Our Omaha Sleep Blog

Sleep Problems Negatively Impact Male Fertility: Study

May 13th, 2013

You don’t have to be a medical professional to recognize the importance of sleep. After all, we all know how difficult it can be to function during the day when we haven’t gotten the recommended seven to eight hours of nightly sleep. Unfortunately, studies suggest that insufficient sleep can also negatively impact our health by increasing our risk for cancer, dementia, diabetes and heart disease. Now, new research indicates that sleep deprivation could also negatively impact men by making them less potent.

Lower Sperm Counts

Past research has shown that poor sleep can make men less virile by lowering their testosterone levels. Now, Danish researchers have demonstrated that it can also lower their sperm counts. Published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, the study collected blood and semen samples from 953 men. After questioning each subject about his sleeping habits, the researchers found a strong correlation between insufficient sleep and lower sperm counts. In fact, poor sleepers demonstrated 29 percent fewer sperm in their semen. They were also more likely to have dysfunctional sperm, which were unlikely to result in pregnancy.

Far-reaching Implications

This new study is just a drop in the bucket of disturbing research related to sleep deprivation. Countless studies have shown that inadequate sleep leaves us susceptible to life-altering and life-shortening problems. While some people may use these warnings as motivation to adopt habits that promote better sleep; others are caught in a constant battle against disorders which make it impossible for them to sleep well on a consistent basis.

There’s a Simple Cure

If sleep apnea is keeping you from getting the recommended seven to eight hours of nightly sleep each night; it’s time to reach our for help. Dr. Roubal offers his patients permanent relief from sleep apnea by providing sleep appliances, which promote clear breathing by adjusting the jaw. To learn more, contact his office today.

Study: Listen to Your Brain for Better Sleep

May 2nd, 2013

Countless people endure sleep difficulties that leave them drowsy and fatigued during the day. To sleep better, many rely on white noise machines to provide steady, peaceful rhythms that help lull them into slumber. Now, a new study suggests that we may be better off replacing these contraptions with devices that mimic our brains when they are most sleepy.

Brain Rhythms

A study out of the University of Tubingen in Germany suggests that we can promote better sleep by listening to our own brains. Published in the journal Neuron, the research focused on recording the sleeping brain’s natural electrical patterns and then replaying them to promote drowsiness. After testing the strategy on 11 sleepers, the researchers noted that each fell asleep much more quickly. Additionally, they showed better memory retention, thanks to deeper sleep and fewer disturbances.

Coming Soon?

According to the study’s researchers, this fascinating strategy for treating insomnia is especially attractive, because it appears to come without any harmful side-effects. In fact, they say their findings are so convincing, they expect product manufacturers to begin developing devices based on their research in the near future.

Good News for Sleep Apneics?

While traditional insomniacs may benefit from new, futuristic sleep aids; sleep apneics enjoy no such luck. Since it causes breathing problems that lead to frequent waking, this dangerous disorder requires a treatment that addresses the root cause of the problem. Unfortunately, any other so-called remedy is unlikely to make much of an impact.

A Practical Approach

If you have sleep apnea, don’t expect to find relief from pills, machines, pillows, mattresses or anything else that supposedly promotes drowsiness. Instead, contact Dr. Roubal to learn how an oral appliance can cure your sleep apnea by providing a clear airway; so you can breathe and sleep well each and every night.

Will New Sleeping Pill Work for Sleep Apneics?

April 16th, 2013

Nowadays, about half of all Americans suffer from sleep deprivation. While many people endure traditional insomnia; countless others suffer from so-called maintenance insomnia, which is marked by frequent waking. To make themselves feel drowsy, numerous insomniacs turn to sleep medications, which tend to come with unpleasant side-effects. To meet the huge demand for more tolerable sleep aids, drug manufacturers are constantly performing tests which evaluate the efficacy and safety of new medications. Recently, one major drug company conducted a successful trial which may set the stage for a new, modern sleep aid that promotes drowsiness without causing side-effects.

Merck & Co.

The drug manufacturer Merck & Co. recently reported that it has successfully tested a new sleep aid which doesn’t cause the same memory and attention difficulties associated with Ambien, Lunesta and other sleep medications. Called Suvorexant, this medication is a DORA or Dual Orexin Receptor Antagonist, meaning it blocks the chemical messengers (orexins) which keep us awake. This characteristic makes Suvorexant different from other traditional sleep aids, which target GABA receptors that impact our memories in addition to sleep.

