KITLIVING
LIVING
SIMPLE STEPS
Sleep Phones
Made with a soft fleece band incorporating
slim speakers, these were developed
by Dr Lai, a family doctor in the US who
wanted to help her patients fall asleep
naturally without resorting to sleeping pills.
You pull the band into place over your
ears, plug the lead into your MP3 player,
ipod or music system and then drift off
to the sound of your favourite meditative
sounds. The soft band holds the speakers
in place throughout the night. They muffle
external noise - street noise, aircraft,
snoring partners and help you drift off.
www.relax-uk.com
Obstructive sleep apnea is associated
with nerve damage in people with Type 2
diabetes, according to a study by Dr. Abd
Tahrani, a clinical lecturer in endocrinology
and diabetes at the University of
Birmingham.
The severity of diabetic peripheral
neuropathy is linked with the extent of
sleep apnea and the degree of low blood
oxygen levels that occur while patients
sleep, the researchers found.
People with obstructive sleep apnea
subconsciously awaken many times
a night -- even dozens of times an
hour -- because their airways close,
disrupting their breathing. Those with
diabetic peripheral neuropathy may have
numbness or tingling in their extremities,
or damage to their major organs. The
study of 234 adults with Type 2 diabetes
found that sleep apnea was independently
associated with diabetic peripheral
Some possible sleep solutions, should you need them
SLEEP APNEA Viridian L-tryptophan
Serotonin is an important initiator of
sleep. It is made from an amino acid
called tryptophan. Taking tryptophan will
raise serotonin levels and promote sleep.
Tryptophan tablets may be effective
for sleep-onset insomnia. Evidence
suggests that low serotonin levels are a
common consequence of modern living.
Viridian uses laevorotatory tryptophan
(L-tryptophan) which meets the purity
criteria laid out in European Pharmacopeia
(EP). Viridian Nutrition's L-tryptophan is
available from independent health stores .
www.viridian-nutrition.com
Sleep Know
Doctors in the UK now say that as many
as 1 in 3 patients that come through their
door complain of feeling tired all the time
- we are a zombie nation! Developed with
leading sleep research scientists in the
US and UK sleepknow.com provides the
most comprehensive assessment and
training programme available on the net.
www.sleepknow.com
neuropathy even after the researchers
accounted for a number of other possible
factors, including obesity, ethnicity,
gender, age at diabetes diagnosis, and
the length of time a person has had
diabetes.
The findings were published online
ahead of print in the American Journal of
Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.
While the study uncovered an association
between obstructive sleep apnea and
peripheral neuropathy in diabetic patients,
it did not prove a cause-and-effect
relationship. Further research is needed to
determine the role of sleep apnea and low
blood oxygen levels in the development
and progression of nerve damage in
patients with Type 2 diabetes.
Continuous positive airway pressure
treatment, or CPAP, keeps obstructive
sleep apnea patients' airways open while
they sleep.