Understanding
Sleep apnea makes someone to have a poor sleep due to the uncontrollable pauses in breathing during sleep. There is no way for you to sleep without any interruptions because whenever there is a pause in breathing, you would suddenly wake up startled. It is scary to learn that one can experience breath pauses 30 times every hour. Since you may not know that you are experiencing pauses in breathing as you sleep, you may wake up in the morning thinking that you had a good sleep.
People with sleep apnea are most likely to suffer from poor immune functioning and mental problems. It can also lead to memory loss and the risk of heart failure. The breaks in normal breathing make less oxygen to go to the brain and other parts of the body and this makes people with this condition to wake up suddenly in order to gasp for air and reopen the airways. There are various ways to treat sleep apnea.
You should maintain a healthy weight. You will have much weight on the inside of your neck and this means that your throat muscles would be affected; this will also affect your breathing. There is a need for obese people to know that they are at the risk of sleep apnea due to the fat around the upper airways obstructing breathing. You will find it hard to lose weight if you are having difficulties with sleep. People with sleep apnea are at the risk of cardiovascular diseases and other problems that are caused by obesity. Since the loss of weight means that there would be no collapsing of the airways, it would be easier for the person to have good sleep. You can eat a high-fiber diet and enough proteins.
If you take alcohol or smoke, there is a need for you to stop in order to do away with apnea. You should quit alcohol in order to increase the chances of a good sleep. There is no way for a person who uses sleep aids and sedatives to sleep well or avoid worsened snoring. It is hard for you to have a good sleep if there is fluid in your airways and that explains why you should quit smoking and alcohol. If you want to have a good sleep, it is advisable to do away with alcohol, smoking, and use of sedatives.
It is necessary to consider changing your sleeping position. If you elevate your head while sleeping, you will minimize the chances of snoring. Moreover, you should stop sleeping on your back since it worsens snoring. A snoring guard can be a way to avoid sleep apnea. More air will pass through your airways because the guard brings your lower jaw slightly forward. It will be a way to encourage your sinuses to drain more air to move through your airways.