A Good Option for Sleep Apneics?

Although this new medication may be a godsend for typical insomniacs, it will never be a good option for people who suffer from sleep apnea. Since it promotes breathing difficulties that cause people to wake frequently at night, sleep apnea promotes a type of maintenance insomnia that persists in spite of medications. In reality, even if a sleeping pill could keep sleep apneics asleep, the consequences could be dire; after all, while it can be frustrating, frequent night-time waking is the brain’s way of telling a sleep apneic that he or she needs to wake up to replenish dwindling blood oxygen levels.

An Effective Treatment Plan

Let’s face it: you won’t find relief from sleep apnea by taking a magic pill. Contrarily, an oral appliance can offer long-term relief from sleep apnea by adjusting the jaw to create a clear airway. To learn more, contact Dr. Roubal’s office today.

Related article: http://www.denverpost.com/breakingnews/ci_22948148/study-experimental-sleep-drug-may-cause-fewer-side

Study: Sleep Problems Can Alter Our Genes

April 3rd, 2013

Thanks to countless studies, scientists know that insufficient sleep promotes a host of medical problems that can shorten lives. That said, until now, they weren’t exactly sure why sleep deprivation caused so many problems.

All in the Genes

A recent study out of the University of Surrey indicates that sleep deprivation can negatively impact health by altering our genes. Appearing in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the research compared blood samples of people who slept normally with samples from subjects who were limited to six hours of sleep per night for one week. Upon analysis, the researchers found that poor sleep appeared to alter over 700 genes which are critical for promoting good health. By regulating the production of specific proteins, these genes work to determine our risk for developing serious health problems, including cancer, dementia, kidney disease, obesity, depression and heart disease. Unfortunately, this study showed that sleep deprivation can increase our risk of developing these serious illnesses by changing the way our genes behave.

What You Can Do

If your poor sleep is owed to bad habits that promote sleeplessness, you can improve your health by adopting healthier habits which encourage better sleep. That said, if your sleep deprivation results from obstructive sleep apnea; you’ll need to get help to correct it.

We know that sleep apnea can promote health problems by causing chronic sleep difficulties. This dangerous disorder can drastically impact quality of life by causing chronic fatigue and other serious co-morbidities. Fortunately, Dr. Roubal provides his patients with oral sleep appliances that eliminate the breathing disruptions which cause frequent waking. By adjusting the jaw’s position, this effective sleep apnea remedy creates an unobstructed airway that promotes clear breathing each and every night.

Don’t continue to suffer with sleep apnea, when a simple treatment may be able to solve your problem. To learn more, contact Dr. Roubal’s office today.

Sleep Apnea Linked to Malignant Brain Tumors

March 22nd, 2013

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a dangerous disorder that poses both short- and long-term threats to people’s health. Not only does it cause dangerous breathing disruptions during sleep, this troublesome disorder is strongly associated with serious medical conditions that can take years to develop.

Another Threat

Having already been linked to dementia, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and certain forms of cancer, obstructive sleep apnea is widely known as a serious medical issue. Now, a Chinese study has found that OSA may also increase a person’s risk of developing brain tumors. For about ten years, the research team followed 112,555 people who did not suffer from OSA along with 112,555 more who did. By the end of this period, the researchers noticed that people who suffered from OSA were 1.47 times more likely to develop malignant brain tumors when compared to people who didn’t have the sleep disorder.

It Just Keeps Getting Worse

Every day, it seems as if researchers stumble onto new risks associated with obstructive sleep apnea. People who live with this frustrating disorder associate it with chronic fatigue, snoring and endless sleepless nights. In reality, however, there are all sorts of things going on within their bodies, which may one day compromise their health.

Take Action

If you have OSA, it’s time to reach out for help. As the evidence mounts, it’s clear that this destructive disorder can cause serious problems, which shorten lives.
Dr. Roubal offers his patients relief from OSA by providing oral appliances which reposition the jaw. This comfortable quiet treatment for sleep apnea allows sufferers to breathe clearly all through the night; so they can get the full 7 to 9 hours of sleep they need to stay healthy and happy. To learn more contact his office today.

Can Yoga Help You Sleep at Night?

