It is an unfortunate fact of life that spending the majority of our adulthood at a job is a reality. In addition to an American workday that averages 9.5 hours, a Sleep in America poll we looked at found that each week, Americans are spending more than four extra hours working from home – a statistic undoubtedly fueled by the post-pandemic climate.
In obese people, fat deposits in the upper respiratory tract make the airway narrow, leading to a decrease in muscle activity in this region and, ultimately, apneic and hypoxic episodes – thus, sleep apnea. These episodes lead to an oxygen decrease in both blood vessels and body tissues, and this decreased oxygenation is a contributor to tissue hypoxia, the primary aggressor of atherosclerosis.
Most of these will be over-the-counter remedies (i.e. “sleeping pills”) from either name brand companies or generic variants, yet the results should remain the same: assistance in lulling yourself to sleep when your mind and/or body just won’t let you.
As men age, the years between 40 and 60 bring about sleep issues, with many feeling tired upon waking and reporting a lack of vitality and energy throughout the day. This condition is typically caused by sleep apnea and other sleep-related disorders, and in this blog we’re going to provide some compelling reasons why a good night’s sleep may be the best gift for the special dad in your life this Father’s Day.
Fatigue is defined by the medical profession as a feeling of weariness, tiredness or lack of energy that does not disappear after rest. People may feel fatigued in body or mind – i.e. physical or psychological fatigue – but most of the time, fatigue can be traced to one or more of your habits or routines.
While snoring can make for a tough night’s sleep for you and your bed mate, obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a sign of a bigger problem that should be looked into. This condition raises your risk for other health issues like high blood pressure and diabetes, and can even make you more dangerous when you get behind the wheel of a car, so to say sleep apnea can be harmful is something of an understatement
A more common sleep disorder than most people are even aware, sleep apnea occurs when an individual’s breathing repeatedly stops and starts during the sleep process. The classic symptoms of this ailment include daytime fatigue, obnoxious snoring and overall restless sleep, with the most typical causes stemming from a blocked airway or a signaling problem in the brain.
Insomnia is a consistent problem with falling asleep and staying asleep. It is the most common sleep disorder in as many as 70 million Americans at some point in their lives. It has been reported that 10 – 15% of the population suffers from chronic insomnia and that women are 3 times more likely to suffer bouts of insomnia than men.
Menopause is a time of major hormonal, physical and psychological change for women although menopausal symptoms vary from woman to woman. During the perimenopause or transition phase, a woman's ovaries gradually (over several years) decrease production of estrogen and progesterone. If a woman has her ovaries surgically removed, periods end abruptly and menopausal symptoms become more severe.
When we think about the typical sleep apnea patient, we often picture a heavyset man over forty years old with a thick neck and an earth-rattling snore. And while this image often does fit the profile of a sleep apnea patient, it by no means represents a complete picture of the demographic of sleep apnea sufferers.
