Archive for June, 2008
June 28th, 2008 at 11:20am
Under Sleep / Sleep Disorders
The lack of two related genes in autistic children has been discovered to be a cause for abnormal sleep in human genetics. Apparently, this genes termed as Fragile X, pose as a sleep issue for autistic children or from people who suffer from the Fragile X syndrome.
The findings were reported from the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.
“This has never been seen in a mouse before,” lead researcher Dr. David Nelson, a professor of molecular and human genetics, said in a prepared statement.
The findings, published in the current issue of The American Journal of Human Genetics, are important, because children with autism or fragile X syndrome tend to have problems getting to sleep and staying asleep. Fragile X is the most common known cause of autism.
(Source) US News
autistic children, baylor college of medicine in houston, cause of autism, children with autism, current issue, fragile x syndrome, How to sleep better, journal of human genetics, medicine, sleep, Sleep Disorders, Sleep Issues, SLEEP News Read Original Post Here
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June 28th, 2008 at 01:46am
Under Sleep / Sleep Disorders
Among the large population of sleep apnea victims has to be pointing towards truckers today. Normally, they have to keep themselves awake, making sure that their deliveries reach their drop off points in record time. But in exchange, the sacrifice of sound sleep to be able to meet schedules have become banes for proper sleeping habits and thanks to these Mobile Sleep Solutions equipped with Covidien, most truckers have help on the way along their major routes!
The Mobile Sleep Solution Centers — 53-foot trailers with private bedrooms and bathrooms and fully functional control rooms for sleep technicians, hauled by International trucks — were unveiled June 19 at the Boulder, Colo., campus of healthcare-products giant Covidien as part of the company’s Sleep Wellness program.
Covidien is a maker of the continuous positive air pressure machines that are widely prescribed in controlling apnea. By gently blowing air into the sleeper’s nose through a face mask, CPAP machines keep the airways open and allow healthy, uninterrupted sleep. Sleep Pointe is a sister company, aimed at the transportation industry, of Somnograph, a maker of diagnostic sleep labs for hospitals, doctors’ offices and employers.
(Source) eTrucker.com
covidien, cpap machines, face mask, How to sleep better, private bedrooms, proper sleeping habits, Sleep Apnea, Sleep Apnea, Sleep Disorders, Sleep Issues, sleep labs, SLEEP News, sleep solutions, sound sleep, truckers Read Original Post Here
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June 26th, 2008 at 09:05am
Under Sleep / Sleep Disorders
For people who find themselves on the go at times, it would be best to consider a siesta or a short nap before proceeding with your daily chores. Many would not have this privilege especially if they are in an office. However they can try to steal a couple of winks when they are on lunch break. Remember that breaks are given normally up to an hour and for people taking meals, sometimes you can finish eating way beyond the final seconds of your break time.
People need to recharge midway at times. Short as it may you may be surprised at the difference that short stolen naps can provide especially in terms of productivity.
The siesta has been around for thousands of years and was even regarded as a necessity, rather than a luxury. It is still widely practiced in Spain today, though they also use it to get out of the sun during the hottest part of the day and can therefore take as long as two hours to rest.
(Source) MSN Life and Style
break time, Health Issues, How to sleep better, nap, naps, productivity, siesta, Sleep Business, Sleep Issues, SLEEP News, winks Read Original Post Here
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June 25th, 2008 at 11:19am
Under Sleep / Sleep Disorders
It has been either a myth or something apparent that the right kind of music would help most people sleep. Now the right type of music normally falls under the category of soft to gentle music, something that will really calm us down and eventually get us snoozing.
There are various explanations made by Japan scientists and it would be great to know what they gathered based on their experiments.
In his limited laboratory experiments, Dr Endo honed a playlist from that third category down to a smaller collection, most of which was played to the Tokyo audience.
However, the audience at the extraordinary mass experiment in sleep-induction in Central Tokyo is still not sure whether Dreams Kaimin was a success or not.
But one firm conclusion was that a lot of men fell asleep as soon as the female vocalist began.
(Source) The Times of India
central tokyo, Dreams, female vocalist, gentle music, How to sleep better, kind of music, mass experiment, myth, scientists, sleep, sleep induction, Sleep Issues, Sleep Myths, SLEEP News Read Original Post Here
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June 24th, 2008 at 08:00pm
Under Sleep / Sleep Disorders
Sleep derivation has been a growing pain and most people who are aching for alternative remedies and solutions to this growing disorder can heave a big sigh of relief thanks to the Sleep HealthCenters which have opted to take sleep disorder issues to the next level.
Sleep deprivation has been linked to other health issues such as obesity and heart problems and that alone has become a reason to take sleep problems entirely serious. With an elite group of specialists and providing home sleep testing, the sleep deprived can now expect better attention and diagnoses for their lingering obstructive sleeping problems.
