We tend to talk a lot about how damaging snoring and related conditions like Sleep Apnea can be for a sufferer’s health, but let’s not forget that it can also have a major effect on a sufferer’s partner.

It is estimated that someone who is sleeping with a loud snorer will, on average, lose the equivalent of an hour’s sleep each night, due to the interruption to their sleeping patterns that this disturbance can cause. As we know, the facts of Sleep Apnea are that a sufferer will experience sporadic blockages of the breathing passages as they sleep, which prevents them, intermittently, from breathing. Typically, this problem clears itself through loud, explosive snoring, the shock of which is forceful enough to jolt a sleeping partner from one phase of sleep to another.

Obviously, the stresses and strains this places on the sufferer’s body have a number of unfortunate consequences, such as increased blood pressure, excessive tiredness and difficulty concentrating during the day, and a number of other symptoms.

The partner of the sleep apnea sufferer, or chronic snorer for that matter, won’t be directly experiencing these physiological effects, but they will end up with some of the problems of reduced quality sleep, both physical and mental. That hour a night figure we mentioned at the start of the article is quite a lot. It doesn’t take long over time for the negative effects to really start stacking up.

That’s the  bad news, now here’s the good. Seeking help for this problem can make a difference almost immediately. In studies of couples where a partner started to use a treatment such as a CPAP mask or even lesser snoring aids like nasal strips or a chin strap, their partner saw a drastic improvement in the quality of their sleep- often gaining almost all of that ‘lost hour’ back again.

This is heartening news for anyone who is suffering from snoring problems, and anyone who is feeling guilty about putting their partner through difficulties. Getting help, and using the right anti-snoring aid, can make all the difference!

Posted by: Sleep And Snoring Aids

Snoring- Bad For Your Health, Bad For Your Partner’s Health

It’s becoming more and more widely understood that the body is a series of interconnected systems, and that when something goes wrong with one of these systems, then this can cause further complications and side-effects in another. It’s also true that as Obstructive Sleep Apnea is more and more fully understood, and that knowledge permeates throughout the medical profession, more and more connections are being found with OSA and other, secondary conditions.

Here’s another such example of one thing leading to another- Sleep Apnea sufferers have recently been shown to also be prone to developing symptoms of Attention Deficit Disorder (or ADD if you haven’t the patience!)

In a lot of ways, it stands to reason- if your quality of sleep is impaired or reduced, then you’re going to find it harder to concentrate.  OSA is one of the most common sleep disorders, but it’s not always looked for or considered as a cause when a patient is suffering from Attention Deficit Disorder. There are new suggestions that ADD sufferers should be screened for Obstructive Sleep Apnea and for other sleep disorders, as there has been found to be a high incidence of ADD for OSA sufferers with no previous history of ADD. Now, it should be said that this isn’t a direct causal link yet, but it is a strong correlation, which seems to chime with the kind of mental effects one would expect from reduced quality of sleep.

Fortunately, however, all the indications are that for such sufferers, treatment is very effective. In tests,  a number of patients who had been presenting with medium level to extreme ADHD symptoms were shown to have a significant reduction in these symptoms 60% of the time when treated with a CPAP machine, one of the standard treatments for dealing with Sleep Apnea.

This is a good thing for treatment, and similarly for awareness- the reccomendation of Doctor Clifford Risk of the Marlboro Center for Sleep Disorders to other physicians is that “If they (a patient) have ADHD the doctor should be asking them how their sleep is, do you snore or have sleep apnea and/or do you have insomnia at night?” This increase of awareness, combined with recent improvements in the efficiency and the comfort of diagnosis, is a very good thing indeed for OSA sufferers.

Posted by: Sleep And Snoring Aids

Another Consequence Of Sleep Apnea- Attention Deficit Disorder?

Sleep Apnea is understood to be strongly correlated with obesity- the more extra weight a person is carrying, the more likely it is that they will suffer from the narrowing of the breathing pathways like the nose and throat. this then makes a person more prone to the closure of these pathways during sleep which constitutes the interruptions to breathing which makes up the harmful aspects of Sleep Apnea.

This can lead to something of a vicious cycle for the sufferer. The way this happens is that poor quality sleep can lead to hormonal and physical changes which can trigger weight gain, including increased appetite. furthermore, the fatigue of sleep deprivation can make it hard for a person to take regular exercise.  this, along with the other health implications of obesity, can serve to make Sleep Apnea even worse.