March 7th, 2013

Sleep deprivation is a growing problem in America, where many people burn the candle at both ends. In fact, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have labeled insufficient sleep a public health epidemic, citing statistics which suggest as many as 50 to 70 million U.S. adults suffer from a sleep disorder. To promote better sleep, many people are willing to try all sorts of remedies, from pharmaceuticals to sleep masks to acupuncture and more. Recently, researchers studied yoga to see if it might serve as a good remedy for sleep difficulties. While interesting, their results didn’t necessarily provide much help for people who are struggling to fall and stay asleep each night.

Assessing Yoga

To test the efficacy of yoga as a potential treatment for various psychiatric disorders, a group of researchers poured over numerous older studies which used the alternative therapy to treat everything from depression to schizophrenia to insomnia. According to their report, yoga is an attractive potential remedy, because it is cost-effective, safe and acceptable to patients.

Unfortunately, although they did assert that they found studies which appeared to support the use of yoga as an effective way to combat sleep disorders; the researchers ultimately deemed these studies as limited, because they weren’t double-blind and hadn’t been successfully replicated.

What if You Have Sleep Apnea?

Many people love yoga, because they say it enhances mental health by promoting feelings of well-being. For people who suffer from general insomnia, this benefit could theoretically help support better sleep. On the other hand, for people who suffer from sleep apnea, more is needed.

Since it creates breathing difficulties, sleep apnea can cause maintenance insomnia, which is characterized by frequent waking with an inability to return to sleep. Because they can’t do anything about these breathing problems, pharmaceuticals and alternative therapies such as yoga offer no benefits to sleep apneics.

On the other hand, because oral sleep appliances adjust the jaw to provide a more open airway, they provide very real, lasting sleep apnea relief. To learn more about this simple, effective treatment, contact Dr. Roubal’s office today.

Is Alcohol a Good Sleep Aid?

February 24th, 2013

Sleep difficulties have become a huge problem in America, where numerous people constantly struggle to attain the recommended seven to eight hours of nightly sleep. To encourage deeper, longer periods of sleep, many rely on alcoholic drinks, which help make them feel drowsy. Unfortunately, new research indicates that this strategy could actually make it more difficult to sleep, especially for people who suffer from frequent waking.

Not the Best Idea

Researchers recently analyzed data from 20 older studies that tested alcohol as a potential sleep aid. Combined, these older studies included more than 500 subjects who drank varying amounts of alcohol before trying to sleep. After testing all participants in sleep labs, the past studies determined that drinking alcohol did in fact promote sleep, regardless of how much each subject consumed. What’s more, alcoholic beverages seemed to promote deeper sleep, at least during the first half of the night.

During the second half of the night, however, things changed. In fact, according to all 20 of the studies’ results, after offering an initial sedative benefit, alcohol appeared to interfere with sleep by promoting frequent waking and decreasing restorative REM sleep. Ultimately, these revelations prompted the researchers from this most recent study to deem alcohol as “not useful” as a sleep aid.

Don’t Self-medicate

Since they are desperate to attain some level of quality of sleep, many insomniacs will try anything. Unfortunately, this causes many to fall back on alcoholic beverages to help make them feel drowsy at night. Research suggests that this is a bad idea for everyone; however, for people who have sleep apnea, it’s especially pointless.

Since it causes intermittent breathing difficulties, this dangerous disorder cannot be alleviated by medications, herbs or alcohol. Instead, sleep apneics need an effective sleep apnea treatment that will promote clear breathing by adjusting the jaw to provide a clear airway. To learn how an oral sleep appliance can allow you to sleep well each and every night, contact Dr. Roubal’s office today.

Related article: http://news.discovery.com/human/health/does-drinking-lead-to-better-sleep-130122.htm

U.S. Military Plagued by Sleep Disorders: Study

February 6th, 2013

As more and more studies point out the harmful effects associated with insufficient sleep, people are beginning to take sleep disorders more seriously. Unfortunately, few understand just how prevalent these disorders have become. A recent study suggests that sleeping difficulties have become a major issue for soldiers serving in the United States military, and clinicians are growing concerned about the potential long-term effects that could follow them home.

A Common Problem

Researchers recently uncovered a disturbing trend amongst active duty personnel, when they found that a “startlingly” high rate suffered from brief sleep durations. While some soldiers owed their problems to circumstantial aspects that prevent long periods of uninterrupted sleep; the study also found that an astounding number suffered from sleep disorders, with more than 51 percent of the study’s participants showing signs of sleep apnea and nearly 25 percent suffering from insomnia.

