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It’s more common than you think, and if left untreated, sleep apnea can lead to much graver health conditions.
Sleep apnea itself is a condition wherein you take frequent pauses in breathing or take shallow breaths when you’re asleep. Such pauses can last up to 20 seconds and can lead to disruptive sleep, causing you to feel sleepy during the daytime. Not addressing sleep apnea can result in:
According to a new report from SweetIslandDreams.com, fortunately, there are natural remedies that you can employ to curb your sleep apnea. In this article, we will discuss some remedial ways that could possibly limit sleep apnea.
Here, we will discuss five natural remedies that can help you sleep better.
We’ll start off with the simplest thing that you can do to address sleep apnea. Making a small change in the way you sleep can make a world of difference. Research has shown that if an adult sleeps on their back, known as the supine position, sleep apnea appears to worsen.
However, another research proved that children with sleep apnea get better sleep on their back.
Therefore, it is best that you discuss with your doctor what works best for you and act accordingly.
People with sleep apnea are often advised by doctors to shed the extra pounds that they may have gained. Upper body obesity has been known to severely aggravate sleep apnea by obstructing the narrow nasal passages, causing you to abruptly stop breathing for lengths of time while you’re asleep.
Maintaining a healthy weight can help reduce the symptoms of sleep apnea. In fact, there have been cases where losing enough weight has resulted in the condition being completely cured. However, regaining the lost pounds can trigger sleep apnea to return.
In places where the climate is on the drier side, humidifiers can be placed in the room. Humidifiers are devices that moisturize the air, as dry air has been known to irritate the respiratory system. A humidifier, on the other hand, helps your airways to open, curbs congestion, and promotes clearer breathing.
You can also consider adding eucalyptus, lavender, or peppermint oil to the humidifier to further benefit from the apparatus. All three of these essential oils have anti-inflammatory and soothing properties that encourage better sleep.
If all the other reasons to cut down on these two vices were not encouraging enough, here’s another one. Alcohol, for one, relaxes the muscles in your throat that control your breathing, causing you to snore and disrupt your sleep. Alcohol also blocks airflow by causing inflammation in your airways.
Smoking also does the same, exaggerating your sleep apnea symptoms. In fact, studies indicated that people with sleep apnea are predisposed to smoking. Hence, getting treatment for sleep apnea can help you to quit smoking for good, making it a win-win situation from both perspectives.
People who exercise regularly have been seen to have more energy, a stronger heart, and reduced sleep apnea symptoms. With yoga, you get a particularly improved respiratory strength and better oxygen flow.
In these post-pandemic times, we’re all aware of oxygen saturation in one’s blood. Sleep apnea is infamously associated with decreased O2 sat levels. Yoga helps you to increase these oxygen levels through a plethora of breathing exercises. Resultantly, you encounter fewer sleep interruptions, improving your overall quality of life.
Well, there you have it! Trying the above tips can certainly help you with your sleep apnea. If the symptoms persist, you may have to consider consulting a doctor for good. As mentioned before, not only can prolonged sleep apnea lead to serious medical conditions, but it can also gravely impact your quality of life.
However, you can rest assured that there are enough lines of treatment in both conservative and alternative medicine to ensure that your sleep apnea is properly addressed to a point where it does not hamper your lifestyle.
You can consider the suggestions above as the first line of defense to rid yourself of sleep apnea, and there is enough evidence to suggest that they would work. However, do keep an open mind about going to a doctor if it becomes necessary.