If sleep apnea is left untreated for too long, it can have a devastating impact on your health and your quality of life. You may already be aware of some of the consequences of the disorder, such as excessive tiredness and an increased risk for heart attacks. But what you may not have realized is that sleep apnea could speed up the rate at which your body ages. Here’s what you need to know about the link between sleep-disordered breathing and aging.
What Happens When You Have Sleep Apnea?
People with sleep apnea experience multiple breathing interruptions every night while they’re asleep. The most common type of sleep apnea is obstructive sleep apnea, which is often a consequence of soft tissues in the throat collapsing and blocking the airway. When a sleep apnea episode occurs, the brain briefly wakes the body up to resume breathing. Consequently, people with sleep apnea don’t spend enough time in the deeper stages of sleep, which can negatively affect physical and mental well-being in various ways.
What is the Connection Between Sleep Apnea and Aging?
Research indicates that sleep apnea can affect the biological aging process. One study published by the University of Missouri-Columbia found that individuals with obstructive sleep apnea aged at a faster rate than those without the disorder.
One mark of biological aging is shorter telomeres, which are special stretches of DNA that effectively act as protective caps for chromosomes. Research has found that untreated sleep apnea is associated with telomere shortening, which indicates that the cells are aging faster than normal.
It should also be noted that untreated sleep apnea can lead to inflammation. This is significant because inflammation can contribute to a number of age-related issues, such as arthritis.
What Should You Do If You Think You Have Sleep Apnea?
Research indicates that the accelerated aging caused by sleep apnea can be at least partially reversed if the disorder is properly treated. As such, if you want to protect your overall health, you should have your sleep apnea addressed by an expert as promptly as possible.
Upon noticing possible warning signs of sleep apnea (such as snoring loudly or being unusually tired during your waking hours), you should make arrangements to have a sleep test performed. If the results of the test indicate that you have sleep apnea, you can take the appropriate steps to treat the disorder. In mild to moderate cases, a personalized oral appliance can potentially be an effective solution. The device can reposition your lower jaw to widen the airway and lower the chances of breathing being interrupted.
If you’re proactive about having sleep apnea treated, you can improve the quality of your nightly rest and protect your body from accelerated aging.
About the Practice
At Oak Ridge Dental, we have been creating dazzling, healthy smiles since 1985. Our wide range of services allows us to meet all of our patients’ oral health needs in one convenient location. We even provide fully customized oral appliances as a way to treat mild to moderate cases of obstructive sleep apnea. If you need a solution for sleep-disordered breathing, you can schedule an appointment at our office in San Ramon by visiting our website, using our online booking tool, or calling (925) 735-6190.
