Many people including women have trouble getting a good night’s sleep. And for some women the culprit is sleep apnea. Yes, sleep apnea symptoms are common in women too. This sleep disorder has affected millions of people alone in US. The symptoms can be mild to severe and can be found in both men and women. The condition creates blockage or obstruction in the airway while the sufferers are in deep sleep at night. They stop breathing temporarily for few seconds and this happen from one to hundreds of time depending on the severity of the condition.
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Frequent interruption in breathing can be dangerous. Body does not get enough oxygen and conditions like cell damage can occur as oxygen in the blood provide nourishment to the cells. It may also affect your cardiac health.
Sleep Apnea Symptoms in Women
Sleep apnea is a serious health condition and it’s a matter of concern whether it is diagnosed in men or women. However, medical professionals become more anxious when they noticed sleep apnea symptoms in women in particular. Firstly, sleep apnea is harder to diagnose in women. The symptoms are less pronounced and remain silent for many years. This increases the chances of misdiagnosis. Not only this, but researches are recently done on sleep apnea patient to check their cardiac health and they reveal that effects of sleep apnea differ between the sexes.
Women are at Greater Risk of Developing Cardiac Disease
Physician or sleep experts knew it for long that sleep apnea affects both heart response and heart rate but they were surprised to see that women with sleep apnea are at a greater risk of poor cardiac health than men. During the research, men and women were given three different physical activities to perform. And, when results were checked after the completion of each task, sleep apnea patient had slower heart rates and a slower response time. While it was well expected, researchers were surprised to notice that there was significant difference between responses of women and men. The study concluded that women sleep apnea affects cardiac health of female patient at a higher level.
Take Your Sleep Issues Seriously
So now you know that sleep apnea can be a serious threat to your health. Give importance to follow sleep hygiene in your life. Early screening and diagnosis is recommended specially to female patients. Because they are at greater risk of developing cardiac disease, medical professionals urge female patients to talk about their sleep issues with their physician. They believe that early screening and treatment of the problem may lead to a better prognosis. However, the study is yet to be done on just how much of an effect can be expected on the development of heart disease in women. There are more such questions that are still unanswered concerning sleep apnea symptoms in women and their heart health. Studies are underway to collect more information and find answers to these important questions.