Do you snore at night? If so, you could be facing health problems worse than just the stress of disrupting the sleep of your spouse at night. Snoring can be a sign that you have Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA). This disease is one that many experts believe is significantly under diagnosed and, therefore, under treated. The term apnea means ‘without breath,’ which is what the body experiences during OSA. While you are asleep, your body stops breathing causing you to go without oxygen and ending up gasping for air. If your spouse has ever heard you doing this, you most likely have this disease.

The cause of this is your upper airway dropping down into the back of your throat shutting off your air supply. This can be because of a weak throat, fat in and around the throat area, a misaligned jaw or an obstruction to the nasal passage that makes you breathe with your mouth open at night.

Here are some of the most common symptoms of OSA.

• Labored breathing or gasping for air while asleep

This is the most common sign and can also lead to snoring. When your airway contracts, it becomes impossible to breathe. As your body lacks oxygen, it instinctively gasps for air, which is why you end up breathing harder or wheezing.

• Restless night’s sleep and chronic fatigue

With OSA, waking up frequently in the middle of the night and feeling tired all day, even though you should have slept plenty, is not uncommon. This is because your body is not able to enter a completely rest filled state because it is constantly working hard to get the oxygen it needs.

• Frequent headaches in the morning

When your body is starved of oxygen, you may feel light headed or have a headache when you wake up. This is because your body has worked hard to receive a limited supply of air, less than it is used to, leaving your head spinning and in pain.

• High blood pressure and obesity

This disease leaves your body in a stressed state. This can cause your blood pressure to soar, and you may gain weight because your body has an increased level of cortisol during stress, which is a hormone that naturally makes your body store fat.

Treating OSA is crucial, because it can have a major impact on your overall health. When your body is unable to get the rest it needs night after night, you may start looking for dentistry treatments to help resolve the issue that is causing your airway to continuously get restricted. For the best help, look for dentists that are specialized in this area, such as Dr. Safarian in San Diego, for example, so that they can give you the most current treatment options available.