15/12/2024
Mental symptoms of sleep apnea are more serious than the temporary grogginess caused by drowsiness. During an apnea (Greek for “without breath”) you actually stop breathing, which starves the brain of oxygen. This duress, paired with chronic fatigue, can is now known to cause physical brain damage.
This brain scan shows that the brain blood flow in a subject with obstructive sleep apnea (left) is markedly lower compared to a subject without the sleep disorder.
The problem is greater in women with sleep apnea, which may explain the worse apnea-related outcomes in females than males.
Researchers at UCLA compared the mammillary bodies—structures in the brain that are important in memory storage—of several adults suffering from sleep apnea with those of healthy people. They found that the bodies in the troubled sleepers were nearly 20% smaller than in their untroubled counterparts
Obstructive sleep apnea is a serious disorder that occurs when a person's breathing is repeatedly interrupted during sleep, hundreds of times a night. Each time breathing stops, the oxygen level in the blood drops, which damages many cells in the body.
The signs are:
• Day time sleepiness
• Anxiety
• Brain fog
• Memory problems
• Cold hands and feet
If left untreated, it can lead to:
• High blood pressure
• Stroke, heart failure
• Diabetes
• Depression
• Alzheimer’s disease
We know there is injury to the brain from sleep apnea, and we also know that the heart has problems pumping blood to the body, and potentially also to the brain.
When measuring blood flow in the brain using a non-invasive MRI procedure: the global blood volume and oxygen dependent (BOLD) signal. This method is usually used to observe brain activity.
Sleep apnea starve the brain and signals from the nerves in the arms and legs are slower due to the damage throughout.
Snoring, gasping for air, teeth grinding, or restless sleep. These are the signs.
Have you seen them?
