Apnea danger for aged US president named
White House confirms 80-year-old Joe Biden is now using a breathing machine to treat a sleep disorder — after the thick lines of a mask on his face raised more questions about the health of the President of the United States.
The White House said Wednesday that President Joe Biden, 80, has begun using a CPAP machine to treat his sleep apnea in a dream — after he was noticed with visible dents on his face.
According to the Daily Mail, the mask-like lines on Biden's face were visible as the president spoke to reporters on the South Lawn on Wednesday morning before a day trip to Chicago.
The White House was quick to dismiss the conspiracy theories, confirming that the lines were caused by a device that helps patients breathe while they sleep.
“Since 2008, the president has been revealing his history of sleep apnea in detailed medical reports. Last night, he used a CPAP machine, which is common for people with such a history,» White House spokesman Andrew Bates told DailyMail.com.
At 80 years old, Biden is the oldest president in the country, and therefore the White House constantly wonders about his health, especially since he has begun running for a second term in earnest.
Other candidates in the 2024 election have used it as a talking point — most notably former U.S. Representative to the UN Nikki Haley, who said all candidates over the age of 75 should take an IQ test.
War Apnea Biden's dream has been public since October 2008, when the Obama campaign released the vice presidential candidate's medical records ahead of the 2008 presidential election, the Daily Mail recalls.
At the time, doctors believed Biden's irregular heartbeat , known as atrial fibrillation, was likely due to his sleep apnea.
In a December 2019 medical report released publicly when Biden was running for president, his current White House primary care physician, Dr. Kevin O'Connor, said that obstructive sleep apnea was considered, but Biden's condition improved after surgery on sinuses and nasal passages.
The president has started using CPAP in recent weeks, writes the Daily Mail. The CPAP machine pumps air into the back of your throat to help relieve a condition called obstructive sleep apnea, in which the muscles in your throat relax and block your airways. This briefly deprives sufferers of the opportunity to breathe and brings them to their senses. They may also snore very loudly. Over time, repeated oxygen cuts and disturbed sleep can have life-threatening consequences by raising the levels of stress hormones in the body.
Untreated sleep apnea has been linked to serious health problems, including diabetes, stroke and heart disease. People over 60 with sleep apnea also have a higher rate of sudden cardiac arrest.
Bloomberg has confirmed for the first time that Biden used the device.
A source told the Wire Service that , while Biden's use of the machine is a new development, it was not prompted by a new health or environmental condition.
Biden flew to Chicago under an air quality warning due to wildfires in Canada. As the President left Washington, D.C. on Wednesday morning, the capital also issued an air quality alert until Thursday afternoon.
The revelation that President Biden is using a CPAP machine to promote restful sleep appeared on against the background of his latest public verbal gaffe, writes the Daily Mail.
The coincidence of both visible marks and a loud gaffe has led to the spread of information that Biden's health does not correspond to the high position he holds.
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The diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea becomes more similar as a person gets older, and can further worsen the health of an older person.
In a study of almost 11,000 people, patients with obstructive sleep apnea had a higher risk of sudden death due to cardiac arrest. People over the age of 60 were most at risk. With age, a person's muscles weaken, including those in the throat and supporting the airways. Older adults are also more likely than their younger, healthier counterparts to experience comorbid health problems such as cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, obesity, and diabetes, all of which are exacerbated by sleep apnea.
President Biden is not known to have heart disease, although he has been treated for atrial fibrillation (AFib), or an irregular heartbeat.
Older people are also less physically fit, which means the body may not be able to fully recover from episodes of respiratory arrest and reduced blood oxygen levels. An insufficient level of oxygen in the blood can lead to a catastrophe in the form of hypoxia, which damages blood vessels and impairs the delivery of oxygen throughout the body, including to the brain. This increases the risk of stroke over time.
Hypoxia caused by sleep apnea can also damage brain cells over time, contributing to cognitive decline and dementia.
This can also provoke oxidative stress or an imbalance between the production of harmful free radicals and the body's ability to neutralize them with antioxidants. This leads to DNA damage over time that affects the brain.
Atrial fibrillation, often exacerbated by sleep apnea, is also a leading risk factor for blood clots that can travel to the brain and cause a stroke, according to the Daily Mail.
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