This vicious cycle can be very hard to break, unless one deals with the root cause of the problem- the initial weight gain. One rather extreme solution to this problem which is gaining in popularity is the gastric band, a surgically implanted device which is designed to clamp down on the stomach, and reduce its capacity. This then helps to regulate the patient’s appetite, making them feel fuller, quicker. This helps them keep control of their consumption levels.

More and more people are using this procedure, and this has even found favour in that haven of the outsize gentleman, America’s National Football League.  Recently, the death of former Gridiron star Reggie White  was attributed in part to respiratory complications arising from Sleep Apnea, and several high-profile figures, including coaches and current players, have undergone the procedure. They have also commonly mentioned a concern about Sleep Apnea as a factor in their decision.

This is, of course, a rather extreme solution to the problem of obesity, and it is of course much better not to put one’s self in this situation in the first place. It is something, however, which if reccomended by a physician, can be part of the solution to a major problem. If you’re serious about dealing with Sleep Apnea, this is one possible resort open to you.

Posted by: Sleep And Snoring Aids

Gastric Bands And Sleep Apnea

Traditionally, the way to diagnose Sleep Apnea in a patient, or rather to confirm a diagnosis, has been for that patient to spend a night in a sleep lab. There, a complicated series of monitors and sensors would determine that OSA was indeed the issue- air pressure readings, heart-rate monitors and so on would be employed to confirm that the intermittent obstructions and interruptions to  breathing were actually occurring during sleep.

This was a time-consuming and, for some, inconvenient process. Recently, however, great strides have been made in home diagnosis. A recent study carried out by the Philadelphia VA Medical Center’s pulmonary, critical care and sleep section has determined that the new generation of portable sleep monitors can be relied upon just as much as the old-school lab approach.

The study showed that once a three-month period of Continuous positive airway pressure treatment had been carried out, there was no discernible difference  in the long-term prognosis of people diagnosed by either method.

This is good news for a number of reasons. Firstly, it means that it will now  be easier to diagnose for sleep apnea- all someone has to do is have the sleep monitor set up in their home. In terms of sheer man-hours, it means that those professionals treating sleep disorders will be able to do so on a more flexible and time-efficient manner. The quicker that a diagnosis can be achieved, the more time can then be spent on treating the condition.  There is also a consequent reduction in the amount of inconvenience to the lives of the patient.

This is a good thing for a number of reasons, not least of which is the face that it is now seen as less of a hassle by both physicians and patients. If you think you or your partner might suffer from this condition, there is now less and less of an excuse to get it checked out.

Posted by: Sleep And Snoring Aids

Sleep Apnea Is Getting Easier To Treat At Home

There’s all kinds of hints and tips out there which are advocated as Cures For Snoring, from the tennis ball sewn into the shirt, to nasal strips, to the dreaded CPAP machine strapped to your face and pumping air down your gullet during the night. There’s also a multitude of wild and wacky techniques- tongue exercises, singing, and a whole range of other strange ideas.

Here’s the latest of them all- playing the digeridoo. Recent research by a Swiss team has suggested that this world-renowned aborigine instrument can be just the ticket for the snoring sufferer looking for a cure to their problem.

Let’s consider how and why this is supposed to work. One of the main reasons someone is likely to suffer from the more unpleasant and loud forms of snoring is OSA, which is at base a problem of slack and loose throat tissues, leading to intermittent closure of the breathing passages during sleep. This causes a very loud, sporadic and explosive form of snoring, which can wake even the most soundly asleep bed-partner!

It also wakes the sleeper- the typical OSA sufferer can partially wake from sleep hundreds of  times every night, which greatly reduces the quality of the rest the sufferer is getting. It can also lead to depression, high blood pressure, and a whole host of other related problems.

Well then. This much the average snoring sufferer knows. What can playing the didgeridoo possibly do to help?

Well, consider the previous point, that OSA happens when the muscles of the throat are weak and loose. And now consider how you play the didgeridoo. It’s all about circular breathing, which maintains a steady flow of air through the instrument. That’s quite similar to the state a CPAP machine is looking to create artificially. If you’re playing a didgeridoo, then what you’re doing is training the muscles of your throat to do this on their own. What these Swiss researchers found was that if you make the throat muscles stronger, this is a very effective way to combat OSA.

So, maybe those aborigines had the right idea. To be fair, there are a lot of other wind instruments out there, many of which will do the same thing. There’s something irresistible about a didgeridoo, though, isn’t there?

Just don’t play it too late at night!

Posted by: Sleep And Snoring Aids

Another (Rather Noisy) Way To Reduce Your Snoring.

We’ve dealt with Sleep Apnea, its symptoms, causes and treatment, extensively in previous articles here, but today we’re going to turn to a similar condition, which is starting to attract some clinical attention- Upper Airway Resistance Syndrome.