Dr. Lawrence J. Epstein, Sleep HealthCenters’ Medical Director, noted, “Home sleep testing is a viable alternative for those patients who have had a comprehensive sleep evaluation and meet certain criteria, including insurance eligibility. Because untreated sleep apnea has been linked to health problems such as obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, and cardiovascular disease, it is crucial that as many at-risk patients as possible be tested and treated. At Sleep HealthCenters, we continue to focus on providing expertise in every aspect of care for patients with all sleep disorders, from diagnosis, to treatment, to long-term management.”
(Source) Business Wire
Health Issues, healthcenters, heart problems, high blood pressure, How to sleep better, Sleep Apnea, Sleep Apnea, Sleep Disorders, Sleep Disorders, SLEEP News, sleep problems, Sleep Therapy, sleep-disorder, sleeping problems Read Original Post Here
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June 23rd, 2008 at 07:08pm
Under Sleep / Sleep Disorders
Normally we all know that contact lenses were made to help us see things better, deceiving people if they don’t come up close to see that these little optical solutions are worn in lieu of the usual eyeglasses. And normally, people would take them out before they sleep since it would be entirely irritating if they would keep them on and then snooze.
To help broaden the reason for people to make sure that they remove these contact lenses, it has been proven that these can cause eye infections while you are sleeping if you fail to do so.
But like technology, there is a new breed of contact lenses that can be used only when you sleep and have been called Overnight lenses.
Although they should be worn every night, it takes a few days for the effects to wear off completely. In theory, you could avoid wearing them for a night or two, although your vision would gradually deteriorate.
This technique, known as orthokeratology, has existed for centuries. It’s thought the Chinese slept with small weights or sandbags on their eyelids to reduce short-sightedness.
‘But until recently,’ says Dr Susan Blakeney, optometric adviser to the College of Optometrists, ‘it has been considered unreliable, as there was never any guarantee the lenses would work.
‘Since then, techniques such as corneal topography - where the curve of the cornea is measured - have developed. This means lenses can be made to fit the curve of each person’s eye very accurately.’
(Source) Mail Online
adviser, college of optometrists, contact lenses, cornea, corneal topography, eye infections, eyeglasses, eyelids, How to sleep better, optical solutions, orthokeratology, short sightedness, Sleep Issues, SLEEP News Read Original Post Here
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June 22nd, 2008 at 06:06pm
Under Sleep / Sleep Disorders
For people who have battled insomnia before, these natural sleep aids may be familiar to you by now. But looking at other means of trying to deal with insomnia may be proper, especially if past trials have not really become effective for you. Insomnia is not an easy problem to defect and if you are in need of alternative measures to fight it off, you can consider the following recommended remedies for it.
- Melatonin
- Valerian Root
- Chamomile
- Calcium and Magnesium
For broader discussion on these anti-Insomnia alternatives, you can read more of them in detail here.
(Source) Best Syndication
calcium, chamomile, Health Issues, How to sleep better, Insomnia, Insomnia, magnesium, melatonin, sleep, sleep aids, Sleep Disorders, SLEEP News, valerian Read Original Post Here
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June 22nd, 2008 at 02:16am
Under Sleep / Sleep Disorders
Just when you think that the sight of a sleeping person is something to envy from, it would be best to consider the quality of sleep that he or she is getting. Ideally, we all know that great sleep comes from no vice at all meaning nothing in mind and nothing to distract us. With the mounting pressures of crisis and gadgets sprawled anywhere, it would be interesting to note how people can rate their sleep and diagnose if it is indeed true or shallow sleep.
This is apparent today for most people. We fail to define the essence of true sleep. Some of us feel that we are sleeping comfortably but at the back of our minds, we may just be telling that to ourselves. There are too many distractions and these will surely be realized in the long run.
And even people who appear to be fast asleep in bed aren’t sleeping properly. Fifteen million of us have been diagnosed as having “junk sleep” - the poor quality slumber that is apparently the result of too much work and having a bedroom filled with TVs, computers and BlackBerrys.
At a recent conference on insomnia at the Wellcome Trust, sleep experts argued that what has really changed is not so much our sleep, but our attitude to it. We worry about how much - or little - we’re getting in a way that we never used to.
(Source) BBC News
gadgets, Health Issues, How to sleep better, Insomnia, shallow sleep, Sleep Disorders, sleep experts, SLEEP News, true sleep Read Original Post Here
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June 20th, 2008 at 01:40pm
Under Sleep / Sleep Disorders
The news of celebrated newsman and Meet the Press moderator Tim Russert’s sudden passing last Friday took many people by surprise. He was only 58 years old; even his own father, who became the basis for Tim’s last book, has outlived him.
By Monday morning, the stories about this prominent and beloved man’s life were still circulating, and talk about how or why he died so young started brewing stronger. People began asking about heart attack avoidance. Newsweek magazine featured a story about the “science of sudden cardiac arrest”.
I heard Dr. Nancy Snyderman, NBC’s chief medical editor, answer general questions about Tim’s previously diagnosed health problem: coronary artery disease. He was doing everything right to manage his disease, which included occasional stress tests to check out his heart (the last of which he passed on April 29), medication, daily exercise (he had used a treadmill the morning he died), and watching his diet. His blood pressure and cholesterol were “well-controlled.” So what went wrong?
