Sleep Apnea Education May Save More Than Your Health

A Silent Night? For family, friends and co-workers of someone who snores, silence is something they can only dream about.

Snoring can be a major issue in relationships, causing partners to lose sleep and eventually use another bedroom to escape the disruption. Heavy snorers can also face social problems, feeling reluctant to visit friends and relatives overnight, vacationing and even staying awake on long flights to avoid public notice. The social problems of snoring have been noted in many group-sleeping arrangements, such as the military, where Army barracks and Naval ships can be so loud at night everyone loses restorative sleep.

If you snore, not only could you be depriving yourself and others from restful sleep, you could very likely be suffering from Hypertension and Obstructive Sleep Apnea – debilitating conditions that can have serious impacts on your health and daily life.

Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) is defined as a sleep and breathing disorder that blocks your airway and stops breathing while sleeping. By blocking your airway, you deprive your body of oxygen repeatedly during sleep. This can lead to serious health impacts that can include high blood pressure, stroke, heart disease, impotency, diabetes and reduced brain function.

Experts warn snoring’s impact is widely felt. Problem is, snoring problems can sound like a joke complaint. However, it is no joke: besides the health risks, snoring has been known to destroy relationships. When a partner is sleep deprived, they can be irritable, make irrational decisions and feel physically ill.

So what can you do to silence those snores, and prevent sleep apnea? Snoring is an indicator of OSA, so treating the snoring can also treat OSA – saving relationships and saving lives.

For some people, lifestyle changes can help in treating snoring and OSA. Extra weight, smoking, alcohol use and exercise are often prevalent in diagnosed patients. However the majority who are undiagnosed are often generally healthy and can only report fatigue, daytime sleepiness or other health problems that a doctor may diagnose as stress, or another disorder. Those concerned should seek advice from their doctor.

Snorers may be advised to seek a solution ranging from surgery to wearing a night-time mask and mechanical breathing apparatus. A new item on the market – the AveoTSD – is a small tongue stabilizing device that can fit in your pocket.

The evidence seems clear — treating snoring stops family and social sleep disruption and the potential health effects of OSA. As with any medical condition check with your doctor for advice before starting any treatment and ask out a treatment option that is inexpensive, effective and unobtrusive – the aveoTSD.

Information on the aveoTSD can be found at http://www.aveosleep.ca