This is a medical condition which has only recently  been identified, and shares many common features with Sleep Apnea. It is primarily a narrowing of the upper breathing passages, leading to increased air pressure and difficulty in breathing during sleep. Like Sleep Apnea, it can be caused by factors such as obesity, or relaxation of the soft tissues in the throat, nose and mouth. Similarly, this can lead to interruptions to the sleeping cycle, and a reduction in the quality of sleep. As a result, a sufferer may find themselves afflicted by excessive daytime sleepiness, and a variety of other problems, such as high blood pressure and hypertension.

Where it differs from Sleep Apnea is that in UARS, the airways never completely close up. This means you don’t get the distinctive interruptions to breathing and choking sounds, followed by loud snores that a Sleep Apnea sufferer will display. This is all well and good for one’s partner, of course, but it does mean that UARS is something of a silent problem- a sufferer will tend to snore, but it can be overlooked as just ‘normal’ snoring.

If you are getting some of the problems described, then you find you may need to be treated in the same way- with a CPAP machine, by taking steps to lose weight, and to strengthen the tissues of the breathing passages.

Posted by: Sleep And Snoring Aids

A Variation on Sleep Apnea- Upper Airway Resistance Syndrome

Truckers have long been identified as a group who are at an increased risk of Sleep Apnea. It’s the lifestyle, more than anything else. It involves long hours and strange sleeping patterns, combined with a lack of exercise- let’s face it, sitting there motionless behind the wheel for hours and hours at a time isn’t exactly  good for one’s health. Given these conditions, it’s no surprise that for long-distance drivers of all kinds, Sleep Apnea, insomnia and obesity is rampant.

This picture isn’t entirely bleak, however. A recent study has shown that it’s quite possible to reduce the cost of healthcare, and the incidence of disability. The key to this treatment? Dealing with Sleep Apnea effectively.

This study focussed on  248 commercial drivers who suffered from Obstructive Sleep Apnea, and divided them into two groups. The first, a group of 156, were seeking treatment, either CPAP therapy or some alternative, to alleviate their symptoms. The remaining 92 drivers were not.

The primary focus of the study was on looking at the insurance costs incurred by participants in the study, taking the cost of treatment as a basis for comparison, along with days taken off work, and insurance. The differences were striking. For drivers who received treatment, there was an average reduction in health care costs of $5,800 over two years. The drivers who received treatment also took less days off work, and spent less money on short-term disability costs.

What does this tell us? Well, in pure and simple economic terms, it tells you that getting medical treatment is a good idea if you have Sleep Apnea. Even for truck drivers, a profession who are more prone to OSA than any other, treatment can give significant benefits.

If you have a problem, then you don’t have to suffer on for fear of the cost. Apart from the health benefits, it may well be cheaper in the long run.

Posted by: Sleep And Snoring Aids

More Tales Of Sleep Apnea and Truckers

Here’s some strange news- a recent scientific study has suggested that the elderly may actually benefit if they develop Sleep Apnea.

This is the claim of Peretz Lavie, a world-renowned expert on sleep and sleep disorders. He’s got a list of qualifications and publications on the subject as long as your arm, and he’s also president of the Israel Institute of Technology to boot.

Dr Lavie, and his wife, Dr. Lena Lavie, have followed a group of around 600 senior citizens for a period of almost five years, and examined their incidence of sleep problems including hypoxia and Sleep Apnea, and studied the effect on mortality rates.

Their conclusion is that for the subjects studied, those who had Sleep Apnea actually had lower than average mortality rates! The explanation he provides for this is that the periodic lack of oxygen that Sleep Apnea creates, helps to stimulate the growth of extra arteries in the heart through a process known as Angiogenesis. This in turn can improve a person’s blood supply, and increase their ability to survive or avoid a heart attack.

So what does this mean? On the face of it, it seems a little confusing, however this is the way that science works- we don’t know the answer to something, so we study it, trying to ask intelligent questions as we do so, and we re-examine our initial hypotheses based on our findings. If what we thought turns out to be wrong, and is corroborated by others (which in this case it has, by an independent study conducted in Germany), then you accept what you find as the truth.

Then again, you also have to be careful not to take things too far.  I don’t think anyone will be going out of their way to suggest radical new treatments to induce Sleep Apnea in the elderly any time soon! It’s worth mentioning, too, that these findings didn’t apply to the young, or the middle-aged.