With the buzz about terrorist attacks and cancer running routinely in the media, we often forget that heart disease is the number one killer for both men and women.
That’s right: we’re all more likely to have a heart attack than be struck by a missile or get cancer.
We do have an impressive array of technology, tests, and drugs today to help detect, treat, manage, and combat heart disease. But for some, as was the case for Tim, it’s too late by the time the “big one” hits.
Sudden cardiac arrest accounts for 310,000 deaths in America every year, or 850 a day–more than those caused by breast cancer, lung cancer, stroke, and AIDS combined. According to his own personal physician, his particular heart disease resulted in hardening of his coronary arteries. A fresh clot ruptured in Tim’s left anterior descending coronary artery, causing the fatal heart attack. The autopsy also revealed that he had an enlarged heart.
The risk factors for heart disease are well-documented. They include high cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes, being overweight, a sedentary lifestyle, and tobacco abuse. Russert apparently had these risk factors under control (I don’t believe he was a smoker). But he did have a very busy, over-scheduled career that had him juggling a stressful load of responsibilities. He may not have viewed his life as “stressful” because he loved what he did so much, but his body no doubt must have been crying out for a respite. Sometimes you’d see him fervently commentating into the wee hours of the night during the peak of a political campaign or election, only to see him again on television a few hours later that next morning. As if he never went to bed.
He was indeed a passionate man, dedicated to his thriving career as well as his family. He wasn’t the type to take an extended time-out because he couldn’t stand being far from his job–even if he sacrificed sleep. I hear that he flew back from Rome early, where he’d been celebrating his son’s recent graduation from college, because he wanted to prepare for Sunday’s show. He’d gotten just two hours of sleep on the plane before hitting the ground running again at work.
When you’ve already got coronary artery disease you have to consider more than the obvious risk factors. You have to think about what your body–not necessarily you–need. Otherwise, you could be setting yourself up for an unexpected, asymptomatic, and untimely health problem.
For Tim, coronary artery disease was probably his single biggest risk factor for having a fatal heart attack. Going on little sleep just compounds that–and other–problems. In fact, sleep plays directly into all of the chief risk factors for heart disease. Dr. Snydnerman underscored this during her interview: “We are a sleep-deprived nation… The less sleep you get, you’re at an increased risk for heart disease.”
This is not to say that Tim’s untimely death was caused by sleep deprivation or could have been avoided had he given his body proper rest. But it’s worth noting that adequate sleep can lower your risk for heart disease and lower some of the risk factors, such as diabetes, obesity, and high blood pressure. In addition, sleep takes the edge out of our stressful lives and helps us restore our bodies for the next busy day.
With all this in mind, I leave you with a new list of things to do to avoid a heart attack.
- Get your cholesterol and blood pressure checked and under control if high
- Watch your girth (women should have a waist no larger than 25 inches around; for men it’s 40 inches)
- Be active most, if not all, days of the week
- Quit smoking
- Eat well–a high-fiber, low fat diet
- Get plenty of rest
- Get plenty of rest
- Get plenty of rest
While it’s true that we get to “rest in peace” after our time on earth has ended, we need to rest up for a third of that lifespan in order to make it a long one. May Tim’s death be a reminder for us all to take sleep to heart.
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Technorati Tags: Tim Russert, sudden death, sudden cardiac arrest, sleep, stress, heart disease
This post is cross-posted at Dr. Breus’s blog, The Insomnia Blog.
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June 20th, 2008 at 01:00pm
Under Sleep / Sleep Disorders
In a world where you just have to live wiser and perform according to what companies are paying you for, employees need to know when they should also reach the point of overdoing it. It is true that employees would be wise to know when to take a break, short naps that can help them maintain their level of efficiency when they are on the job.
Allowing employees to nap is fine but while many companies are hesitant due to abuse, here are some reasons why employees need naps:
Here are five tips from 1800mattress.com consultants on how to improve Sleep Quality without changing Sleep Quantity:
Sleep Schedule: Try your best to stay on a regular pattern of going to sleep and getting up to within a one-hour window for consistency.
Wind Down Routine: Establish a regular routine to follow before sleep to help train the body to wind down and to prepare for sleep. Avoid bringing laptops, blackberries, etc., into the bedroom to limit distractions.
Sleep Temperature: Try to have your bedroom between 65-70 degrees as cooler environments are more conducive to prolonged sleep and can minimize sleep disturbances through the night.
Limit Distraction: If you must watch TV, have it on a sleep timer. Try and keep the room as dark and quiet as possible. Turn alarm clocks so you can’t see their glow as the urge to check the time can add to stress and disturb rest.
Inspect your mattress: If it squeaks, you wake up with back pain, toss and turn at night, sleep better away from home, etc., it’s probably time for a new mattress. The item most depended on to provide restorative sleep could be the biggest reason you are not getting it. Mattresses should be replaced every 5-7 years.
(Source) Furniture World
alarm clocks, Health Issues, How to sleep better, mattress, mattresses, naps, prolonged sleep, Sleep Business, sleep disturbances, SLEEP News, sleep timer Read Original Post Here
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