Ellis Sleep Center Blog

In addition to hurting your love life, snoring also can harm your health. It is a tell-tale sign of obstructive sleep apnea, a serious disease that can increase the risk for significant health problems. Untreated sleep apnea can raise your risk for congestive heart failure, high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, depression and impotence. 

Although sleep apnea can occur at any age, the risk increases as you get older. While the sleep disorder is more common in men, it can occur in women too, especially during and after menopause. Having excess body weight, a narrow airway, a recessed chin or misaligned jaw all can increase the risk of sleep apnea.

Researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, scanned 67 people with obstructive sleep apnoea who were obese and had lost 10% of their body weight, improving their symptoms by 30%. By looking at the size of patients' upper airway structures, the research team was able to find out what changes had driven the improvements.

Many patients prefer oral appliance therapy as a solution for living with sleep apnea. Oral appliance therapy uses a mouth guard-like device worn only during sleep to maintain an open, unobstructed airway by supporting the jaw in a forward position. Many medical insurance plans, including Medicare, cover oral appliances.

According to Harvard, scientists have discovered that sleep disruption affects levels of neurotransmitters and stress hormones, among other things, and consequently wreaks havoc in the brain, impairing thinking and emotional regulation.