The best evidence we have suggests that if you aren’t old yet, Sleep Apnea represents a significant risk to your long-term health, and is associated with, amongst other things, increased mortality rates. That hasn’t changed, and the need to do something about Sleep Apnea if you develop it is as strong as ever.

Posted by: Sleep And Snoring Aids

An unusual claim- Sleep Apnea benefits the old?

It can be hard to know that you have a Sleep Disorder. The key reason is, well, rather obvious: you’re asleep when it’s going on! How on earth are you meant to know that you snore, or if you have Sleep Apnea or any related condition?

Well, there’s a few things you can look out for, mainly in terms of general effects experienced during the day, with a brief explanation of what this could mean.  We will be leaving ‘enraged partner keeps complaining about your explosive snoring’ off this list!

A few common symptoms of Sleep Disorders include;

Excessive tiredness during the day, even after a full night’s sleep. This might suggest that you have been suffering from interruptions to your sleeping pattern, often caused by OSA. Obstructions to the airway can force your body to jolt itself out of the normal patterns of sleep to tense the muscles of the throat and get you breathing again. This is a reflex action which helps to resolve the original problem, but reduces the quality of the sleep you are getting.

Waking up with an aching or dry throat: This is another sign of Sleep Apnea, or constricted airways. If your throat is having a hard time passing air through it during your sleep, this pressure may end up drying out the soft tissues of the throat. If you notice yourself feeling unusually thirsty when you wake, this may be a sign that your snoring has been effectively scouring your throat dry during the night (as well as your partner’s eardrums!).

Waking up during the night; the obvious one, really; if you find that you are unable to remain asleep for a full 8-hour cycle, then you’re likely to have some kind of sleeping problem. This can quite easily start to form a vicious cycle- sleep deprivation can lead to hormonal problems like increased blood pressure and obesity which can then create further sleeping problems.

Regular use of caffeine or other stimulants to maintain energy levels during the day: Whilst it’s not a sign of a sleep disorder per se, a lot of people who do have sleep problems find that their base level of energy is something akin to exhaustion, and that to function properly they have to keep themselves ‘topped-up’ with coffee or other caffeinated drinks. This, again, is a vicious cycle which can mean that you never get proper rest.

Emotional Outbursts: Everyone knows that getting bad sleep can make you grumpy and irritable; I myself find a sense of overwhelming irritation every morning at half past seven when I have to get up and go to work! I don’t want to claim that this necessarily a sign of sleep disorder, but if you find yourself affected by mood swings, and sudden bursts of irritability throughout a normal day, that might be a sign that you aren’t normally getting the right amount of sleep.

Problems with Concentration: One of the problems with Sleep Disorders is that like a lot of chronic conditions, they can creep up on you. You might slowly get more and more chronically tired, but at the same time you might get used to this. If you’re starting to find that you can’t concentrate on things, however, it might well be a sign that you need to look at the quality of your sleep.

There you have it- this isn’t an exhaustive list by any means, and if you think you have a real problem, I urge you to talk to a doctor. Hopefully, however, this can help you realise that there is a problem.

Posted by: Sleep And Snoring Aids

A Few Common Tips for Spotting if you Have a Sleep Disorder

We all know that the body is a vastly complicated set of inter-connected biological systems, and that the function (or malfunction) of one part is likely to affect the whole. Here’s another example, pertinent to our concerns. If you suffer from Sleep Apnea, you may be at risk of developing a number of eye problems.

First of these would be the rather unthreateningly-named ‘floppy eyelid syndrome.’ This is actually a degeneration of the muscles of the eyelid, rather than the eye proper, which can be uncomfortable, and lead to problems with stickiness in the eye. The relationship between it and Sleep Apnea is not widely understood, but the condition is thought to be related to spikes in blood pressure, which OSA can create.  Studies have suggested that if you have floppy eyelid syndrome, you are over 90% likely to be suffering from Sleep Apnea.

Less closely correlated is the more commonly known condition Glaucoma, which is a disease which causes progressive damage to the optic nerve and degenerative loss of sight. It’s poetically known as the ‘sneak thief of sight’ because it isn’t always caught in the early stages. The correlation with Sleep Apnea is about 20 to 57 percent, and once again there isn’t any evidence of a direct causal relationship between the two. What studies seem to have shown, however, is that if you have one of either Glaucoma or Sleep Apnea, you are at an elevated risk of the other.

What does this mean?

Well, it’s a good example of what we generally know- if you have Sleep Apnea, then it’s a good indicator of the fact that you need to do something about it, before your wider health starts to suffer!

Posted by: Sleep And Snoring Aids

Sleep Disorders and Eye Complications