvious consequences of having your breathing repeatedly interrupted by sleep apnea is that your body doesn’t get enough oxygen. The drop in oxygen levels means that the heart has to work harder in order to pump blood through the body as needed. This puts a lot of strain on the cardiovascular system and ultimately raises the risk of a heart attack or stroke occurring.
Treating Sleep Apnea to Protect Your Cardiovascular Health
The longer sleep apnea goes untreated, the more of an impact it can potentially have on your cardiovascular health. If you have any reason to suspect that you’re experiencing sleep-disordered breathing, it is best to have it diagnosed and treated quickly so that you can protect your heart.
Diagnosing sleep-disordered breathing requires a sleep test, which involves a special device that can measure your heart rate, oxygen levels, and airflow while you slumber. Once an expert has reviewed the results of your test, they’ll be able to figure out whether you have sleep apnea.
You can start exploring options for treatment once a diagnosis has been made. Depending on the severity and root cause of your sleep disorder, you may benefit from wearing an oral appliance. This mouthguard-like device can help you maintain an unblocked airway throughout the night by repositioning your lower jaw.
In short, sleep apnea can have dangerous consequences for your heart, but if you act promptly to have it treated, you can protect your overall health while improving your ability to get a good night’s sleep.
About the Author
Dr. Jennifer Sherwood Bragg is a graduate of the Medical College of Georgia School of Dentistry. She is a Diplomate of the American Board of Dental Sleep Medicine, and she is currently a proud member of the American Sleep and Breathing Academy as well as the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine. Her Cumming practice, Sleep Forsyth Dental Sleep Medicine, offers various types of oral appliances for treating sleep apnea. If you would like to schedule an appointment with Dr. Bragg to discuss potential solutions for sleep apnea, visit her website or call (470) 281-9905.