A Serious Issue

According to the study’s lead author, Vincent Mysliwiec, MD, although his team expected to see a high occurrence of sleep deprivation amongst active military personnel, they were surprised by how many suffered from sleep disorders.

This revelation should cause concern for soldiers and their families, since insufficient sleep has been linked to serious medical problems, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, dementia and even certain forms of cancer.

Common Amongst Civilians

Although no one knows for sure, some statistics suggest that as much as 25 percent of the general U.S. population suffers from sleep apnea. This means close to a quarter of all people endure breathing difficulties that lead to frequent waking.

If you’re one of the many sleep apneics who must endure night after night of troubled, restless sleep, now is the time to reach out for help. Dr. Roubal can provide a quiet, comfortable treatment for sleep apnea that will have you breathing easy and sleeping well. Contact his office today to learn more.

Sleep Issues Can Damage Relationships: Study

January 26th, 2013

Sleep deprivation can have a big impact on various aspects of our lives. When we’re tired, we often struggle to perform at work. We also tend to have difficulties meeting the expectations of our partners, who may become resentful in return.

Feeling Unappreciated

A study out of University of California, Berkeley, suggests that sleep deprivation can have a negative impact on our relationships. According to researchers, when one partner experiences insufficient sleep, he or she tends to neglect the other partner in ways that lead to negative feelings.

In conducting their study, the UC Berkeley researchers recruited 60 couples between the ages of 18 and 56. The participants kept journals to record their sleeping habits and the way they felt about their partners on any given day. Ultimately, the research showed a correlation between poor sleep and feelings of negativity between mates. The researchers even took things a step further by videotaping couples while they worked together to perform problem-solving tasks. Interestingly, subjects who slept poorly showed less appreciate for their partners during these experiments, indicating that sleep deprivation may impair a person’s ability to satisfy his or her partner’s needs.

What it Means for Sleep Apneics

Because breathing disruptions cause them to awaken frequently throughout the night, sleep apneics are especially vulnerable to the negative effects associated with insufficient sleep. According to this recent study, this may include relationship difficulties that could lead to marital strife. Just as serious, inadequate sleep has been linked to some serious long-term health problems, such as cardiovascular disease, cancer and more.

Getting Help

If you suffer from sleep apnea, it’s time to reach out for help. Dr. Roubal can provide an effective sleep apnea treatment that can stop the breathing abnormalities which lead to frequent waking. If you’re desperate to get a full night’s sleep on a consistent basis, contact his office today.

Can MSG Cause Sleep Apnea?

January 11th, 2013

Because it causes breathing disruptions during sleep, obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) promotes frequent waking that leads to maintenance insomnia. Unfortunately, this annoying problem doesn’t just result in drowsiness and chronic fatigue; studies have shown that it is also linked to serious health problems, such as dementia, diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

In most cases, obstructive sleep apnea results when soft tissue blocks a person’s airway. This can occur due to genetics and/or obesity. That said, a recent study out of China suggests that a popular seasoning might play at least a small role in promoting OSA in certain individuals.

Monosodium Glutamate

A recent Chinese study suggests that consumption of monosodium glutamate (MSG) may somehow promote sleep-disordered breathing and snoring. Published in the journal Nutrition, the research involved more than 1200 healthy subjects. After assessing each individual’s eating habits, researchers found a correlation between high MSG intake and the prevalence of snoring and breathing abnormalities related to sleep apnea.

Real-world Applications?

This recent study is interesting, because it may offer some people a strategy for coping with night time breathing problems. That said, while some people may be able to relieve their sleep apnea symptoms by eliminating monosodium glutamate from their diet; most sleep apneics require more aggressive strategies. Some people rely on continuous positive airway pressure to relieve their nightly breathing disruptions. Unfortunately, this isn’t a good choice for everyone.

Because CPAP comes with annoying side-effects, such as pressure sores, loud noises and claustrophobia; many people just can’t tolerate it. On the other hand, most everyone can tolerate an oral appliance, which eliminates sleep apnea symptoms by adjusting the jaw. To learn more about this quiet, comfortable sleep apnea treatment, contact Dr. Roubal’s office today.