Use Distilled Water With Your CPAP
If you have problems with sleep apnea, then your doctor might have prescribed a CPAP machine for you to use while you are sleeping. The constant positive air pressure (CPAP) machine blows air into your nose and/or mouth while you are asleep and that will keep your airway open so that you can breathe all night long with no interruptions. One problem with a CPAP machine is that it can dry out your mouth and nasal passages because you have that air being blown in all night long. One way to get around that is to have a humidifier as part of your CPAP. If you are going to use the humidifier that is attached to your machine, you want to make sure that you are using distilled water in the machine. There are reasons that you need to do that.
Scale
One reason that you want to use distilled water over tap water is that you are likely to get a scale buildup in the humidifier and the tank when you use tap water. That scale can get into the hose and into the works. It will gum everything up, which can break down the machine. You can end up having to replace your machine sooner than you expected. It can also make it harder for your machine to work, which means you aren't going to be getting the full benefits of the machine, which can cause health problems.
Mold
Another reason that you want to use distilled water instead of tap water is that you want to cut down on the risk of mold building up in your CPAP or humidifier. Mold is not really a good thing, especially when you are going to be breathing in the mold or having the mold spores blown directly into your airway. The mold spores can get into your lungs and cause all kinds of respiratory problems. Those problems could end up being lifetime problems. Distilled water doesn't leave a residue that gives that mold a good place to get a foothold and to grow. And mold can grow before you even know about it, which means that you can have problems from it before you even know that it's there.
If you have a CPAP machine, you may use a humidifier for it so that it doesn't dry out your mouth and nasal passages. If you are going to use a humidifier, make sure you are using distilled water with it. Look online for CPAP distilled water.
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