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Do You Have Sleep Apnea With Acid Reflux?

Acid reflux disease, commonly referred to as GERD Gastroesophageal reflux disease, is a condition where by the liquid content of the stomach refluxes into the esophagus. This liquid can harm the lining of the esophagus. Although visible signs of inflammation occur in a minority of patients. The regurgitated liquid usually contains acid and pepsin which are produced by the stomach. Pepsin is an enzyme that starts the digestion of proteins in the stomach. The refluxed liquid also may contain bile that has gone-up into the stomach from the duodenum. Acid reflux disease affects more than 20% of Americans. At least 80% of the 60 million U.S. citizens who have been diagnosed with acid reflux disease describe being worse at night, and three out of four say they routinely wake up from sleep because of acid reflux symptoms.

This relationship between sleep apnea and acid reflux makes good sense because when you’re awake, gravity helps keep acids needed to digest food down where they belong, in the stomach. But when you’re lying down, these acids can wash back into the esophagus, damaging its lining and significantly growing the risk of esophageal cancer.

Some researchers think that sleep apnea results in airway pressure changes that can cause acid reflux to occur, yet other researchers believe that the reflux of acids may be a result of spasms of the vocal cords that can then lead to sleep apnea.

What Causes Sleep Apnea?

Sleep apnea is a widespread disorder in which you have one or more pauses in breathing or shallow breaths while you sleep.

The Breathing pauses can last from a few seconds to minutes. They can occur 5 to 30 times or more per hour. Usually, Typically, normal breathing then starts again, from time to time with a loud snort or choking noise.

Sleep apnea usually is a persistent condition that interrupts your sleep 3 or more nights of the week.

This disturbance causes poor sleep quality that makes you tired during the day. Sleep apnea is one of the leading causes of excessive daytime sleepiness.

Obstructive Sleep Apnea

When you’reawake, the muscles help keep your airway stiff and open so air can flow into your lungs easily. When sleeping, these muscles are more relaxed. Normally, the relaxed throat muscles won’t stop the airway from staying open to allow air into the lungs.

Acid reflux is usually a chronic condition. When it begins, it usually is life-long. If there is injury to the lining of the esophagus then it is a chronic order. There are many over the counter and prescription acid reflux treatment options. One of these is Zantac .

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