It is National Sleep Awareness Week.

The National Sleep Foundation’s theme for this year is “Begin with Sleep” and it focuses on the importance of getting a good night’s sleep to achieve personal, family and professional goals. Greene County Medical Center Care Services Management Director Denise Promes says getting seven to nine hours of sleep is what is considered to be average. If you are getting less than that, you might be suffering from a sleep disorder, which carries with it a variety of health risks.

“People who get less than six hours of sleep tend to accumulate more weight. There’s even some studies suggesting that babies that are poor sleepers are at higher risk for obesity in childhood. We know that people that don’t get enough sleep are at risk for Type II Diabetes. We know that sleep apnea increases your risk of heart disease, hypertension, stroke, coronary artery disease, irregular heart beat, so all of that stuff.”

Signs of someone with a possible sleep disorder includes loud or frequent snoring, choking or gasping, daytime fatigue or drowsiness, unrefreshed when waking up, insomnia, memory loss, and decrease of sexual desire are among the indicators. Promes says you can have a sleep study done to diagnose what the specific issue is and then get treatment to correct the problem so that you are getting a full night of sleep.

Contact your medical provider to learn more about a sleep study.