Cracking the Sleep Code

Are You a Professional Snorer? Seek Help... Before It's Too Late

Snoring can be dangerous. The adage "When I die I want to go in my sleep"...can be too real for someone who has sleep apnea. Obviously nobody wants to die prematurely from a sleep disorder yet I've seen too many cases where that could of been prevented.

If you have been a snorer for years there is a good chance that you have periods of cessation of breath.  It's a good idea to get it checked out if you are tired during the day or have been told that you stop breathing.  Overtime those seconds or minutes that you're lacking in oxygen are hard on your heart.

Snoring with a deadly pause puts you at high risk for arrhythmia's, coronary heart disease, congestive heart failure and hypertension.  Do you know for sure that your snoring doesn't contain that... pause?

This video says it all...

Are You Just a Snorer...Or Could You Have a Breathing Disorder?

I was just going to do "sleep Apnea" week.  But the 'week' is turning into a month.  There is so much to cover with this sleep disorder I've decided to continue this series for another week.

Todays article is about diagnosing your sleep apnea.  Are you sure you're just a snorer??  There are ways to tell if you are at risk for obstructive sleep apnea even before going in for an overnight sleep study. It's important to point out that there are different treatments for snoring and sleep apnea.  A lot of the over the counter 'snore fixes' can be dangerous to a person who has sleep apnea.  The last thing you want to do is mask the disorder or delay diagnosis because you just want a quick fix for the snoring.  If you are at a point where you want to do something about your snoring then your first action should be a physician visit.

Is it time to find out if your snoring has transformed into sleep apnea?

While You Weren't Sleeping: Week In Review

Over the last two weeks it has been 'obstructive sleep apnea' week at Cracking the Sleep Code. I hope that some of the tips provided were beneficial to you.

Here is a birds eye view on what happened last week at Cracking The Sleep Code...

Could you have sleep apnea?!  Watch Rosie O'Donells interview and get all the sleep apnea scoop

Have you been to the sleep lab yet?  Chances are you are considering it if you have found this post. Whether you have been or have not this video is for you.  Rosie O'Donell does a great job with this interview covering the whole sleep apnea scoop.  Michael Brues is a well known sleep specialist that explains what sleep apnea is, how it can effect you and the different treatment options.

Sleep Less, Live Longer?

Calling all people with sleep disorders...listen up.  As you move through your journey on trying to achieve the optimal amount of sleep--- this article might help take some of the pressure off.  A study conducted by UCSD School of Medicine has some interesting information on the amount of sleep that is best for a longer life.  The most interesting point this study makes is that the participants that only slept an average of 5 hours a night lived longer than the people who slept 8 hours.

If anything, this information should make a difference to you because it lowers the bar for the amount of sleep you are trying to achieve.  Remember it's quality not quantity that makes a good nights sleep.

Sleep less, live longer?

Increased Death Rate Associated
With Sleeping 8 Hours or More

Although it’s a common belief that 8 hours of sleep is required for optimal health, a six-year study of more than one million adults ages 30 to 102 has shown that people who get only 6 to 7 hours a night have a lower death rate. Individuals who sleep 8 hours or more, or less than 4 hours a night, were shown to have a significantly increased death rate compared to those who averaged 6 to 7 hours.

Researchers from the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine and the American Cancer Society collaborated on the study, which appeared in the February 15, 2002 issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry, a journal of the American Medical Association.

Although the data indicated the highest mortality rates with long-duration sleep, the study could not explain the causes or reasons for this association...

 

Link between diabetes and too much sleep

Everything that I write about is concerning lack of sleep.  Every sleep disorder comes with health risks due to sleep deprivation.  I never thought that long sleepers were at risk for anything but being envied by their peers.  This article was so interesting that I had to share it with you.

http://www.lifescript.com/channels/healthy_living/Health_Conditions/too_much_too_little_sleep_ups_diabetes_risk.asp