{"id":112,"date":"2020-11-28T22:15:13","date_gmt":"2020-11-28T22:15:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sleepsnoringtmj.com\/blog\/?p=112"},"modified":"2020-12-29T19:25:24","modified_gmt":"2020-12-29T19:25:24","slug":"rise-of-sleep-apnea","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/2020\/11\/28\/rise-of-sleep-apnea\/","title":{"rendered":"Why is Sleep Apnea Becoming More Common?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignleft is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/AdobeStock_133469416__1___1608760924_42545.jpg\" alt=\"Close-up of hands writing \u201csleep apnea\u201d on clipboard\" class=\"wp-image-113\" width=\"307\" height=\"181\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/AdobeStock_133469416__1___1608760924_42545.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/AdobeStock_133469416__1___1608760924_42545-300x178.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/AdobeStock_133469416__1___1608760924_42545-768x455.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 307px) 100vw, 307px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>In recent years, cases of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/what-is-sleep-apnea.html\">sleep apnea<\/a>\n\u2013 a disorder where a person suffers pauses in breathing while they\u2019re asleep \u2013\nhave been on the rise. A study published by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ajmc.com\/view\/sleep-apnea-a-growing-public-health-issue\">The\nAmerican Journal of Managed Care<\/a> (AJMC) found that sleep apnea incidents\nincreased by 850% between 2014 and 2017. What is the root cause of this sleep\napnea epidemic? And what can you do to protect yourself from the risk factors?\nRead on to learn essential information that could help you continue to enjoy\nsweet dreams.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What is Causing an Increase in Sleep Apnea Cases?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The most likely cause of the rise of sleep apnea is the\nincrease of obesity in recent years. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/obesity\/data\/adult.html\">CDC<\/a> has found that the\nprevalence of obesity has increased from 30.5% to 42.4% between 1999-2000 and\n2017-2018; similarly, severe obesity rates have gone up from 4.7% to 9.2%.\nObesity is considered a major risk factor for sleep apnea because it tends to\nlead to the development of fat deposits around the neck, which increases the\nchances of the airways becoming blocked by relaxed tissues at night. (Sleep\napnea occurs when breathing is partially or fully obstructed, forcing the body\nto repeatedly wake up for oxygen.)&nbsp; Thus,\nif you or one of your loved ones has gained weight recently, there is a\nsignificant chance of a sleep disorder developing or of an existing disorder\nbecoming worse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What Else Can Increase the Risk of Sleep Apnea?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Some of the other factors that can increase the chances of\nsuffering from sleep apnea include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Having a naturally thicker neck or an unusually\nnarrow airway that\u2019s more likely to become blocked.<\/li><li>Using alcohol, sedatives, or tranquilizers that\ncan relax the throat muscles while you sleep. <\/li><li>Smoking on a regular basis, which can inflame\nthe area around the upper airway.<\/li><li>Nasal congestion due to allergies.<\/li><li>Medical conditions such as high blood pressure\nand type 2 diabetes that have been linked to sleep apnea.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What Can You Do About Your Risk for Sleep Apnea?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>While some sleep apnea risk factors are genetic, there are\nplenty of ways you can try and reduce your personal risk for the disorder. For\nexample, if you already suffer from obesity, then losing weight can go a long\nway towards protecting you from sleep apnea. Cutting down on the use of\nalcohol, cigarettes, and other potentially harmful substances can also help. If\nyou can, try to sleep on your side instead of on your back so that there\u2019s less\nof a chance that relaxed tissues will fall back on the airway. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you\u2019re already noticing potential signs of sleep apnea\n(such as loud snoring or frequent exhaustion during the day), get in touch with\na sleep expert as soon as possible. No matter what the cause of sleep apnea is,\nyou\u2019re always better off having the problem addressed sooner instead of later!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">About the Author<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Dr. Mitch Conditt has experienced firsthand the impact that\nsleep apnea can have on a person\u2019s everyday life. He has undergone advanced\ntraining in order to treat sleep apnea as well as TMJ problems. He is a member\nof the Academy of Clinical Sleep Disorder Disciplines and is skilled in the\ndiagnosis and treatment of sleep apnea. To schedule a consultation and learn\nmore about your personal risk for sleep apnea, you can visit his <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/contact.html\">website<\/a> or call (817)\n527-8500.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In recent years, cases of sleep apnea \u2013 a disorder where a person suffers pauses in breathing while they\u2019re asleep \u2013 have been on the rise. A study published by The American Journal of Managed Care (AJMC) found that sleep apnea incidents increased by 850% between 2014 and 2017. What is the root cause of [&hellip;]<\/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-112","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=112"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":114,"href":"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112\/revisions\/114"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=112"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=112"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=112"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}