Why Many Adults Are Not Getting Enough Sleep
Posted on 22. Oct, 2009 by Tom Miller in Women's Health
Experts are finding that even people who exercise regularly, stay away from cigarettes and avoid heavy drinking often only get a small amount of the sleep their bodies really desire to stay healthy. Getting the right amount of sleep is one of the most important parts of healthy living that most adults, and many adolescents, often ignore. It’s been estimated that nearly 60 million Americans suffer from some sort of sleep disorder.
Sometimes health issues such as excessive weight, over indulging on alcohol or food or simply living a stressful lifestyle can lead to sleep issues. Lots of people have a difficult time falling asleep for many different reasons. Here are some of the more common sleep conditions seen in many people today:
Snoring or Sleep Apnea: Snoring is a common symptom of sleep apnea, which is a sleep condition that causes a person to stop breathing shortly during sleep. Sleep apnea can be classified as obstructive, which means soft tissues in the rear of the throat collapse slightly while a person is sleeping, momentarily obstructing the airway and disturbing sleep. Central sleep apnea occurs when a person’s brain actually “forgets” to tell the body to continue breathing during sleep.
Bed Wetting: Adult bed wetting affects 1-2% of the total population, though those numbers are believed to be under reported. Bed wetting as an adult occurs when a mature person or adolescent does not wake to urinate during the night time sleep period. This can cause sufferers to fear going to sleep, increase stress about sleeping and ultimately disrupt sleep patterns which can sometimes make the condition worse.
RLS (Restless Leg Syndrome): RLS is a sleep disorder which causes a person to experience a crawling, pins and needles or even pulling sensation in the leg when they lay down to go to sleep or sit for long periods of time during the evening hours. Restless leg syndrome may be one of the causes of charley horses. These feelings disrupt sleep and can be more than just bothersome if they happen every night.
You may need to speak with your doctor if you suffer from any of these conditions yourself. Getting the right amount of sleep is vitally important to your overall health and can greatly improve your quality of living. All of these sleep maladies can be treated and some can be prevented.
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