Sleep apnea, the most common of which is obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), is a serious condition that affects millions of people around the world and can lead to serious problems with cognition and memory if left untreated. If you or someone in your family suffers from sleep apnea, it’s important to know the facts and understand how this condition can affect your memory, both now and in the future. To learn more about this connection between sleep apnea and memory loss, keep reading below!
Sleep apnea is a serious sleep disorder
This is a serious sleep disorder that over 18 million Americans experience. It causes breathing to repeatedly stop and start during sleep, significantly reducing the restful sleep we need for optimal health. When you have sleep apnea, your breathing can slow down or stop entirely, sometimes hundreds of times each night. This puts stress on your heart as it works harder to pump blood around your body. As a result, people with sleep apnea are at increased risk for high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, and diabetes. But there are also other consequences of interrupted breathing including memory loss, anxiety, depression, and difficulty concentrating.
People with sleep apnea stop breathing during sleep
Due to sleep apnea, people stop breathing for short periods of time. This can happen up to 30 times an hour, which disrupts their deep sleep cycle. In turn, this leads to poor memory retention and often leaves them feeling exhausted in the morning. Lack of good quality sleep will also contribute to weight gain due to a lack of metabolism control as well as hormone production. Sleep apnea causes a host of other health problems too, such as high blood pressure and heart disease.
Sleep apnea can lead to memory loss
One of the more common side effects of sleep apnea is memory loss. Sleep apnea is a condition in which you stop breathing for periods of 10 seconds or longer when sleeping, leading to reduced oxygen levels, which in turn can lead to significant memory loss. The latest research shows that one-third of people with sleep apnea are also suffering from some form of cognitive impairment.
The severity of sleep apnea can vary
Symptoms of sleep apnea can vary greatly but generally are only noticed when someone is in deep sleep. There are two sleep apnea types which are obstructive (OSA) as well as central (CSA). OSA occurs when throat muscles relax during sleep, blocking airways. CSA happens when the brain doesn’t send signals to breathe. There are three major symptoms associated with sleep apnea: 1) snoring 2) trouble breathing while sleeping 3) excessive daytime drowsiness.
There are treatments available for sleep apnea
There are many different treatment methods for sleep apnea. The most common treatments are continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP), oral appliances, mouthpieces, and surgery. CPAP is a machine that blows air into the person’s nose while they sleep to keep their airways open. This is usually given in one of two ways: at home or in a sleep lab where someone monitors their breathing all night long.
