Health News

REPORTING POINT 05-01

AEROMEDICAL NEWS

“Live healthy...live well”

HEALTH NEWS

by Larry Kline

SWAPA Voice Mailbox 511/email: skyguy737@cox.net

COCOA IS GOOD - researchers at the University of California at Davis report that cocoa may help prevent a heart attack or stroke by preventing blood clots from forming. Just like aspirin, cocoa is believed to work its magic by interfering with the normal functioning of platelets, tiny blood cells that can clump together inside your arteries. Health 10/00.

TOO MUCH ZINC CAN DISTRESS THE PROSTATE - Harvard researchers conducting a 3-year study found that taking extra zinc could increase the risk of developing an enlarged prostate. The men who consumed more than 15 mg of zinc daily were three times more likely to have enlarged prostates than those who took less. Zinc may raise testosterone levels, which can spur prostate growth. The study’s leader recommends avoiding supplements containing zinc. He feels that it is easy to get your daily limit of 15 mg by eating lean meat. Men’s Health 12/99.

TAKING CARE OF YOUR TEETH AND GUMS CAN SAVE MORE THAN YOUR SMILE - a study conducted by the University of Buffalo found that those with gum disease had triple the risk of heart attacks over a 10-year period. The researchers believe that oral bacteria (there are 350 different types in the mouth) enter the bloodstream through small tears in the gums. The bacteria may infect the liver and cause it to produce artery-clogging proteins or the bacteria may directly infect the heart arteries and cause blockages. Although the exact process is not understood, porphyromonas gingivalis bacteria have been found in fatty arterial blockages that cause heart failure. To minimize the risk of spreading oral bacteria during dental work, those with heart disease may consider taking an antibiotic.

Men with gum disease have also been found to be at higher risk of stroke. The researchers found that those with the most severe gum disease were twice as likely to have had a stroke. Oral bacteria may cause fatty accumulations in the carotid arteries of the neck, causing blockages. When these blockages break apart, they can lodge in the brain, causing a stroke.

If one has diabetes - one in 17 Americans has this disease - a gum infection can make managing the disease much tougher. The researchers found that diabetic with severe gum disease had the most trouble controlling their blood-sugar levels. That’s what eventually causes the kidney disease, heart disease, and blindness that plague diabetics.


Finally, almost every breath you take, you inhale bacteria, including chlamydia pneumoniae and pseudomonas aeruginosa, two types of bacteria known to cause respiratory diseases. These bacteria are introduced to your body via the plaque buildup around your teeth. The immune system usually destroys these bacteria, but a weakened immune system, such as during an illness or after surgery, can allow the lungs to be infected and cause bacterial pneumonia. 83,000 people die every year from this infection in the United States. Men’s Health 12/99.

IN A HURRY? - if you must have a fast-food meal, choose a roast beef sandwich instead of a hamburger. Roast beef is usually much leaner...also use mustard instead of mayonnaise, Russian dressing or any other fatty toppings. University of California Berkeley Wellness Letter 3/01.

ARE YOU GETTING ENOUGH? - in the 19th century, before the Internet and late night television, the average American slept more than nine hours per night, which is one hour more than sleep experts say humans generally need. But today, only one-third of people get even the recommended eight hours and the average American gets fewer than seven. Many people cut back on their sleep to keep up with work and family obligations, others cannot sleep because of stress, biological changes that accompany aging, or various health problems. This sleep-maintenance insomnia includes a variety of patterns - sleeping only a few hours, waking up and not being able to get back to sleep; having a lot of brief awakenings during the night; waking up too early; or feeling half-awake when sleeping.

Causes of Sleep-maintenance Insomnia

-Anxiety - people often wake up feeling anxious; daytime stress increases the likelihood of abrupt awakenings.

-Conditional mental arousal - when people wake up, instead of going right back to sleep, they may quickly become anxious because they are not sleeping and worry that they will feel terrible the following day - a self-fulfilling prophecy.

-Depression - it is common for people who are experiencing major episodes of depression to have lighter sleep, some early-morning awakenings, and difficulty falling asleep.

-Alcohol consumption - alcohol may have a sedative effect for the first few hours of sleep, but it metabolizes quickly, causing a rebound-alerting effect that contributes to lighter, fragmented sleep.

-Medical problems - these include arthritis and sleep apnea (pauses in breathing that reduce the quality of sleep), and restless leg syndrome (an uncomfortable sensation in the legs that causes people to want to move them to get relief).

-Menopause/hot flashes - insomnia may be hormonally related, with a significant number of women treated with hormonal replacement therapy experiencing some relief from sleep-maintenance insomnia.

The Mental and Physical Results of Inadequate Sleep


Sleeping just half an hour less than you need can make you feel less alert the next day; sleeping an hour less can impair mental and physical performance as much as two alcoholic drinks can. Without enough sleep, the ability to learn, solve problems, communicate, reaction times, and stamina can all decline significantly. Lack of sleep increases the likelihood of moodiness and tension. This fatigue cannot only be unpleasant; it can also be dangerous. It contributes to as many as 200,000 auto accidents each year and may also harm health in more insidious ways.

