The newest research study released by the Mayo clinic just this last Sunday, November 9th is a wake up call for sleep apnea patients. The need to be treated as early as possible is now even more evident.

After studying the sleep characteristics of nearly 11,000 adults in an overnight sleep laboratory, Mayo Clinic researchers suggest that obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) - and, in particular, the low nighttime oxygen saturation of the blood it causes - may be a risk factor for sudden cardiac death (SCD).

Read the rest…

Here’s a great report by Matt Lauer, the host on the Today Show, specific to the problems with Sleep Apnea and Snoring in America.

Once again, this report brings much needed attention to the fact that sleep apnea and snoring is an epidemic that needs to be addressed and treated in this country.

Unfortunately, the only treatment that is mentioned is CPAP, and many people are CPAP intolerant. For these apnea sufferers there are other alternatives that may include oral appliances such as the Full Breath Solution that I use in our clinics near Los Angeles and Irvine, California.

The most important point that is made is this.

Sleep apnea and snoring do not get better on their own. These conditions need to be treated. Please see a doctor, find out what your options are and don’t put it off… it may save your life or the one you love….

Two studies have come out recently that confirm the facts that people with sleep apnea are more at risk to die from cardiovascular death if left untreated. Obstructive sleep apnea can indeed be deadly.

In the August 1 issue of the journal Sleep, one of the studies was specific to a group of 1,522 adults that were tested for sleep apnea in an overnight sleep study. They were then followed up over a period of 18 years.

The results were astounding.

Read the rest…

In today’s edition of the Los Angeles Times, the popular syndicated columnist “Ask Amy” is asked the following question:

Dear Amy: My wife insists that we sleep in separate rooms. She says I snore — and maybe I do, a little — but sleeping alone makes me feel emotionally alone.

I’ve tried to compromise, asking her if we could stay together for a while first before splitting — but she will not yield, not even a little.

I was sad, but now I’m angry too.

After 20 years of marriage, I feel utterly rejected.

Help!

Sleeping Alone

Dear Alone: I read an article recently saying that “snoring rooms” are the latest thing in home design.  These little soundproof bedrooms give everybody a chance to get a decent night’s sleep if there is a snorer in the house. But the idea isn’t that the snoring room will become a separate bedroom– but more of an occasional refuge.

I agree with you that your wife’s actions are destructive, and your reaction is completely understandable. The charitable assumption is that your wife is so disabled by two decades of interrupted slumber that it has made her lash out.

But I don’t think this is really about the snoring.

Snoring is a relatively easy issue to grapple with, compared with what you two are facing — a lack of intimacy and exile to emotional Siberia.

Whenever a relationship changes so radically, it’s safe to assume there is something major going on.

You need to get to the bottom of this, and a marriage counselor could help.

The response that Amy gives “Sleeping Alone” assumes that the core problem is a lack of intimacy and that going to a marriage counselor would be the best solution. Though a lack of intimacy may have developed over the years of snoring, it is not intimacy that is the problem…

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Image by mlhradio via FlickrHave you been gasping every time you pull into the gas station to “fill ‘er up” and you watch the little $$ signs fly away out of your precious pocket book, while the gas prices go through the roof? There certainly is a cost to drive anywhere these days, and I don’t see it getting any better any time soon… Read the rest…

New research links sleep apnea and Type II Diabetes, according to Dr. Ulysses Magalang, a sleep expert with Ohio State University Medical Center. Studies indicate that patients with sleep disorders such as obstructive sleep apnea are three times as likely to suffer from Adult Onset (type II) Diabetes. Other research has found that nearly 40 percent of men with Type II Diabetes are also diagnosed with sleep apnea. Read the rest…

Part 1 (part 2 on next page)The recent expose on 60 Minutes by Leslie Stahl was an amazing piece of journalism. As quoted by CBS News:”Human beings spend on average one third of their lives asleep. We know we need to sleep but most of us have never really given a whole lot of thought to why. Read the rest…

Think you’re getting enough sleep? Take the Great American Sleep Challenge and find out!

Are you tired of feeling tired? Do you want to make a commitment to getting the sleep you need but don’t know where to begin? Then it’s time to take the NSF Great American Sleep Challenge™!

The Sleep Challenge is designed to make it easy for you to determine whether you’re satisfied with your sleep, and if not, to make changes and put yourself on a path to getting the sleep you need. Remember - sleep affects all areas of life including your health, productivity, mood and safety!

The Sleep Challenge takes place from March 3 - March 31, 2008. To take the Sleep Challenge, simply check out one of the many activities below. Don’t forget that you can enter for a chance to win a prize when you take the Challenge!

As a doctor that treats Sleep Apnea and sees the toll that a lack of sleep plays on so many individuals, I thought it would be fun to pass this information on to you.

The National Sleep Foundation has designated the March 3-9 as National Sleep Awareness Week. As per their website:

“At midnight Sunday night, the National Sleep Foundation (NSF) will launch the 11th annual National Sleep Awareness Week® (NSAW). This award-winning, public education and advocacy campaign will focus intense media and policy maker attention on the importance of good sleep as well as the signs and symptoms of chronic sleep disorders that affect millions of Americans.

NSF’s education and policy initiatives have quickly gained momentum and despite many challenges, we are making significant and measurable progress in increasing recognition in Congress and the media that sleep and sleep disorders MUST be part of public health and disease prevention programs.”

For my part in helping to bring awareness and help educate the public I am doing a live simulcast that will be available either via the web or live phone call. I’d like to invite any of my readers to this live event that will be held as follows:

EVENT:  Dr. Jonathan Greenburg - Sleep Apnea
DATE & TIME: Wednesday, March 5th at 7:30pm Pacific
FORMAT: Simulcast! (Attend via Phone or Webcast — it’s your choice)
TO ATTEND THIS EVENT, CLICK THIS LINK NOW…
Live Sleep Apnea Simulcast-Dr. Jonathan Greenburg
I look foward to seeing you on the call!

Recently, the Los Angeles County Coroners Office ruled that a 33 year old rapper named Pimp C, (real name Chad Butler) died of a combination of sleep apnea and excess cold medications.

As a Doctor that treats sleep disorders like apnea and snoring, I am saddened to hear of another death like this young man that could have potentially been treated and he’d still be alive.

Read the rest…