Sleep Apnea
Sleep is essential to life; it is one of several components, including food and water, which keep the living alive. However, a significant percentage of the human population has considerable difficulty reaching and maintaining Stage IV within their sleeping patterns, the stage that allows the mind and body to fall into a deep and restorative sleep, otherwise known as REM sleep. At the core of this difficulty is a condition known as obstructive sleep apnea, a "serious, potentially life-threatening condition that is far more common than generally understood" (Sleep Apnea). Indeed, obstructive sleep apnea can be very dangerous if it is not properly detected and treated.
What is Sleep Apnea? Research findings indicate that nearly eighteen million Americans suffer with the dangerous and exhausting effects of sleep apnea, in which "certain mechanical and structural problems in the airway cause the interruptions in breathing during sleep" (Sleep Apnea). It is important for the student to know that telltale signs of a potential problem include loud snoring, obesity, high blood pressure and a physical blockage of the nose, throat or upper airway. Its prevalence appears to be genetic to some degree; however, its appearance in overweight patients also indicates that its composition is rooted in both genetics and environment.
Sleep apnea occurs in two separate modes: central and obstructive, with central sleep apnea being less common between the two. The brain fails to send proper signals to the breathing muscles as a means by which to commence respirations during sleep in central sleep apnea. Obstructive sleep apnea, on the other hand, is significantly more Common, transpiring at the point when air is obstructed from flowing into or out of the nose or mouth, "characterized by repetitive episodes of upper airway obstruction that occur during sleep, usually associated with a reduction in blood oxygen saturation" (Obstructive Sleep Apnea). It is important for the student to know that an apneic event may take place up to twenty or thirty times per hour - sometimes even more - followed by a noted episode of snoring. Important to note is the fact that snoring, in and of itself, is not indicative of sleep apnea; rather, it is but one telltale sy...
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...id fashion, which is indicative of REM sleep. Clearly, those with sleep apnea that have difficulty entering or staying within Stage IV indicates fragmented or disturbed sleep patterns. As a result, researchers are "becoming increasingly aware of the adverse effects of sleep deprivation" (Weck 12) due to obstructive sleep apnea.
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Each year at least 40 million Americans suffer from long term, persistent sleep disorders, and an additional 20 million experience occasional sleeping problems. About 60 million Americans a year have insomnia and it tends to increase with age and affects about 40 percent of women and 30 percent of men. It is estimated that 18 million Americas are suffering from sleep apnea, 12 million have RLS, and 250,000 are affected by narcolepsy. Adults typically need between 6 and 10 hours of sleep per 24 hour period, and most people need approximately 8 hours of sleep per day. Infants generally need about 16 hours per day; whereas, teenagers require 9 hours on average. In the first 3 months of...
If you suffer with sleep apnea and are overweight, you are not alone. You’ve probably been told by one or more of your doctors that you’d be healthier if you lost weight. But, have any of them ever told you about a diet for sleep apnea patients, or better yet, about the 6 best diets for sleep apnea? No? Well, I will.
Having no sleep can lead to unhealthy lives, relationships, one’s ability to function and interact with the world, and an unbalanced state of body, mind, and spirit. Sleep is crucial to an individual because it is a time where the body rests and restores energy and develops important information and without sleep, the body will slowly disintegrate. Poor sleep quality often is associated with Insomnia, but the two are two different items. Poor sleep quality is where an individual does not get at least 4 hours of sleep, but is still able to sleep and does not have a normal sleeping cycle. Insomnia is classified as a sleeping disorder, where one persistently lacks the ability to sleep or maintain sleep. This paper goes into a deep discussion of what Insomnia is and the two different types, the causes of Insomnia and how it affects a person’s lifestyle, a comparison between Men and Women who have Insomnia, and possible treatments to aid this disorder.
Chronic sleep loss is becoming more common in modern culture and less restricted to sleep-deprived diseases such as insomnia. Suggested to be the result of a number car, industrial, medical, and other occupational accidents, sleep deprivation is beginning to be recognized as a public concern. As a result, the Centers for Disease Control
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Sleep apnea is a very serious disorder because you can easily die from it because you totally stop breathing. The pause in breathing usually last only a few seconds but can happen 30 or more times in an hour. When breathing will resume in usually results in a snore or a choking sound. People with sleep apnea are usually tired more than most throughout the day because when they start to snore or have pauses in their breathing they move out of a deep sleep and into a light sleep. Sleep apnea is very hard for doctors to diagnose because it only happens when you are asleep. The only way to become aware of your sleep apnea is usually by a family member or a spouse who notices you snoring or have pauses when you are asleep. One of the most common types of sleep apnea is called obstructive sleep apnea. Obstructive sleep apnea is when your airway is blocked during sleep resulting in pauses of breath. This is most common in people who are overweight but doesn 't have to be. If sleep apnea goes untreated the consequences can be very dangerous. It could increase the risk of high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke, obesity, and diabetes. The four known ways to cure sleep apnea is lifestyle changes, mouthpieces, breathing devices, and
Sleep is one of our basic needs to survive and to function in day to day operations, but not everyone needs the same amount of sleep. Some people can survive on very little sleep, i.e. five hours a night, and some people need a lot of sleep, to the extend that they are sleeping up to 10 to sometimes 15 hours a night (Nature, 2005). According to Wilson (2005) the general rule states that most people need from seven to eight hours of sleep. The deprivation of sleep in our society in continually increasing with the demands in society increasing work loads, the myth that a few hours of sleep is only necessary to function properly and that sleep is sometimes considered as killing time (Nature, 2005). Sometimes sleep deprivation is also caused by other situations like sleep disorders, i.e. sleep apnea, chronic insomnia or medical conditions such as stress (Wilson, 2005).
Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder in which breathing stops and starts repeatedly. Experts have estimated that 18 million Americans are affected by sleep apnea. There are three main types of sleep apnea. Obstructive sleep apnea is the most common form that occurs when throat muscles relax. Central sleep apnea occurs when your brain does not send proper signals to the muscles controlling breathing and Complex sleep apnea syndrome, a combination of both obstructive and central sleep. Symptoms of sleep apnea include loud snoring, breathing cessation, abrupt awakenings accompanied by shortness of breath, dry mouth, morning headaches, insomnia, daytime sleepiness,
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) found in 84.3% of the cases and it occurs when the soft tissues in the back of the throat relax during sleep and blocks the airway.
Sleeping is something that is an essential part of human nature and is a must in order for one to be a functional human being. Sleep is an idea that is accompanied by many wives’ tales, including the idea that one needs seven to eight hours of sleep each night and alcohol helps one fall asleep and sleep more soundly. One myth about sleep is that during sleep, one is in a state of nothingness. In truth, however, it has been discovered that during sleep the brain is active, variations in heartbeat and breathing occur, and the eyes and ears are active throughout the time of sleep. These activities during a person’s sleep are important because they help that person be more aware, awake, and alert during sleep.
Sleep disorders are an underestimated public health concern considering that fifty to seventy million Americans are affected. Technological advances in the field of sleep have facilitated various theories to explain the need for and the purpose of sleep. Scientist have uncovered many types of sleep disorders such as insomnia, sleep apnea, and narcolepsy. Sleep disorders affect men ,women, children, the elderly, and the obese in different ways. Factors such as the number of children and the effects of menopause have been studied to determine their effects on sleep. Various treatments have been utilized ranging from non-pharmacologic to pharmacologic methods. Scientist have pinpointed areas of the brain that are involved in sleep deprivation and hormones that ultimately affect sleep.
Sleep Apnea (cessation of air flow at the mouth for greater than 10 seconds) can
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