November 2008 Archives

People with obstructive sleep apnea are far more likely to in their sleep from heart related problems than the rest of the population according to researchers at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. It was found that the sleep pattern of the people with OSP is actually opposite to the general population who are more likely to die from a heart attack during the day.In a study, it was found that the likelihood of dying of a cardiac arrest overnight is directly correlated to the severity of obstructive sleep apnea. Nighttime is assumed to be a period of reduced risk of death due to heart attacks because sleep minimizes the stress and fatigue that can trigger a heart attack and other related ailments.

Sleep apnea causes the sufferers to stop breathing for brief periods repetitively through the night thus causing the oxygen levels to drop and a rise in the carbon dioxide levels putting strain on the heart.These interruptions in the normal breathing cycle cause the person to wake up frequently gasping for air, as many as hundreds of time in the night.

 However, most of the sleep apnea cases go undiagnosed it is important to talk to your doctor if any serious change is noticed in the sleeping pattern. While there is no perfect medicine for sleep apnea a little modification in the lifestyle can do wonders to your sleep as well as your health.Sleep is a necessity and you now have one more good reason to take that required amount of sleep.

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Had a great Sunday with your family and you are back home all set to go to bed but oops someone just knocked at the door of your mind and is reminding you of the Monday agenda. This is the Sunday night syndrome which is catching up with most of the people who start getting butterflies in their stomach by the sheer thought of starting another long working week. Monday blues as we all know is a horrifying thought, we all dread to get back to work and face our bosses.
We want to live up to the expectations of our family, friends, boss, work, and social obligations; this makes us restless and unable to sleep especially on a Sunday night. Getting a good night sleep on Sunday needs special attention and the details for this are available here.

 

Sleep apnea as read earlier is a condition in which breathing is interrupted during sleep; this means there is a drop in the oxygen level in the blood to which the body reacts partially or completely each time of the awakening. Since sleep apnea affects sleep it also has an adverse effect on the daytime functioning.

Untreated sleep apnea leads to strain on the eyes, lack of focus and concentration, disability to stay awake, and not react quickly to driving situations. Common sense tells that if a person is very tired or feeling extremely sleepy he should not drive. Though the person might be sure that he never falls asleep while driving it may be true to a certain extent but remember one does not have to fall asleep to have a crash, a little inattentiveness or distraction is more than enough to confront with an adversity.

That does not mean that such a person cannot drive, with proper medical aid and assistance while driving it is possible to drive easily and smoothly.

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There is nothing worse than the sound of someone snoring when you are trying to sleep or it is you who is snoring and others are getting disturbed. Snoring is a common problem that can happen to anyone young or old, it occurs when the free passage of air through the nose or the mouth is blocked or air is trapped.
The annoying sound is caused by some specific parts in the mouth and throat such as, tongue, upper throat, soft palate, uvula, big tonsils, and adenoids vibrating against each other.
There are many reasons why people snore, to name a few:-
Nasal blockages
Certain allergies that make the nasal passages stuffy
Drinking alcohol relaxes the tongue and throat muscles too much, partially blocking air movement.
Obesity narrows the air passages due to which the person feels breathless and thus making the person snore.
Snoring is a common symptom of sleep apnea and people suffering with this disorder usually wake up with a bad headache and feel exhausted and tired all day long. Solving a snoring problem lets everyone sleep better and breathe easier.

 

Want to sleep peacefully and get up all refreshed and ready to give your best, well it is not all that difficult just click here and you have a solution at your finger tips.

So enjoy your weekends full of fun and a renewed spirit.

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People who sleep for less than six hours every night may be accumulating a sleep debt that affects the cognitive abilities of the individual. According to a study, the chronically sleep deprived people said that felt slightly sleepy and that too in the morning otherwise they felt completely fine the rest of the day.

However due to the increasing demands and work pressure we readily compromise on our sleep which is not a right choice, so please be gentle on your sleep and remember to get six hours of sleep.
To investigate as to how lack of sleep triggers low immunity and affects cognitive functioning and learning please click here.

It is very of a mother to not having tip toed in her baby's room just to listen to whether the tiny chest if her new born is moving in a gentle rhythm of breathing. Though the gentle rhythm of the baby is broken occasionally by stopped breathing as written in the earlier post, it is a concern only if this gap lasts for about 15 to 20 seconds.

These babies are put on home monitors, the main function of which is to sound an alarm if the baby stops breathing. There are three different types of apnea among infants and the variations in these complicate the function of a sleep monitor.

