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How to Know If You Have Sleep Apnea

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Many doctors and dentist goals are to provide the best comprehensive treatment for all of their patients. One way they achieve this goal is to do screening for sleep apnea. Many people do not realize they have this condition.

When sleep apnea is left untreated, there can be dangerous incidents where people can fall asleep at the wheel of their car. Some facts:

• 20 percent of vehicle crashes are associated with drowsy driving.

• 15 percent of heavy truck crashes involve fatigue.

• 12 million Americans have sleep apnea, but most are undiagnosed and untreated, according to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.

Education is the best way for you to approach any health issues that arise. Identifying the signs and symptoms of sleep apnea is the first step to healing.

Obesity is connected to many health problems, such as heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and certain types of cancer. But the heavier a person is, the more likely they are to develop a serious health problem: obstructive sleep apnea. This sleep disorder occurs when tissue in the back of your throat narrows or blocks their airways, which can cause them to briefly stop breathing. The pauses, which typically last for a few seconds, can occur up to 30 times a minute. Although they may not wake you up, they can keep you from entering deep, restful sleep.

Not everyone with sleep apnea is overweight, but our throat tissue thickens along with other body tissue when we put on extra pounds, thus raising the risk for developing the condition.

Other risk factors include being male, being older, smoking, as well as various anatomical problems.

Visit your Doctor and Dentist for more education around this topic.