Have you ever thought that your job was bad for your health? Well, in some cases you might be right. Shift work can be particularly difficult on the body, and on sleep patterns. Working at night and sleeping during the day has been known to cause the body’s internal clock to go haywire, leading to a severely tired individual who is not able to sleep. This is such a challenging issue that it is now classified as shift work disorder.
Research has also found that shift work can make sleep apnea worse, and this can lead to not only daytime fatigue, but also a whole host of other health problems.
Sleep apnea is a serious medical condition that causes narrowing of the airway, and makes people stop breathing for short periods of time while they sleep. Roughly 18 million Americans suffer from sleep apnea, yet it often goes untreated.
Untreated sleep apnea can cause a worsening of disease, and lead to depression, high blood pressure, stroke, type 2 diabetes, liver issues, and even premature death.
A 2011 study found that shift workers tend to stop breathing more often in their sleep than those who work during the day and sleep at night, meaning that the shift workers showed more severe symptoms of sleep apnea than daytime workers.
The ray of hope in this, however, is that sleep apnea can (and should) be treated. Use of a CPAP machine is the most popular treatment, but oral devices can also be helpful. Because sleep apnea is such a major issue, new treatments are being studied and implemented, meaning there is no excuse for letting sleep apnea go untreated.
MHSleepTestingTM provides an easy and convenient way to get tested for sleep apnea. The test can be taken at home, or used on the road – wherever you’re spending the night. To begin the journey toward more restful sleep, visit us at www.mhsleeptesting.com.
