Using Your Energy to Combat Sleep Disorders
Sleep apnea is a serious medical condition that affects the heart by restricting the way we breathe at night. There are a variety of treatments that can lessen the symptoms, but recent studies have found that you can decrease the adverse effects of sleep apnea by as much as 25%—which is as effective as some surgeries. So, what is this exciting new treatment? Exercise!
By introducing an exercise program of brisk walking and weight training into your daily regimen, you can reduce the severity of sleep apnea while retaining the other positive effects associated with being active.
Reducing Risks with Exercise
We can connect sleep apnea to a few medical conditions, including high blood pressure and diabetes. It’s also been linked with an array of cardiovascular problems, such as:
- Heart attack
- Stroke
- Heart failure
- Arrhythmias (fluttering heartbeat)
We can reduce the likelihood of developing these risks by combining exercise and other sleep apnea treatments.
Combining Treatments
The standard treatment option for sleep apnea is a Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) machine, but some patients find them intolerable. In these situations, we can use exercise as a therapeutic alternative. One reason exercise is a superb addition to treatment is because it’s easy and inexpensive compared to alternative treatments.
While exercise has been proven to decrease the severity of sleep apnea symptoms by 25%, Dr. Plotka still recommends using it in unison with another form of treatment (e.g., CPAP, oral appliances, or upper airway surgery). He clarifies this because the potential consequences of sleep apnea can be severe.
Combining treatments can significantly decrease the number of sleep apnea episodes a person has each night. Furthermore, “exercise” refers to a program of brisk walking, jogging, running, and weight training. These workouts can be done individually, or we can perform multiple for the desired effect.
The Benefits of Exercise
One of the most known risk factors for sleep apnea is obesity or being overweight. While losing weight is a perk of exercising, it’s not the only one. Other advantages of exercising with sleep apnea include:
- Increased maximum oxygen consumption
- Reduced symptom severity
- Increased sleep efficiency
- Reduced daytime sleepiness
Exercise & Visit Dr. Plotka for Better Sleep
We’ve known about the health benefits of exercise for a long time, but integrating them with sleep apnea treatment is excellent for promoting healthy sleep. If you’re curious about sleep apnea, treatment options, or exercise, give us a call. Dr. Plotka is a qualified sleep dentist, ensuring you’ll get the correct diagnosis and treatment.
Contact our office at 781-469-1938 to schedule your consultation today. Alternatively, you can fill out the submission form, and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible.
