Did you know an alarming number of American adults, and children, are walking around sleep deprived? The good news is that taking steps to prioritize sleep and modify your lifestyle can lead to dramatic improvements to your overall health. This affects nearly every system in the body. It is vital for your memory, immune system, reducing inflammation, maintaining a healthy weight, hormone balance, positive mood, energy balance, and more.
However, not everyone is drifting off to blissfully and waking up feeling rejuvenated. In fact, sleep disorders are extremely prevalent, especially due to our increasingly demanding lifestyles. According to the National Sleep Foundation, more than 18 million American adults are suffering from a disorder known as obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). This is a serious condition that occurs when the airway becomes obstructed causing breathing to stop for ten seconds or more. In addition, problems can also occur when signals from the brain that tell our muscles to breathe are not functioning properly.
Understanding your risk
OSA is more common in men than women and those with physical features affecting the airway. Lifestyle factors placing you at a higher risk for OSA include obesity, using alcohol, sedatives, and smoking. Prolonged OSA is linked with many diseases such as high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, heart attack and heart failure, stroke, diabetes, depression, and cognitive decline. Understanding this connection is important for the prevention and management of these chronic conditions.
Knowing your risk and answering ‘yes’ to the following questions is a great first step in identifying whether you might have OSA:
- Do you wake up throughout the night choking or gasping for air?
- Are you excessively sleepy during the day?
- Do you snore loudly?
- Do you frequently stop breathing in your sleep?
- Are you overweight?
You deserve great health! If you are experiencing signs of OSA, or are concerned you may have a disorder. It is important to obtain a comprehensive evaluation by a licensed practitioner to help you receive a proper diagnosis.
At FXMed Centers, we offer a thorough assessment and sleep disorder testing that can be completed from the comfort of your own home. Contact our team at 855-MYFXMED (693-9633) for more information and to schedule an evaluation.
References:
https://www.jabfm.org/content/20/4/392.full
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5612637/
www.sleepassociation.org/sleep-disorders/sleep-apnea/sleep-apnea-screening-questionnaire-stop-bang/
