Sleep Disorder

A sleep disorder is a medical condition that involves disrupted sleeping patterns. Some conditions are mild while others are serious enough to interfere with normal physical, mental and emotional well being. Some can even threaten your life. The most common of these conditions include the following:

obstructive sleep apnea or OSA (involves the actual obstruction of the airway and is often accompanied by loud snoring and violently gasping for air when asleep)
central sleep apnea (breathing temporarily stops because of a neuronal malfunction)
mixed sleep apnea (a combination of OSA and central apnea)
rapid eye movement behavior disorder or RBD (acting out violent or dramatic dreams during REM sleeping)
restless legs syndrome or RLS (an irresistible urge to continually move your legs in bed)
periodic limb movement disorder or PLMD (involves the sudden and involuntary movement of arms and/or legs)
sleep paralysis (involves temporary paralysis of the body)
sleepwalking (can include a range of activities that are normally associated with being awake, such walking or eating, while being unconscious)
deep sleep disorder (difficulty in properly cycling in and out of REM sleep)
bruxism: (involuntarily grinding or clenching of the teeth while sleeping)
delayed sleep phase syndrome or DSPS (an inability to awaken and fall asleep at socially acceptable times but no problem with sleep maintenance)
advanced sleep phase syndrome (also called ASPS)
non-24-hour sleep-wake syndrome (also called Non-24)
hypopnea syndrome (includes abnormally shallow breathing or slow respiratory rate while sleeping)
narcolepsy (involves falling asleep spontaneously and unwillingly, often at inappropriate times)
night terror (abrupt awakening with behaviors that are consistent with terror)
parasomnia (an arousal and sleep transition disorder)
jet lag

In addition to these sleep disorder conditions, there are a number of different lifestyle, environmental and physiological factors that can also affect sleep quality. Examples include: back and neck pain, sciatica, anxiety and an inability to 'switch off', various types of chronic pain, environmental noise and light, drugs, incontinence, endocrine or hormonal imbalances and various biological disorders.

A vitally important and often overlooked area of focus in sleep disorder treatment is diet. The foods and drinks you consume each day can significantly contribute to sleep quality and snoring problems. Snorers, for example, should avoid all foods and drinks that can clog or irritate their sinuses (such as milk) as well as all foods and drinks that will cause a relaxation of the respiratory structures at the back of their throat (such as alcohol).

Dr. Rick Donald, an Australian doctor specializing in nutritional medicine, has developed a clinically proven and comprehensive stop snoring program entitled Essential Stop Snoring Secrets, www.stopmysnoringnow.com, that directly addresses this issue of snoring, lifestyle influences and dietary intake. His program offers valuable and easy-to-implement tips that will help to reduce or even eliminate your snoring and sleeping problems as well as improving your overall health and wellness. This program is available at www.stopmysnoringnow.com.