You might think that breathing in our sleep should come naturally – if breathing and sleeping are both physiologically necessary, then we must be able to do them simultaneously right? Unfortunately, almost a quarter of middle-aged American men and nearly 10% of women suffer from sleep apnea, a chronic condition characterized by repeatedly stopping breathing while sleeping. The clinical symptoms seem rather benign – snoring, sleepiness, fatigue during the day or other issues sleeping. However, by far the most dangerous aspect of this disease is that it puts patients at increased risk of high blood pressure, stroke, coronary heart disease, as well as occupational and/or automobile accidents. Over the last several decades, a variety of therapy options have been studied to treat this condition, ranging from drugs to masks to surgery.
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The Study of Snoring is Anything but Boring
Here we take a deeper look about that noise that plagues some of our family members, our roommates…or even ourselves!
Continue reading “The Study of Snoring is Anything but Boring”How do Flamingos Stand on One Leg?
How long can you stand up before you get tired?
This is an important question for animals that sleep standing up, like horses and flamingos. Our joints are stabilized by muscles, but the constant activation of muscles needed to maintain balance requires energy and induces fatigue.
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