A link between chronic acid reflux and sleeping disorders has been around for a long time. For the most part, which comes first is unknown. unidentified. Recently a study was done in Germany that found acid reflux symptoms develop in people that suffer sleep apnea three times more frequently than in normally healthy people. Sleep apnea more frequently occurs in older overweight men.

What Is Sleep Apnea? people have acid reflux and sleep apnea at the same time. Sleep Apnea is a malady where the person sleeping quits breathing for around ten seconds. It can last as long as a minute. During an occurrence of apnea, the lungs do not move, this may occur several times while sleeping. The usual symptoms of sleep apnea are snoring, frequent fatigue and morning headache.

What Is Acid Reflux

Acid reflux or GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease) is a digestive disorder where the stomach acids enter the esophagus and cause damage to the mucus membrane. The burning sensation in the chest is the major symptom of the presence of stomach acid in the esophagus.

People suffering from acid reflux have reported more cases of breathing difficulty during sleep than those with sleep apnea alone. When someone has both acid reflux and sleep apnea, you must take the necessary precautions to counter this disorder so that they will not become a nuisance to your health in the future.

See Your Physician

Some research has suggested that treating the acid reflux would provide relief for many sleep apnea suffers. Each condition could have serious problems if not treated correctly. It has also been proventhat severe acid reflux will make the sleep apnea worse.

Acid Reflux And Sleep Apnea Final Thoughts

Sleep apnea and acid reflux are both associated with obesity. A diet that is heavy in sugar, fast food and fat can cause obesity. portliness. A healthy diet can go a long way in preventing both sleep apnea and acid reflux.

It is imperative that fatty, greasy, and sugary foods are let alone as much as possible to minimize instances of acid reflux. These types of foods have been reported to raise the chance of the problem these foods will help in defeating your problem.

In order to avoid acid reflux symptoms it is a smart idea not to eat spicy foods and not to eat large especially two to three hours before bedtime. If you need to eat within 2-3 hours before bed then try eating fruits like papaya. Crackers and a glass of warm milk are good for the digestive system as well.

When breathing of a person during sleep is reduced or stops, this condition could be diagnosed as sleep apnea.Routine visits to the doctor, however, are usually not enough to detect sleep apnea and this disorder often goes undiagnosed. Most patients would not know if they have sleep apnea because it only happens to them while sleeping. This problem could only surface if a patient’s bed partner or family member notices the condition.

A diagnosis of this condition would reveal either of three types of apnea. These apnea types include central apnea, obstructive apnea, and a combination of the two.

Central apnea occurs when the brain of a person asleep fails to activate the muscles for breathing. Obstructive apnea, on the other hand, happens when the person’s airway collapses during sleep. This is the most common type of sleep apnea and occurs mostly in overweight patients. Obstructive sleep apnea has several possible complications. Such possibilities that could occur are high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, sleepiness during the day resulting in concentration and thinking difficulties that may lead to accidents while driving. To diagnose and evaluate obstructive sleep apnea, a patient will undergo physical examination and polysomnography. If you think you might be suffering from sleep apnea you should see a doctor for sleep apnea.

It is very important for a person with obstructive sleep apnea to undergo treatment. It is tempting for most people afflicted with this disorder to forego treatment. The treatment may involve the inconvenience of wearing dental appliances and masks nightly. Using a sleep apnea dentist is uncomfortable at first but you can get used to it. A sleep apnea chin strap is slightly less uncomfortable, but is very unattractive. Surgical treatment is painful and is not guaranteed to be successful.Due to these inconveniences, painful treatment and uncertain results, only an estimated 10% of obstructive sleep apnea patients undergo treatment.

It is therefore important to educate the rest of the 90% of those patients of the consequences of non-treatment of their disorder.r Putting themselves at risk is bad enough and what is worse is that they pose a risk to others when they are driving. Serious risks face the patient for non-treatment of the problem, including higher possibility of stroke, hypertension, heart attack, work productivity reduction, lowered attentiveness and at its extreme death.

Persons with obstructive sleep apnea should discuss treatment with their doctor right away. Aside from surgery, dental appliances and masks, there are more palatable options for treatment. An apnea patient may have the choice to undergo behavioral theraphy, or treatments involving airway pressure.

Some lifestyle changes of patients could also help in apnea treatment. These include refraining from taking alcoholic drinks or muscle relaxants, weight reduction and stopping smoking. Sleeping at a 30-degree elevation of the body could also help by preventing the collapse of the airway due to gravity. The reduction in the gravitational cause of sleep apnea could also be achieved by sleeping on a sideways position.

There are several surgical procedures for those patients who elect surgery. Procedures that may be suggested include, nasal surgery, tongue reduction surgery, palate implants, bariatric surgery, maxi-mandibular advancement and uvulopapatopahryngoplasty.