sleep apnea explanation

Obstructive sleep apnea is when the airway collapses during sleep, blocking the flow of air to the lungs. The person tries to continue to breathe, but the harder they try the more the tighter the airway closes. Eventually the brain “wakes up” the person to a lighter level of sleep and they will reposition their jaw and tongue to open the airway—usually with a gasp or a snort. They will then usually start the whole process over again.

Obviously, being suffocated many times per hour will result in a less than restful sleep. Sleep is broken into 4 main stages:

Stage 1 = Transition. This should account for roughly 5% of your total sleep time.

Stage 2 = Light Sleep. This should account for about 45% of total sleep time.

Stage 3 & 4 = Deep Sleep. This is when the body heals itself and performs many important reparative functions. One should ideally have about 25% deep sleep. People who have a lack of deep sleep tend to be physically tired.

REM = Rapid Eye Movement Sleep. This is when we dream and the brain takes care of reparative functions—similar to defragmenting the hard drive on your computer. REM should also account for about 25% of your sleep time. People that have a lack of REM sleep tend to feel mentally tired and have a difficult time concentrating.

Recent research has linked many disorders and health issues that have not had clear causes to sleep apnea. These include:

Depression
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Fibromyalgia
Gastroesophageal Reflux Disorder (GERD) and Heartburn
Morning Headaches
Impotence
Excessive Daytime Sleepiness
Chronic Pain

Sleep apnea is also considered a risk factor for several serious health problems, such as:

High Blood Pressure
Heart Attack
Stroke

Sleep apnea also affects children. Usually this is due to the child having large tonsils that obstruct the airway. Just like in adults, often snoring is a sign of an obstructed airway. Some of the problems common in children that have been linked to sleep apnea include:

Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)
Mood Disorders
Bed Wetting
Problems Learning
Growth Problems

Sleep apnea can also adversely affect the sleep of the bed partner of the person with sleep apnea! Click here for a study by the Mayo Clinic on the effect of sleep apnea and snoring on the bed partner.