Obesity In Kids Linked To Sleep Deprivation

Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome, or OSAS, is a very serious disorder that can lead to heart problems, an increased risk of a stroke and more. Only a physician can properly diagnose obstructive sleep apnea, which occurs when an individual’s air passage becomes blocked and breathing stops completely on multiple occasions throughout the night.

According to Dr. Julie Lumeng of the University of Michigan, kids need at least 9 hours and 45 minutes of sleep everyday. The lesser they sleep, the higher the risk of obesity in sixth grade, regardless of the child’s weight during third grade, said Lumeng who led the research.

This report will surely give a lot of parents additional reason to enforce early bedtime rules, restrict caffeine consumption as well as limit, if not totally prohibit, TV viewing in the bedroom. Eve Van Cauter, endocrinologist of the University of Chicago, may not be involved in the new study but according to her, lack of sleep plays havoc on two hormones, the ghrelin, which is responsible for promoting hunger, and the peptin, the one that signals fullness.

There are a number of ways that obstructive sleep apnea can be treated. Often, something as simple as changing your sleeping position may help to curb the problem. For instance, individuals who sleep on their back are more susceptible to the tissues and muscles in their throat relaxing and creating problems breathing.

The people suffering from this disorder are not conscious during NS-RED episodes. That is why night eating disorder is always related to sleepwalking. Being asleep, they do not know that they eat and cannot recall any incident of eating the night before. If at all, they can only remember in fragments. The NS-RED episode more or less occurs somewhere in a state between sleep and wakefulness.

Ridding your home of allergens, such as cigarette smoke, pet hair and dust may help you to breathe easier through the night. The help of air filtration devices may also be beneficial.

If these remedies do not provide results for your obstructive sleep apnea, consider the possible use of a Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) machine.

Averagely, the third-graders got about 9 hours sleep, but some slept as little as seven hours and others as much as 12 hours. About 12 percent of the children who slept 10 to 12 hours a day were obese by sixth grade. Moreover, about 22 percent were obese in sixth grade of those who slept less than nine hours a day.

In addition, other risk factors for obesity such as the children’s body mass index in third grade were taken into account, and still found the connection between less sleep in third grade and obesity in sixth grade.

This article is intended for informational purposes only. It should not be used as, or in place of, professional medical advice. Before beginning any treatment for snoring, please consult a doctor for a proper diagnosis and remedy.

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