Dental tip of the day!

"Probably the most important aspect of tooth brushing is -----How long you brush your teeth. Recent published research indicates that brushing 1 1/2 to 2 minutes is significantly more effective at removing plaque than brushing 30 seconds to 1 minute. This is regardless of whether you use a manual toothbrush or an electric - my favorite. Sometimes 2 minutes seems like a long time- try humming your favorite song or listen to the radio while you brush- Time will fly- stay tuned for the next tip."

Treating My Own Sleep Apnea

I have moderate sleep apnea. It started with snoring and my wife elbowing me several times a night to wake me up. She was not a happy camper although it didn't bother me a bit. (or so I thought). Then I started a series of courses about treating sleep apnea and I learned that snoring generally progresses to sleep hypopnea and eventually to sleep apnea. Hypopnea is a partial obstuction to the airway decreasing the amount of oxygen getting to your lungs and brain. Apnea is a complete blockage of the airway that lasts more than 10 seconds. I learned that over 25% of Americans have sleep apnea- a breathing disorder in which cessation of breathing for over 10 seconds (sometimes for as long as 1 minute ) occurs between 5 and 30 or more times per hour!!. Just for fun- hold your breath for 30 seconds. How does that feel? Imagine doing that 30 times an hour!! Do you think you might feel tired during the day? Might you fall asleep while driving? Might your blood pressure increase?

I wasn't falling asleep during driving but I was tired at the end of the day, I would almost doze off at red lights driving home, and I was waking up several times a night with involuntary leg kicks.-- I thought it was from not stretching enough after exercising. I was wrong.

So I took an "at home sleep test" which measures the number of sleep apnea episodes per hour, snoring intensity, etc. Lo and behold I was diagnosed with mild to moderate sleep apnea. One of the accepted treatments for mild to moderate sleep apnea is an oral appliance similar to an upper and lower bite guard called a somnomed appliance. I made one for myself and the results were amazing. My leg kicking quit, my snoring stopped completely (making my wife very happy) and I was much more wide awake in the afternoon. After a few adjustments to the appliance, if found it to be very comfortable. In the next few weeks I will retake the sleep test to see if the appliance is helping the sleep apnea episodes as well. Stay tuned for more info