Can Sleeping On Your Side Prevent Sleep Apnea

Many patients with sleep apnea wrote to me that they don t use anymore a dental device or a cpap machine when they successfully tried positional therapy.

Can sleeping on your side prevent sleep apnea.

The findings have shown that by changing the posture to lying on your side with the correct level of pillow that sleep apnea can be completely eliminated. Dangers of sleep apnea. The tongue falls back and blocks the airway so sleeping on your side may improve sleep apnea and symptoms fotinakes adds that sleeping on your side or in a prone on your stomach position. However some of the patients didn t feel any change and they still have sleep apnea symptoms with positional therapy.

If it s too low your cpap therapy won t be able to control your sleep apnea adequately. Avoid heavy meals and caffeine at least two hours before bedtime. Most people breathe better when sleeping on their side. Typically sleeping on your back makes sleep apnea worse and sleeping on your side makes it better schulman says.

According to one study around 68 percent of people with sleep apnea breathe much better when not on their back. Avoid sleeping on your back. For some adults sleeping on the side can help breathing return to normal. The reason is simple.

Thus sleeping upright is not a practical solution for sleep apnea. Side sleeping has long been known as the best sleeping position for breathing and to protect the airway from collapse. If you are fatigued and distracted during the day no matter how much time you spent in bed you may have sleep apnea. Sew a tennis ball into the back of a pajama top so you will turn on your side to sleep.

However a 2002 study found that. These types of beds are pricey but even if you could easily afford one you d still end up being locked in one position since sleeping on your side while upright would be unbearably uncomfortable. For extreme cases of sleep apnea a more upright seated posture using a prop cushion has shown to also remove this issue. Sleeping on the side is a very good alternative for cpap treatment or for dental appliances.

There may also be potential changes in cpap therapy pressure requirements if you go from side sleeping to sleeping on your back. Sleeping on you back causes your airway to become restricted whereas sleeping on your side is the best sleeping position for someone with sleep apnea since it allows the airway to remain open. If you are overweight aim to lose at least five percent of your body weight to improve breathing.