July 19, 2013

Half of Adults Snore – Tips To Help Stop

About half of adults snore at one time or another. Snoring is not only annoying, it can also have health consequences. If you want to stop snoring here are a few tips to try at home: Stop sleeping on your back and sleep on your side instead. Sleeping on your back allows the soft tissues of your mouth and throat […]
July 13, 2013

Consequences of Sleep Deprivation

Sleep deprivation for one or two days might not harm you but chronic sleep deprivation has serious consequences. Our busy schedules don’t seem to allow enough time for sleep, especially not the amount we actually need. While average sleep time is 7 to 8 hours some people actually need 10 hours in order to meet their sleep needs. The key […]
July 11, 2013

Feeling Tired? See a Sleep Doctor

The Centers for Disease Control say that sleep problems are a “public health epidemic”. 70 million Americans have sleep problems and about 60% of those have a serious, chronic problem like obstructive sleep apnea. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine is trying to spread the word that being tired is not normal. “Far too many people accept sleep deprivation and […]
June 25, 2013

Sleep Apnea and Jaw Pain

Researchers from the University of North Carolina have found evidence that obstructive sleep apnea can be linked to TMJ disorders that cause jaw pain. Previous studies have linked sleep apnea to heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke and diabetes. Temporomandibular joint disorders (TMJ) may be caused by poor bite, clenching or grinding teeth, arthritis and now, sleep apnea. TMJ problems […]
June 18, 2013

Women At Risk for Sleep Apnea

It turns out that women are just as much at risk for developing obstructive sleep apnea as men. Sleep apnea has long been thought to afflict men at a much higher rate but a study from Sweden showed that the sleep disorder was common in both sexes. The study looked at a random sample of 10,000 women aged 20 to […]
June 13, 2013

Sudden Death and Sleep Apnea

Researchers have now found that people with obstructive sleep apnea may be at greater risk for sudden cardiac death. The researchers from the Yaho Clinic in Rochester MN found that the risk of sudden cardiac death or resuscitated cardiac arrest increased with reduced oxygen levels during sleep. Obstructive sleep apnea has long been associated with heart disease and risk of […]
June 4, 2013

Driving While Drowsy Could Be Caused By Sleep Apnea

Driving while drowsy can impair driving performance as much as alcohol studies have shown.  Analysis of National Highway Traffic Safety Administration crash data estimates drowsy driving is a factor in nearly one in six fatal crashes. The  AAA Foundation recently published a study showing that two out of five drivers surveyed (41 percent) admitted to falling asleep behind the wheel at some point. Many recent tragedies […]
May 31, 2013

Disturbed Sleep Affects Semen Quality

New research might make some men search for sounder sleep – a study showed that men with disturbed or poor sleep have a reduced sperm count compared to  men who reported restful sleep. This study, the first of its kind, was completed in Denmark and looked at almost 1,000 young men. The men answered a questionnaire about their sleep habits […]
May 31, 2013

Asthma Patients at Risk for Apnea

Do you have asthma? You may be at higher risk for developing sleep apnea.  Researchers from the University of Wisconsin used data from the Wisconsin sleep cohort study (this is a group of about 1500 people who have been followed by researchers since 1988). They found that patients who had asthma were 1.7 times more likely to develop sleep apnea. […]
May 24, 2013

Chronic Pain Associated With Sleep Apnea

Chronic pain is the most common reason that people visit the doctor. Sleep apnea and other sleep disorders are being linked to other health conditions with each new study that emerges and now there is a link between chronic pain and sleep apnea. This is a special relationship between sleep apnea and chronic pain because it goes both ways. People […]
May 17, 2013

Sleep and Prostate Cancer

A new study published in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention found that men who suffer insomnia and disrupted sleep had a higher risk of prostate cancer than those with normal sleep patterns. This research adds another link to the chain that connects disrupted sleep to cancer risk – prior studies have linked sleep apnea to several types of cancer. The […]
May 10, 2013

Oral Appliances for Sleep Apnea Covered by Medical Insurance

Oral appliance therapy is used to treat obstructive sleep apnea and is covered by most medical insurance policies and Medicare. Oral appliances are available from dentists who have specialized training in the field of dental sleep medicine.  Many patients are unable to tolerate using CPAP to treat their obstructive sleep apnea – and some don’t even want to try. The […]
May 6, 2013

Melatonin Levels and Diabetes Risk

Could there be a link between your melatonin levels and your risk of diabetes? There are lots of studies that have shown links between disrupted sleep and the risk of Type 2 diabetes but the exact relationship is still a mystery. New research from Boston’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital found that women with low levels of melatonin had a higher […]
April 29, 2013

Treating Sleep Apnea Reduces Inflammation

Inflammation in the body has been linked to severe health problems and so has sleep apnea. New research has shown that treating sleep apnea reduces inflammation. Many studies have looked at the link between sleep apnea and high levels of inflammation but researchers recently performed a meta-analysis that pooled data from over 20 studies involving over 1,000 patients. The data suggested […]
April 17, 2013

Sleep and Genes

We know that sleep problems are related to a whole list of health problems including diabetes, heart disease, immune function, depression and cognitive issue – we just don’t know exactly why. Scientists may be closer to figuring out the “why”. It turns out that insufficient sleep can significantly disrupt and inhibit normal gene activity. This can occur with hundreds of […]
April 12, 2013

Obstructive Sleep Apnea Common and Dangerous

Obstructive sleep apnea is more common than you might think and most people who suffer from sleep apnea do not know they have it. This is dangerous because sleep apnea has been linked to lots of other health problems, many of them serious. If you have received a diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea treating your condition is very important for your health.  […]
April 2, 2013

Sleep May Be a Matter of Life and Death

Lots of scientific studies have shown the links between obstructive sleep apnea, insomnia and other sleep disorders on our overall health but can poor sleep be a matter of life and death? Problem sleep has been linked to heart disease, stroke, diabetes, depression and daytime sleepiness. A new study from the Medical College of Georgia has shown a link between […]
March 21, 2013

Snoring a Problem for Kids Too

Snoring and sleep disordered breathing aren’t just adult problems. Kids can have these problems too! A study conducted in Finland found that almost 10% of children exhibited some type of sleep disordered breathing problem and that the rate was equal for girls and boys. The effects of snoring and breathing during sleep are a little different for children. Studies have […]
March 9, 2013

Adjusting to Daylight Savings Time

Spring forward, fall back. Changing the clocks is easy but adjusting our bodies to daylight savings time is another story. This Sunday we move the clock ahead one hour and lose an hour of sleep which means Monday morning will be a groggy one. Here are some tips for adjusting to this annual change that might make the adjustment a […]
February 12, 2013

6 Myths About Sleep

A myth is a story that is repeated often but isn’t actually true. Here are 6 myths about the importance of sleep and the truth behind the myth. Most people don’t realize just how important sleep is for their brain function and overall health – in fact science is just starting to unlock what really happens while we are sleeping! Sleep isn’t that […]