Natural Cures For Sleep Apnea

If you suffer from sleep apnea, would you consider it to be a mild case? In other words, do you stop breathing for just a few seconds at a time - for a few times during the night?

In this case, your doctor will most likley recommend behavioural changes, rather than any serious medicine or surgery.

These changes typically include losing weight (rapid weight gain can be an associated symptom of sleep apnea), sleeping in a diferent position such as one side and not on your back.

Here are five other natural treatments you might try for your sleep apnea:

1. Minimize your use of alcohol, antihistamines, or tranquilizers.

2. Develop regular sleep habits, and especially make sure you get enough sleep at night.

3. Gargle with salt water to shrink your tonsils

4. Don't smoke or expose yourself to other irritants (such as dust or perfumes).

5.Try eliminating mucus-producing foods (such as dairy and bananas) for two weeks. Then begin eating themn again and see if you notice any differnces.

Two other semi-natural treatments

What are the treatments if you have moderate or severe sleep apnea?

There are two treatments available that do not require surgery.

First, doctors often prescribe a Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (C-PAP) machine. This machine literally blows air into your nose via a tube and mask, the aim being to keep the airway open by maintaining a constant level of air pressure.

Second, for really severe sleep apnea there is another machine called the Bi Level machine(Bi-PAP). This sleep apnea machine does the same job but with two different pressures of air that help the body breath in and out properly.

If you or someone you know suffers from sleep apnea, you should know about the website, http://www.naturalsleepapneacures.com This site has some good information about the causes of sleep apnea, as well as suggestions for natural cures and natural treatments.

Douglas Hanna is a retired advertising and marketing executive who lives in Colorado. He researches and writes on a variety of health-related topics and is a successful website editor and publisher.

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Sleep Apnea Surgery

Some sleep apnea patients may need surgery to remove excess tissue from the nose or throat (removal of adenoids and tonsils, nasal polyps or other growth) and to straighten a deviated septum. Although surgery is an excellent way of treating symptomatic sleep apnea, its success rate is low. Therefore, surgery should be reserved for those patients who have not responded to other therapeutic interventions. Usually, more than one surgical procedure is attempted to realize the benefits.

Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (UPPP) is the most common surgery to treat sleep apnea. It intends to enlarge the airways by removing all redundant tissue (tonsils, adenoids, uvula) from the pharynx. The overall success rate is 30 to 50 percent.

Laser-assisted Uvulopalatoplasty (LAUP) can be performed in a specialist’s office and involves the use of a laser to remove part of the soft palate, shorten the uvula (the uvula is the tissue that hangs from the middle of the back of the roof of the mouth) and remove other excess tissue from the pharynx. However, the effectiveness of LAUP in treating sleep apnea has not yet been proven.

Tracheostomy is absolutely successful but is very invasive, both physically and psychologically and therefore is generally reserved for patients with severe life threatening sleep apnea. In this procedure, a small hole is made in the trachea or windpipe below the site of obstruction and a tube is inserted into the opening. This tube is opened only during sleeping hours, so that air flows directly into the lungs, bypassing any blocked air passage in the throat.

Other surgical procedures include radiofrequency ablation (RFA), which makes use of radiofrequency energy to remove tissue from uvula, soft palate and tongue and thereby help treat sleep apnea. In children and adolescents removal of enlarged tonsils or adenoids stands as a viable option in the treatment of sleep apnea.

Sleep Apnea provides detailed information about sleep apnea, obstructive sleep apnea and more. Sleep Apnea is affiliated with Acupuncture For Endometriosis.

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Strategies can overcome fear of CPAP mask: parents can help children accept continuous positive airway pressure treatment of obstructive sleep apnea

Continuous positive airway pressure can be effective for obstructive sleep apnea in children, but parents must be persistent to ensure children's acceptance of the treatment, Dr. Ann C. Halbower said at a meeting sponsored by the American College of Chest Physicians.

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is present in 2%-3% of children, and peaks at 3-6 years of age--which is also the peak age for adenotonsillar hypertrophy.

The presentation depends on the age of the child: In the infant, it might present as sudden infant death syndrome. Toddlers with OSA will have hyperactivity, schoolage children will have failure to thrive and poor school performance, and adolescents may present with obesity and excessive daytime sleepiness.

