HealthyLife Articles

Tag: partner

  • Snoring And Your Health

    SELF-CARE CORNER

    Women sleeping while wearing a CPAP machine.

    Occasional snoring is often harmless. It may happen when a person has a stuffy nose or is lying on their back. But if you snore every night, talk with a doctor. Long-term snoring can lead to health problems.

    Sleep suffers

    Snoring can make you wake up many times during the night. You probably won’t remember these awakenings. They interfere with your body’s ability to get good, sound sleep.

    Without quality sleep, you may feel tired nearly every day. This can lead to problems at work, school or home. In severe cases, it can lead to dangers like car collisions if you fall asleep at the wheel.

    Obstructive sleep apnea

    Sometimes snoring is a sign of a health problem called obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Signs of OSA include:

    *  Loud snoring that happens nearly every night

    *  Pauses in breathing during sleep (this can happen hundreds of times per night)

    *  Choking or gasping for air during the night

    *  Feeling very tired even after a full night’s sleep

    *  Trouble concentrating or being irritable

    *  Waking up with a headache

    OSA can also cause heart problems because it can increase a person’s risk of high blood pressure, stroke or heart disease. It can also cause an irregular heartbeat, known as an arrhythmia.

    How to fix snoring

    There are many ways to reduce or eliminate snoring. First, see a doctor to get checked for any health problems. Your doctor may recommend:

    *  If you smoke, quit. Smoking can make snoring worse and leads to other serious health problems.

    *  Limit or avoid alcohol. Don’t drink alcohol close to bedtime. Alcohol relaxes throat muscles and can cause more snoring and pauses in breathing.

    *  Work toward a healthy weight if you are overweight. Being overweight often makes snoring worse.

    If these measures don’t help, ask your doctor about other options. Certain devices and surgery can help some people quit snoring.

    Relationship problems

    Snoring can cause social problems too. Some people find that their marriage or domestic partnership suffers. Partners may not be able to sleep in the same room because of the noise.

    Sources: American Academy of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery

    © American Institute for Preventive Medicine

  • A Shoulder To Lean On

    BE FIT

    Image of women and trainer exercising the shoulders.

    Shoulder injuries are common. Why? Because of improper exercise technique, say exercise experts at the American Council on Exercise (ACE), and because people commonly over-train one or two deltoid muscles while neglecting others.

    Strength-training routines are typically dominated by exercises that train only the front of the shoulder, which is actually comprised of three distinct muscles. So ACE looked into the most effective exercises for strengthening the overall shoulder and preventing injury.

    The result? Researchers from the University of Wisconsin, LaCrosse shrugged their shoulders when asked to pick the top exercise. Results showed there is not one best exercise that completely works all muscles of the shoulders.

    Instead, for best results, exercisers should perform the dumbbell shoulder press to target the front, and either the 45-degree incline row or the seated rear lateral raise for the rear. Ask your gym’s expert to show you these techniques.

    69% of people will experience a shoulder injury at some point in their lives, according to the NIH.

    © American Institute for Preventive Medicine