Several studies have found that people who report daytime sleepiness have worse overall health and higher mortality rates than well-rested individuals. Research suggests that inadequate sleep may weaken the body’s immune system and even moderate, chronic sleep debt may increase the risk of developing insulin resistance, a condition that predisposes people to diabetes, as well as high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, stroke, and possibly cancer. Lack of sleep may also inhibit nocturnal surges of growth hormone and may contribute to weight gain and reduction in muscle mass.

What Is Adequate Sleep?

Approximately 5 percent of people claim they only need 5 or 6 hours a night and don’t feel tired during the day. But getting so little sleep may harm your health even if it doesn’t impair your performance.

Good indicators of sleep deprivation are habitually needing an alarm clock to wake up in the morning; also sleeping longer on weekends (or days off) and vacation than on working days. (Toward the end of vacation, when you’ve snoozed off your sleep debt, the number of hours you sleep per night represents the amount you probably need all the time.)

Sleeping less now than when you were younger doesn’t necessarily mean you need less sleep now. The amount that people sleep at night drops by an average of about half hour a decade, starting around age 40. People over age 60 typically sleep an average of barely five hours per night. It is the ability to sleep that diminishes with age, not the need.

Older people sleep less mainly because they have a more difficult time staying asleep, not falling asleep. In healthy individuals, sleep normally progresses from light sleep to deep sleep to rapid eye movement (REM), or dream sleep; repeating this cycle every 90 minutes. With age the amount of deep and REM sleep drops dramatically and the amount of light, easily disturbed sleep increases.

Some of these sleep disturbances can be minimized by limiting the amount of liquids consumed in the hour before bedtime; avoiding caffeinated beverage for at least six hours, or alcoholic beverages for at least three hours before sleep. Caffeine is a stimulant, and alcohol disrupts sleep, especially REM sleep, although it does seem to help you fall asleep. Both substances promote urination. Also useful: blocking out disturbances by closing the curtains, wearing a sleep mask, maintaining a comfortable room temperature, turning off the radio and TV, and using a “white noise” device. Also exercise and warm baths may help, too. Exercise promotes wakefulness by causing the release of nerve-stimulating hormones and elevating the body’s core temperature. It is hard to fall asleep soon after working out. The more energy you expend during the day, the sleepier you’ll be at bedtime and the better you will sleep. Body temperature normalizes about three hours after exercising, helping you fall asleep.

Warm baths does not elevate the body temperature nearly as much as exercise does, so you cool down and get sleepy much faster - usually within an hour or so. Also the warm bath promotes relaxation, which assists in falling asleep.

Do Naps Help?


If you have a hard time sleeping at night, it is best to avoid napping, as you will fall asleep faster and sleep longer and better if you can consolidate your sleep in one chunk, which is more restorative than fragmented sleep. Try going to bed 30 minutes earlier at night for a week or so to see whether that eases your daytime sleepiness. If you cannot sleep enough at night, a brief nap at the same time each day - preferably in the early afternoon when your energy level tends to drop - can make up for much of the sleep debt.

Herbals and Dietary Supplements for Sleep

Melatonin is a naturally occurring hormone that helps regulate sleep. A few small trials have found that taking melatonin pills soon before bedtime may hasten sleep, but the effect is modest at best. Melatonin does not seem to lengthen total sleep time, nor does it appear to improve sleep quality nor sharpen alertness the next day. Melatonin has performed no better than placebos at treating sleep problems caused by jet lag, night work, or a forward shift in the sleep cycle.

Limited research suggests that valerian root and kava could act as mild sedatives. Though side effects of each herb are mild, kava can interact with several medications and can impair coordination and blur vision in some people. Optimal dosage of these products is unclear, and herbal supplements are not regulated; there is no guarantee of purity or potency.

Sleeping Position

Studies have not validated any certain type of mattress as being superior to another - just go with whatever feels comfortable to you.

Sleep posture research also is vague, although it is generally understood that infants who sleep on their stomach are more susceptible to sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). If you have heartburn at night, sleeping on your left side may help keep stomach acid from backing up into the esophagus. Elevating the head of the bed or mattress can have the same effect.

Summation

Most Americans, especially older people, don’t get enough sleep. Lack of sleep can dull the mind, making you unproductive and accident-prone. It may also harm health, by weakening the immune system, promoting insulin resistance, and decreasing growth-hormone production. People who snore loudly should be checked for sleep apnea, which not only disturbs sleep, but also increases cardiovascular risk. Mild apnea symptoms may improve if you lose weight, quit smoking, avoid alcohol and tranquilizers for at least four hours before bedtime, and try not sleeping on your back. Severe apnea may require medical appliances or surgery to correct.

Napping briefly can partly make up for insufficient sleep the night before. But you are better off trying to sleep more at night (making you more efficient during the day). Exercising at least three hours before bedtime, avoiding drinks before bedtime (especially with caffeine or alcohol), and blocking out disturbances may help you sleep better.


If you do find yourself awake and you are not back to sleep within 20 to 30 minutes, get out of bed and do something monotonous (got a PC coming up?) - when you get sleepy, go back to bed. What you shouldn’t do is get out of bed and do something you love to do - if you love to read a novel, don’t get up in the middle of your sleep cycle and read them. When it comes to anxiety, experts recommend writing down troubling thoughts before going to bed. Consumer Reports on Health 11/00, USA Today 3/27/01.