This Is The Reason Why Sleep Apnea Can Be Dangerous For People With It
Apart from regular exercise and having a healthy diet, sleep quality is equally important to note. However, sleep apnea can disrupt a person's sleep quality.
In particular, undiagnosed sleep apnea is directly associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular and metabolic health. In fact, the most frightening thing is, you may not even realize that you have this health problem.
Reasons for Dangerous Sleep Apnea
According to Jonathan Jun, MD., A specialist in pulmonary and sleep medicine at the Johns Hopkins Center for Sleep, sleep apnea occurs when the muscles of the upper airway relax during sleep and the airway is squeezed, which prevents the body from getting enough air.
In fact, the breath may stop for 10 seconds or more at a time, until the person reflexes in and starts breathing again. In general, sleep apnea affects more men than women. However, the risk of sleep apnea increases sharply in women after menopause.
The danger, sleep apnea is often associated with heart disease and metabolic problems such as diabetes. The following are health problems you might face if you have sleep apnea:
1. High Blood Pressure
If you already have high blood pressure, sleep apnea can make the condition worse. When you wake up frequently at night, your body will become stressed. This overworks the hormonal system, which raises blood pressure levels. In addition, the level of oxygen in the blood can drop when it is not able to breathe properly.
2. Heart Disease
People with sleep apnea are more likely to have a heart attack. The reason may be due to low oxygen levels. In addition, stroke and atrial fibrillation are also associated with these conditions. Sleep apnea can interfere with the way the body takes in oxygen, making it difficult for the brain to control blood flow in the arteries and in the brain itself.
3.Diabetes Type 2
Sleep apnea is common in people with type 2 diabetes. Obesity increases a person's risk for both disorders. Although research has not shown a cause-and-effect link between sleep apnea and type 2 diabetes, it does not rule out that sleep apnea can make the body not use insulin properly, leading to diabetes.
4. Weight Gain
Being overweight increases a person's chances of developing sleep apnea. However, on the other hand, sleep apnea also makes it more difficult for a person to lose weight.
If you are overweight, you can have fat deposits in your neck that block your breathing at night. On the other hand, sleep apnea can make the body release more of the hormone ghrelin, which makes you want to eat foods high in carbohydrates and sweet.
Sleep apnea can also make sufferers feel tired during the day and lazy to move. As a result, the body cannot efficiently convert the food you consume into energy, and you gain weight.
5. Accidents
Because the quality of sleep at night is disturbed, people with sleep apnea are often sleepy and tired during the day. This of course makes it difficult for sufferers to focus, even prone to accidents. For example, the risk of falling asleep while driving, can be very dangerous and lead to an accident.