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Apnea: Skipping Breaths at Night Equals Sleep Apnea

An apnea is what happens when you stop breathing for a moment during sleep. Apneas are defined as pauses lasting 10 seconds or longer; a shorter pause is known as a hypopnea. It's most often caused by your breathing passageways becoming blocked while you sleep, a sleep disorder known as obstructive sleep apnea.

During an apnea, blood oxygen levels fall. The brain doesn't get the oxygen it needs. REM sleep, which is supposed to be the most restful, is compromised. Sleep apnea leaves people feeling daytime fatigue, but that's not all: it also leaves sufferers more vulnerable to a host of other health problems. Heart disease, stroke, diabetes, brain damage and memory loss have all been linked to sleep apnea.

Not all people who snore have sleep apnea, but most people with sleep apnea do snore. Snoring is loud, rumbling breath during sleep. Sleep apnea, on the other hand, is characterized by stopping breathing or skipping breaths during sleep.

Treating obstructive or central sleep apnea improves a person's overall health and well-being. But a significant side benefit of sleep apnea treatment is that it can eliminate snoring. Ask anyone whose spouse snores just how valuable that can be! In fact, when people who snore seek treatment, the marriage tends to improve as well.

+Jim Du Molin is a leading Internet search expert helping individuals and families connect with the right dentist in their area. Visit his author page.

Sleep Disorders: Had Enough of Snoring and Feeling Tired?

Sleep disorders are not a normal part of life. While everyone has trouble sleeping sometimes, it should not be a nightly battle. Fortunately, sleep medicine offers some restful solutions.

Some of the most common sleep disorders include obstructive sleep apnea, insomnia, bruxism (grinding your teeth), sleepwalking, and restless leg syndrome. To diagnose the sleeping problem, a sleep doctor will sometimes have the patient come to a sleep center for an overnight sleep study.

But diagnosing sleep apnea can sometimes be straightforward. If your husband or wife tells you that you snore and skip breaths at night, then you almost certainly have sleep apnea. (Not everyone who snores has sleep apnea, but almost everyone with sleep apnea snores.)

Other symptoms of sleep apnea include daytime fatigue, because breathing-disordered sleep is not as restful. But whether a sleep partner diagnoses your sleep apnea or your fatigue sends you to see your dentist or physician, you'll improve your health by seeking sleep apnea treatment.

Sleep apnea treatment can make your sleep more restful, leaving you less tired an in a better mood during the day. Plus, if you stop snoring, maybe your husband or wife will sleep better too!

+Jim Du Molin is a leading Internet search expert helping individuals and families connect with the right dentist in their area. Visit his author page.