Sleep Apnea and  Weight Loss

Sleep apnoea (English) or sleep apnea (American) is a sleeping disorder, which is recognizable by a cessation of breathing during sleep. It can occur from 5-30 times an hour and can last from seconds to minutes. Sleep apnea is closely linked with excess weight.

Sleep Apnea and Weight Loss

It is very distressing for a sleeping partner. There are three forms of sleep apnea: central sleep apnea (CSA); obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) complex or mixed sleep apnea. The incidence of these different forms of sleep apnea are: 0.4%, 84% and 15% respectively.

The difference between these types of apnea are that in CSA, breathing is interrupted by lack of effort; in OSA, it is because of an obstruction in the windpipe and complex is a mixture of both kinds. Snoring or very heavy snoring is an indication of possible obstructive sleep apnea.

An usual characteristic of sleep apnea is that the sufferer is usually the last person to know about it. This does not mean that it is a trivial condition. Sleep apnea should be taken seriously..

There are various sleep apnea surgery techniques that can be applied, if you are a chronic sufferer or if your doctor recommends them. The problem for most sufferers of sleep apnea is that the tongue and or palate slip back and block the airway.

This can be exacerbated by the consumption of alcohol or sleeping tablets, which can relax the muscles in this area.

Some people suffer because they are overweight, causing pressure on the throat. Sleeping on one's side can help solve this problem. However, if these simple home remedies do not work, it may require the application of sleep apnea surgery techniques.

The most successful of these sleep apnea surgery techniques is almost certainly a technique called Maxillomandibular advancement (MMA). This particular sleep apnea surgery technique opens up the rear airway space - the back of the throat, in essence.

In fact, a survey published in 2008 reported that more than 93% of sufferers who had undergone MMA said that their quality of life had been improved considerably.

The reason why they said that MMA increased their quality of life is because sleep apnea means that you do not get a good night's sleep. The sufferer does not always wake up as breathing kicks in again, but it does interrupt normal sleep patterns.

Other sleep apnea surgery techniques can have a similar beneficial effect, but the 93% success rate of MMA is hard to beat.

Rather than looking for sleep apnea surgery techniques, it is probably better to learn a few other methods of helping alleviate your condition. The first and foremost is to lose weight if you are too heavy. This might not only cure your sleep apnea, but it will reduce chances of other serious diseases as well.

If you are not (much) overweight, the next thing that you can try is to raise your head by a pillow more and if that does not work, try another pillow.

Investigating sleep apnea surgery techniques is all very well, but there is a lot that you can try first even in consultation with your doctor.