Has that ever happened to you? While sleeping you suddenly feel that you cannot breathe and your sleep is disturbed. This is caused by sleep apnea. It is a sleep disorder. This causes insufficient oxygen to reach our lungs and brain and suffocation occurs. The brain somehow tries to wake us up, thereby disrupting sleep.
Mild sleep apnea involves waking 50 to 100 times a night. As this problem increases, so does the frequency of nighttime sleep disturbances. When the problem is severe, a person may wake up more than 250 times a night. Due to which sleep is not completed and fatigue remains throughout the day.
Deficiency of oxygen in the blood is seen due to frequent cessation of breathing at night. Due to which all the vital organs of the body are affected. Lack of oxygen in the brain impairs brain function, memory and attention. Sexual dysfunction occurs. Sometimes life-threatening conditions like heart attack and stroke can also occur.
According to an AIIMS study published in the renowned journal 'Science Direct', 10.4 crore youth in India are facing sleep apnea. This means that around 13% of Indian youth have sleep apnea.
That's why today 'health water' In we will talk about sleep apnea. You will also learn that-
- What are the symptoms of sleep apnea?
- Could this lead to a life-threatening situation?
- Why do doctors forbid their patients from driving?
- What to eat and what not to eat if you have sleep apnea?
Before reading the article in detail, let's understand from an incident how costly it can be to ignore sleep apnea.
Sleep apnea has taken the world by storm
It was the spring of 1986, when a terrible explosion occurred at the Chernobyl power plant. More than five million people in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus were exposed to radiation in this accident. For the next several years, people exposed to its radiation continued to die of cancer. Because of this, the Soviet Union suffered a loss of millions of rupees. It affected the whole world.
When the accident was investigated, it was found that the technician handling the on-off switch was a sleep apnea patient and had not slept for 13 hours. Shortly before switching off, he fell into a deep sleep and stayed asleep. As a result, a terrible accident occurred. Lack of sleep and sleep apnea are believed to be the main cause of this tragedy. However, the Soviet Union is accused of creating such an excuse to cover up the accident.
What are the symptoms of sleep apnea? Dr. Director, Department of Pulmonology and Sleep Medicine, Sri Balaji Action Medical Institute, Delhi. Ignoring sleep apnea can be costly, says Animesh Arya. Most people do not recognize its symptoms. So they don't get the treatment they need. What are its features, see in the graphic.
How many types of sleep apnea are there? According to the American National Sleep Foundation, there are three types of sleep apnea. The most common of these is obstructive sleep apnea. Apart from this there is central and complex sleep apnea. See details in graphic-
Sleep apnea can lead to a life-threatening condition Dr. Sleep apnea appears to be a very common health condition in the early days, says Animesh Arya. Most people don't think of snoring as a big problem, but it causes a lack of oxygen in our blood every night. Blood supplies oxygen to all parts of our body. Due to the lack of oxygen, the functioning of all the organs of the body begins to be affected.
Since our brain is completely dependent on oxygen to stay alive, it is the most affected by sleep apnea. Due to which conditions like memory loss, depression and mental confusion start to occur.
Sleep apnea can cause problems like high blood pressure, high blood sugar and high cholesterol. Due to this, fatal conditions like heart attack and stroke can also arise. See the graphic to see what other conditions can cause sleep apnea.
Sleep apnea patients should not drive Dr. Animesh Arya says that sleep apnea patients should not drive as they can fall asleep anytime and anywhere. Even a few seconds of sleep while driving can put your life in danger. Apart from this, doctors advise their patients not to operate heavy machinery. The biggest example is the explosion at the Chernobyl power plant.
Sleep apnea patients should also avoid cooking as falling asleep suddenly in the kitchen puts them at risk of burns from hot oil or hot water.
Apart from this, see in the graphic which tasks they should avoid.
Dr. Animesh Arya says that if the symptoms of sleep apnea appear, it is necessary to seek treatment after consulting a specialist. However, we can reduce the problems caused by this condition by doing some home remedies. See graphic.
What to watch out for when you have sleep apnea? Dr. Animesh Arya says that in this situation first of all we should pay attention to the quality of sleep. For this, set a suitable sleeping and waking time. The sleeping room should be completely dark and try to keep the bed in such a position that the side of our head is slightly higher than the feet.
To avoid any fatal situation at night, it is necessary to have dinner at least two hours before going to bed because in sleep apnea, our blood is deficient in oxygen while sleeping. If we have eaten food before going to bed, most of the blood flow for digestion will be around the stomach. Because of this, the blood flow to the rest of the body will be reduced and there will be a lack of oxygen. This can create a fatal situation.
Apart from this, we should also pay special attention to our diet. Check out the graphic on what sleep apnea patients should and shouldn't eat.
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