Adenotonsillectomy is the first-line therapy for children with OSA. When that is not successful, continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) can promote more ordered breathing during sleep and relieve OSA.

CPAP can be problematic in children, however.

"It's very hard to take. Little kids don't like it," said Dr. Halbower, medical director of the pediatric sleep disorders program at Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore.

"But there are things parents and physicians can do to help make CPAP more palatable," she added.

Dr. Halbower recommended introducing the device slowly to children in order to minimize the fear factor. Put on the mask while the child is awake and doing an activity that is fun and pleasurable, she said.

The worst thing you can do is put the mask on while the child is asleep.

"If they wake up and find themselves wearing the mask, they'll panic," said Dr. Halbower.

Another trick to making CPAP more palatable is to make it part of the child's normal bedtime routine, along with brushing the teeth and a bedtime story. Other children who use CPAP are wonderful ambassadors for the device and can help relieve anxiety with a show-and-tell. Videos are good for this as well.

Despite these efforts, some children will do everything they can to resist attempts to put on the mask. Many parents will remove the mask in response to their child's distress.

That is a big mistake, Dr. Halbower said, because it just strengthens the child's escape and avoidance behavior. Eventually, the parent gives up.

Behavioral training can help parents block or prevent their child's avoidance behavior. Parents can use brief verbal prompting, redirection to a specific task, and if necessary, physically blocking escape while gently guiding the child to remain in the situation.

The child's attempt to remove the mask must be physically interrupted and the mask replaced immediately every time the child removes it.

"These behavioral techniques are used in our clinic under the guidance of Dr. Keith Slifer, a behavioral psychologist, and they have proved very successful," said Dr. Halbower.

Parents should also plan for safety if their children are not capable of removing the mask in the event of an emergency, Dr. Halbower cautioned. Use a nasal mask instead of a full-face mask, or have an emergency pull string that can disengage the mask to prevent aspiration or asphyxiation if the child vomits.

It is important for parents to establish a consistent bedtime routine that lasts for a period of about 30 minutes, Dr. Halbower explained.

Such a routine includes soothing activities, and it always ends with the child putting on the CPAP mask, lying down, and going to sleep.

"Persistence and patience are key," she said.

BY FRAN LOWRY

Sleep Apnea : Types & Causes

• Why call it Sleep Apnea?

It actually takes its name from the Greek word apnea, which literally means "without breath".

Sleep apnea is a serious sleeping disorder that people will temporarily stop breathing during their sleep. The stop ("without breath") can last of 10 seconds, a minute or even longer as the airway is being obstructed. It can happen from 20 - 30 within an hour to a few hundred times during a single might sleep.

• How many people with Sleep Apnea in the States?

According to the National Institutes of Health, Sleep Apnea is very common and affects more than 12 million people in the United States.

• How to know if I have a Sleep apnea?

Sleep apnea is a disruption of breathing during sleep or "without breath" repeatedly during asleep. Over 90% of people with sleep apnea do not know they have sleep apnea. It is usually their bed partner first notices the person struggling to breathe.

• Is Sleeping Apnea affect only adults?

No, children can have Sleep Apnea.

Adults with Sleep Apnea will temporarily stop breathing ("without breath") for at least 10 seconds, while in children, the "without breathing" can last about 2 1/2 missed breaths.

• Is Sleeping Apnea treatable?

Yes, Sleep Apnea is treatable, however it is often undiagnosed. Accordingly to a survey, at least 10 million people in the United States have unrecognized Sleep Apnea.

• What are the effects if left Sleep Apnea untreated?

If left untreated, it can be life-threatening It can also have significant consequences such as motor vehicles crashes, high blood pressure, other cardiovascular disease, erectile dysfunction (impotence), poor memory, short temper, headaches sore throat or dry mouth in the morning.
While children with untreated Sleep Apnea may be hyperactive.

• What are the types of Sleep Apneas?

There are 3 types of Sleep Apnea:

1. Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) - Most common type
2. Central Sleep Apnea - Most
3. Mixed Sleep Apnea
   

• What are the causes?

Sleep Apnea can be caused by either a complete blockage of the airway (called Obstructive Apnea) or by a partial blockage (called Obstructive hypopnea, where hypopnea is a shallow breathing).

More information on Sleep Apnea, Insomnia, Snoring, Sleep Disorders, please visit http://sleepapnea-insomnia.blogspot.com

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