So the FDA is developing a mandatory performance standard for infant apnea monitors, the requirement for which is,
Battery back up for at least 8 hours
Audio visual alarms
Improper equipment performance sensors
Safeguards that prevent inadvertent disabling of the alarms
Remote alarm unit
Once the alarm goes off you only have a short time to revive the child and prevent any possible brain damage so you have to hurry up.
Remember to take advantage of the modern medical innovation and save your child.

The first cry of a baby is very important to affirm that the lungs are functioning properly. After birth the babies must breathe continuously to get oxygen, however in a premature baby the central nervous system is not mature enough to allow non stop breathing as they have yet to be developed completely.

This causes large bursts of breath followed by periods of shallow breathing; the medical term for this is Apnea of Prematurity. Though it is a frightening sight it goes with the infant's maturity. Most experts define AOP as the condition when the infant stops breathing for 15- 20 seconds during sleep.

The abnormality begins after 2 days of life and lasts for about 3- 4 months. With proper medical care in the neonatal intensive care unit the premature infants overcome AOP within a few weeks and start breathing normally.

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A research at the New York Presbyterian Hospital shows that a small nap in the daytime has little or no effect on the night sleep instead it acts like a charger to the mind. They have evidence that a nap boosts up the performance during the day and lightens the mood.

The subject of research is normal people and their sleeping habits, which eventually give an insight into the mind and bodies of people with a sleeping disorder, Studies showed a dramatic difference in performance of people after they took a nap and it did not seem to affect the nighttime sleep.
 

A research abstract presented at the 22nd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Society, that 20.8% of women were categorized as successful agers. This was because they slept peacefully at night, took less daytime nap, and could manage insomnia without efforts; these women aged gracefully and were full of life.

Women who had a disturbed sleep predicted a lower self rated successful aging and a great difference in the actual and perceived age. Unfortunately, older people face trouble falling asleep especially because their minds and bodies are not occupied, so there is no physical and mental stress, which results in sleeplessness.

Health care professionals should ask their patients about their sleep and help those who have any problem.

Sleep a must for every human being as well as animals, birds, and insects, but what exactly is sleep, what are wakefulness, sleeplessness, night awaking, and the mechanism of sleep.

 
Interested in getting a clear picture and understanding the concept more clearly visit this website and be thorough with the basics of sleep. Read more about insomnia, the causes of insomnia and the different types of insomnia and the treatments available.

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Sleep problem sometimes erupts out of nowhere with no traceable cause, at such times the culprit might be the medication. If a change in the sleeping pattern is noticed shortly after any medication or treatment is started it must be communicated with your doctor.
It is mandatory to mention the medicines taken, change in any dosage and thereof changes in sleep. Many prescription and non- prescription medication causes sleep problems.

To mention some of them, diet pills, hormonal pills, blood pressure pills, any long term sedatives used, medicines taken for asthma, seizure disorder, and medication for Parkinson's.
The after effects may differ from person to person, so remember to consult your family doctor for any changes.

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An average American child spends as much time watching television every week as much time he spends in school- 25 hours. Research shows that watching television for as less as 2 hours a day causes significant sleep problems in school aged children.

Parents now a days are preoccupied with such a lot of work that they are under too much pressure to keep a track of their children's daily activities and so are unaware of the impact of television on children's over all health.

Children who watch too much of television are not interested in going out and playing football or riding bikes, or even just running around with friends. They don't read books to fall asleep but sleep while watching television.

Having a television right in the bedrooms is one of the reasons for excessive television viewing and disturbed sleep. This in turn causes daytime sleepiness, lack of concentration at school and disinterest in mixing and playing with their peer group.

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Problem getting enough sleep, and feeling really irritated and restless due to lack of sleep, don't worry be happy, we have got something very interesting for you. Yes it is the Sleeptracker a sleeping aid which comes to the rescue of frequent travelers, busy moms, students, and businessmen, looking for that extra edge . 
It helps a person keep track of the sleep time, how much time should one sleep and what time should one wake up. Sleeptracker helps to get up easily and on time, to get the details please click here.

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Apart from the many sleeping problems and the after effects of lack of sleep there is something known as sleep paralysis. This sounds weird though as we never seemed to have heard of such a type of paralysis, but there are people who suffer from this horrifying experience of sleep paralysis, and are petrified to go to bed at night even though they are dead tired and sleepy.
So what exactly is sleep paralysis, and how you can tackle it, and master the potentials behind sleep paralysis take a peek andt benefit right away.

