What Is Sleep Apnea? | Symptoms and Causes
good night’s sleep


Contrary to what many people think, OSA is not a minor nuisance. It doesn’t just mean you’re a loud snorer. In fact, not everyone who snores has sleep apnea. OSA is a life-damaging and, in some cases, life-shortening condition. According to MedLine Plus, a person with OSA can stop breathing 30 times or more – per hour – every night. And, as any doctor will tell you, when you stop breathing, regardless of the duration, it’s cause for concern.
While it’s hard to overlook the potential physical risks associated with OSA, what many people don’t think about is how it poses a risk to your quality of life.
Imagine waking up every morning having to fight to stay awake at work. Being too tired to go grocery shopping, or even walk the dog. The number of car accidents caused by drivers suffering from sleep apnea are – to put it mildly – eye opening.
Sleep apnea doesn’t just rob you of sleep. In many ways, it robs you of your life.


OSA can affect men and women of all ages, races, and lifestyles

1 in 4 middle-aged men has OSA

80% of people with moderate and severe OSA go undiagnosed
Obstructive sleep apnea is the most common type of sleep apnea. OSA happens when the muscles of the throat intermittently relax during sleep. These relaxed muscles allow the inner structures of the throat – the soft palate, uvula, tonsils, and tongue – to fall into the throat cavity, blocking the airway during sleep. OSA causes sufferers to gasp for air and awaken several times throughout the night.
While it’s hard to overlook the potential physical risks associated with OSA, what many people don’t think about is how it poses a risk to your quality of life.
Imagine waking up every morning having to fight to stay awake at work. Being too tired to go grocery shopping, or even walk the dog. The number of car accidents caused by drivers suffering from sleep apnea are – to put it mildly – eye opening.
Sleep apnea doesn’t just rob you of sleep. In many ways, it robs you of your life.
There are two types of diagnostic tools your doctor will diagnose sleep apnea – a sleep center study or an at-home sleep test, like the ARES Solution.
Sleep Center Study
ARES Solution At-Home Sleep Study
With the ARES Solution at-home sleep study, you’ll avoid the discomfort and inconvenience of having to sleep in an unfamiliar sleep study center away from home. You won’t have to arrange for childcare, pet sitting, or take a day off from work to do an at-home sleep study like you would with an in-facility sleep study.
While you sleep, the ARES device collects information on oxygen saturation, pulse rate, sleep time, physical movement, airflow, snoring, and sleep position. This data is collected within the device itself, so there are no binding wires that keep you strapped to your bed if you need to get up and go to the bathroom during the night. Once you’ve slept in the device for one to three nights, you’ll mail the device back to us in the pre-paid shipping envelope, and a board-certified sleep physician will contact you in 1 to 2 days with your diagnosis.
Smoking
Being overweight
Enlarged tonsils or adenoids
Nasal congestion
Diabetes
Being male
Going through menopause
Genetics
Treatments for Sleep Apnea