{"id":555,"date":"2024-12-03T20:45:17","date_gmt":"2024-12-03T20:45:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vollersmiles.com\/blog\/?p=555"},"modified":"2025-01-28T20:46:54","modified_gmt":"2025-01-28T20:46:54","slug":"sleep-apnea-complicate-health-oral-appliance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vollersmiles.com\/blog\/2024\/12\/03\/sleep-apnea-complicate-health-oral-appliance\/","title":{"rendered":"How Sleep Apnea Can Complicate Your General Health"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"Man<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

If you feel like you know a lot of people with obstructive sleep apnea<\/a> (OSA), you\u2019re not crazy. OSA cases in the US have been on the rise for the past several years. Lack of a good night\u2019s sleep is more than just annoying, though! What\u2019s complicated about sleep apnea is that lack of sleep can contribute to several other health issues, either triggering dormant ones or aggravating existing conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To learn more about OSA risk factors and how treatment could alleviate your symptoms, keep reading!<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

High Blood Pressure<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Patients with high blood pressure might find that OSA makes it more difficult to manage their symptoms. Frequent waking stresses the body out \u2013 literally. Hormones kick into high gear and work overtime, which, among other things, increases blood pressure. Many patients who seek out sleep apnea treatment find that their blood pressure levels improve, sometimes to the point where their doctors can lower their blood pressure medication!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Heart Disease<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since OSA patients don\u2019t breathe properly when they sleep, they can have a hard time getting enough oxygen to support smooth biological functions. For example, when oxygen levels are low, the brain responds by constricting blood vessels, making it more difficult for blood to circulate and reach your heart. As a result, those with OSA are more likely to encounter heart diseases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Obesity<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Obesity and OSA is a tough combination to crack. Irregular weight gain increases the amount of tissue obstructing the airways, aggravating sleep apnea symptoms. At the same time, not getting enough rest disrupts how your body processes energy \u2013 it\u2019s hard to lose weight when you\u2019re tired all the time! Treating OSA can make it easier to get up and get moving, while managing your weight can improve your quality of sleep.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Being a Man<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

No, being assigned male at birth isn\u2019t a disease! However, men are more likely to develop OSA than women and are less <\/em>likely to consult a doctor for health issues. If your snoring is keeping your significant other up at night or you\u2019re just not sleeping like you used to, ask your doctor about a sleep apnea diagnosis and see your dentist for treatment!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This post isn\u2019t meant to scare you. It just goes to show how important it is to get a good night\u2019s sleep, and that if you have a complicated cocktail of health issues, it might be a good idea to make sure sleep apnea isn\u2019t making your symptoms worse. Check in with your dentist, and they can help you determine whether sleep apnea treatment is right for you!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About the Author<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Ray Voller<\/a> earned his dental doctorate from the University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine. He\u2019s had over 40 years of experience in dentistry thus far, so he\u2019s pretty much seen everything \u2013 including his fair share of OSA cases! If sleep apnea is disrupting your sleep and affecting your health, Dr. Voller can provide you with a custom oral appliance to help you breathe easy and dream uninterrupted. To contact<\/a> his office, call 724-543-4948.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If you feel like you know a lot of people with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), you\u2019re not crazy. OSA cases in the US have been on the rise for the past several years. Lack of a good night\u2019s sleep is more than just annoying, though! What\u2019s complicated about sleep apnea is that lack of sleep […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-555","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vollersmiles.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/555","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vollersmiles.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vollersmiles.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vollersmiles.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vollersmiles.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=555"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.vollersmiles.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/555\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":557,"href":"https:\/\/www.vollersmiles.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/555\/revisions\/557"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vollersmiles.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=555"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vollersmiles.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=555"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vollersmiles.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=555"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}