Hypnosis is a willing state of mind and body, a person cannot be hypnotized unless he willingly wishes to be hypnotized. This is a guided form of meditation where the sub conscious mind is open to all the positive suggestion being fed in the mind, and accordingly directing the body and mind.

During this process the mind overcomes all the inhibitions and fears that block it and falls into a state of deep sleep. Since many people find the medication for sleeplessness to be ineffective and having some side effects, hypnosis is an incredible and fast way of treating insomnia as it directly goes to the root cause of the sleep problem.

If you have trouble sleeping and are suffering from sleep problem, hypnosis is of  great help. Imagine gently lying on your bed and drifting quickly to sleep each night, that's what you always wanted.

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Just like a caterpillar transforms into a butterfly we also go through transformation phases of life from an infant to a child, into an adolescent, and then an adult. As we grow older we think we can combat sleep and go on working both physically and mentally.
We are over confident that sleep is not a primary need of the body and so we can go without it for long, but life has something else in store for us. Even if the brain tends to work harder and longer the accomplishments are far less than expected.
Only the brain knows what happened the previous night, because sleep deprivation triggers different chemical reactions that impede the normal functioning of the brain. To know more about the correlation between sleep and the brain please click here.

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Many laboratories conduct different tests and scans to study the different sleep problems and learn the causes. Similarly there are many companies manufacturing various sleep scoring aids and devices.
In order to avail the best of sleep scoring devices and optimum solution to sleeping strategies most cost effectively please click here.

A regular exercise during pregnancy can help you stay fit and healthy during your entire pregnancy, it even helps you get a peaceful sleep right unto the final point. As the right type of exercise is beneficial so is the right time to do these exercises to fall asleep.
Pregnant ladies should always stick to a morning or early afternoon regime of exercise and try and wind up all of these at least 3 hours before sleeping time.
An intense routine of exercise just before bed time rewinds you instead of winding you down and interferes with the normal sleeping pattern.

So to restore your sleep give yourself at least four hours to unwind before you hit the hay.

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The third trimester of pregnancy is full of new developments and changes, one such change is increase in restlessness tagged with snoring, although this is a momentary phase which surpasses after delivery.
Higher levels of estrogen during pregnancy contribute to the swelling of the mucus membrane lining the nasal passage which can be partly blamed for those mid-night melodies.Apart from the increase in estrogen levels, the amount of blood in the body increases, expanding the blood vessels, which again leads to the swelling of the nasal membrane.

Lastly by the end of the third trimester the weight increases drastically, making it difficult to breathe normally because of the extra tissue in the neck and the throat.
Snoring in such a condition is in evident so the best thing to is to sleep on your side rather than your back and avoid alcohol, tobacco and sleeping pills, as they block the air passage.
Finally try not to gain more than the recommended weight.
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This is still a mystery tinged with irony, as to why we tend to sleep or take a nap when faced with a problem and feel all pepped up after the sleep to tackle the problem? The answer to this lies in the numerous things that go on in our brain while we are sleeping.
In the different stages of sleep our brain compiles all the bits and pieces of information in a formatted way to enable us to get a clear picture of all the data fed in the brain and finally to make a better judgment. An experiment shows that among all the stages of sleep the final stage REM is most crucial for cross referencing our memories and improving the learning process.
Study shows that sleep tends to nail down the information and recognize the way it is stored in the brain. Brain imaging depicts that the functioning of the brain depends a lot on the amount of sleep we have, as one third of our life we are asleep while the rest is spent working.
Scientists are sure that sleep is most crucial for restoring information and efficient functioning.

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Sleep is the body's primary need, we do not realise it but sleep acts as a charger. Sleep the word seems to be very small with not much hiccups but a detailed study reveals that if sleep or sleeplessness is to be explained or defined even a hundred words could be less. Sleep as defined in books is a state marked by lessened consciousness, lessened movement of skeletal muscles, and slowed down metabolism.
If one really wants to know and learn all the corresponding words, definitions, and abbreviations, the causes of sleep and sleeplessness please click here.

A natural hormone released by the pineal gland, that regulates the circadian rhythm of the body is known as melatonin. This hormone is available in a synthetic form in the form of a food supplement, which has a rapid and mild sleep inducing effect on the body, especially to shift workers and those with a jet lag.
Only those adults who are physically healthy and who do not have any other problem should take this supplement.

