Welcome to my podcast. I am Doctor Warrick Bishop, and I want to help you to live as well as possible for as long as possible. I’m a practising cardiologist, best-selling author, keynote speaker, and the creator of The Healthy Heart Network. I have over 20 years as a specialist cardiologist and a private practice of over 10,000 patients.
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common condition where the muscles in the throat relax during sleep, causing partial or complete airway blockage. Risk factors include obesity, age, family history, and being male. Symptoms include loud snoring, gasping, and excessive daytime sleepiness. Left untreated, OSA can increase risks of high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, and vehicle accidents.
Diagnosis involves an overnight sleep test to measure breathing disruptions. Weight loss and lifestyle changes can help mild cases. Treatment often involves using a CPAP machine, which blows air to keep the airway open during sleep and reduces daytime sleepiness by 70%. This episode highlights how undiagnosed OSA in truck drivers increases safety risks on the road.
Takeaways:
- Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) affects around 20 million adults in the US and tens to hundreds of thousands in Australia, with risk factors including obesity, age, family history, and being male.
- Symptoms of OSA include loud snoring, choking, gasping, waking up from sleep, and excessive daytime sleepiness.
- OSA can be diagnosed through an overnight sleep test called a polysomnogram that measures things like breathing rate and oxygen saturation.
- Untreated OSA is linked to increased risks of high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, accidents, and early death from cardiovascular causes.
- Initial treatment focuses on lifestyle changes like losing weight, avoiding sleeping on the back, and not drinking alcohol before bed.
- The primary treatment is a CPAP machine that blows air into the nose and mouth to keep the airway open during sleep.
- CPAP therapy can reduce daytime sleepiness by up to 70% for those who use it properly.
- Getting a good mask fit is important for long-term CPAP use and adherence.
- OSA can impact relationships if a partner finds the CPAP mask disturbing.
- Getting tested is recommended if symptoms are present or risk factors apply, especially for safety critical roles like driving.
Australia, like the rest of the western world, has a heart problem.
Over 9 million people around the world die from heart disease every year.
Every 10 minutes, someone in Australia suffers a heart attack. And 21 lives are lost daily because of it.
The devastating fact in all of this is…
Almost every one of those cases could have been prevented.
This podcast is for anyone who wants to improve their health literacy and gain information to help them make the best decisions about their risk of heart attack, their cholesterol, blood pressure, risk of diabetes, weight loss and general health. Join me on my personal mission journey to prevent Heart Attack on a global scale. If you like this podcast, I would be honoured by a 5-star review and appreciate if you let your friends and family know about this podcast; you may even save the life of someone you love!
Are You at Risk of a Sudden Heart Attack? How Healthy is Your Heart? Really?
Heart disease is the #1 killer in the Western World. In Australia, someone dies every 28 minutes from heart disease. That’s 51 people a day. In the US, someone has a heart attack every 40 SECONDS! Fortunately, many heart attacks are preventable. However, regular exercise and eating healthy are no guarantee you won’t succumb to this silent killer.
- 94% of Australians have at least One Risk Factor for heart disease.
- 59% of Australians have been Touched by heart disease.
- Yet only 3% of Australians have had a Full Heart-Health Assessment in the past 12 months.
Do the free heart check today at www.virtualheartcheck.com.au
Join the Healthy Heart Network and become part of our growing community!
Do You Want to Improve Your Heart’s Health and Reduce Your Risk of Suffering a Heart Attack? Join The Healthy Heart Network For Only $5 Lifetime Access (Valued at over $55)!
The Healthy Heart Network is designed to help members:
- understand the present state of their heart’s health
- recognise their current level of risk of suffering a heart attack
- Learn the positive steps they can take to improve their situation
Visit https://healthyheartnetwork.com/ and click on the JOIN THE FAMILY BUTTON
