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Raising awareness about sleep disorders among Americans

Written by: David Castillo on March 18th, 2010

Raising awareness about sleep disorders among Americans | read this item

An estimated 75 million Americans suffer from some form of sleep disorder. 85 percent of the people who have sleep disorders are not even aware of it. And, it is a far more serious condition than what others may think.

There is very little public awareness about sleep disorders. That’s why people don’t know whether they have it or not. Experts say that when a person is experiencing drowsiness during regular daily activities, then that is already indicative of a sleep disorder.

The most common sleep disorders are sleep apnea and insomnia. Most people live with these conditions for year before they ever get treatment.

Ideally, a person should get 6-8 hours of sleep per day. Anything less would affect the person’s well-being.

A big cause of sleep disorders is stress. Most Americans bring thoughts of work to the bedroom, which increases anxiety and distracts their bodies form much-needed rest.

Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) is the most common treatment for sleep apnea. It is a device that prevents the airways from closing when a person is asleep. Sleeping with the CPAP device on your face will be uncomfortable, and people need to wear it for several months for best results.

Fortunately, more and more treatments and medicines are being developed to solve sleep disorders. However, there needs to be more awareness about the condition. If people don’t know what they have, then they have an unlikely chance of treating their condition.

Awareness needs to be raised. Most especially since sleep disorders are often linked to stroke, heart attack, and cardiovascular palpitations.

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