The greatest concern of every parent is to see their children in bed at a specific time, and that they should learn to sleep on their own, besides they should also have an undisturbed sleep. However to attain this goal a sleeping routine has to be established so that both the parents and child sleep peacefully through the night.
Fix a specific time to go to bed and wake up in the morning.
Introduce them to a physical activity in the daytime and not just before the sleep time.
Do not indulge in any form of exciting activity just before sleeping as this might charge the kids and hinder their ability to sleep.
Ample time should be given to finish the current activity so that they focus on the sleeping routine.
Make sure a quiet time is allotted before going to bed, for the child to say his favorite poem or read his favorite book, or may be say his daily prayer.
Some kids find it comforting to sleep with a particular toy or book.
Try and let the child sleep by himself by reassuring him that you are there in his vicinity and will be present for his smallest need.
Unless and until a sleeping ritual is determined the kids will not sleep properly and will not be fresh for the next day. Kids are kids so be patient and understanding and they will follow soon. 

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Sleep is one of the most revitalizing experiences for anybody as it keeps both mind and body healthy. Until recently insomnia was not considered as a significant medical condition, but today it is a serious disease which is caused by various emotional factors, environmental factors, physical imbalance, and some percentage of genetic components. As there are sleeping pills for an undisturbed sleep, there is a holistic approach to this sleep disorder. Holistic treatment incorporates behavioural therapy, meditation, yoga, herbs, mineral and vitamin supplement, massage therapy and last but not the least a proper sleeping routine.
Alternative therapies like those mentioned above are focused at investigating the root cause of the ailment, rather than just symptomatic relief. According to this holistic approach there are herbs which can be used during the day or 20 minutes before sleeping time, to name a few ;
Chamomile
Hops
Lavender
Valerian
Passion flower
Wild lettuce
Kava
California poppy
These are very effective in cases of sleeplessness, restlessness, nervousness, and depression. Remember the bedroom is a room for relaxation, sleeping and making love lets not make it a battlefield of worries try relaxing and prepare yourself or a deep and quiet sleep.
  
 

Trying to sleep but cannot get to bed, no problem just pop in a sleeping pill and fall asleep in minutes. This is so easy but how long can one do this, because this cannot be a solution to everyday sleep. Taking sleeping pills everyday has its own side effects, such as the body gets so used to the pills to such an extent, that without them one just cannot sleep, that means the immunity level drops drastically and we become more and more dependant.

 Instead of bragging about lack of sleep try and get into a sleep regime so that the body sets up a cycle for itself. One should go to bed only when he is tired and should opt not to watch television as this has adverse effects, also try to fix a particular wake up time to get a minimum of six hours of sleep. Good sleeping habits help a person sleep better and longer. Avoid working late nights as this stresses out the mind and body completely.

Besides these simple tips, one can also try to juggle with a few other tricks that might help to get a peaceful sleep. Toe wiggling, deep breathing, hot water bath, putting on ear plugs, backward counting, sex, imagine it is time to wake up, listening to soothing music, don’t just keep tossing in bed if not sleepy, sleep on a firm bed, sleep on you back, sleeping in a well ventilated room, or even counting sheep. Therefore, try and follow these tried and tested tricks they are simple and funny which will aid you to go to bed happily.

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The first visit to a doctor for any patient means a series of questions to be answered so that the doctor is accustomed to the patient and the ailment to be cured. Similarly when a person having sleep apnea visits his doctor he is asked a number of questions or is required to fill a form giving all the information about himself and his problem.
This is a normal procedure followed by most of the doctors all over the world, so that they can get a complete insight into the disease. Besides the patient with sleep apnea might have to undergo a series of test and scans before any conclusion is made.

A sleep study conducted by the doctors includeclick here

Obstructive sleep apnea is common among children, and those suffering from sleeplessness fair poorly in their day to day life. To overcome this sleep problem a study conducted in Washington proved that tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy is one of the best ways to improve the life of small children.
Those suffering from OSP are not able to breathe normally throughout the night and eventually start snoring very loudly. The study showed how the children responded to these surgeries and the impact of the surgery on their sleeping pattern.
The age and ethnicity of the children were also taken into consideration as they are potential factors that can affect the diagnosis of OSA and the impact of the surgery.
Enlargement of tonsils and adenoids caused the upper airway to collapse during sleep, disturbing the normalcy in breathing among children with normal weight.
OSA has a large impact on the quality of life, similar to chronic asthma or rheumatoid arthritis, and this surgery has a profound effect on the lives of the children.
The effect is the same on boys as well as girls and approximately 2- 4 % of children aged between 4- 6 years are affected by it. Not all the children with sleep apnea have behavioral issues; those scoring way outside normal parameters tend to benefit the most in OSA cases.
However even post operation a consistent follow up is a must to avoid any future health problems, or recurrence of obstructive sleep apnea.
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