Health & Fitness Blog

Getting enough sleep is one of the most important aspects of healthy living that most adults, and many adolescents, often ignore. Even people who exercise regularly, do not smoke and avoid drinking excessive alcohol often only get a fraction of the sleep their bodies really need to thrive. Sleep is one luxury many older adults, as well as young adults simply don’t spend enough time doing. It is estimated that nearly 60 million Americans suffer from some sort of sleep condition.

Sleep problems are not confined to one small segment of the population. All over the globe sleep problems are on the rise do to increased anxiety levels associated with modern life, increased caffeine consumption and a continued reliance on technology which goes against our natural sleep cycle. Here are some of the more common sleep conditions seen in many people today:

Sleep Apnea: This sleep malady causes a person to stop breathing momentarily while the person is sleeping. Sleep apnea can be categorized as obstructive, which means soft tissues in the back of the throat collapse slightly while a person is sleeping, momentarily blocking the airway and interrupting sleep. Central sleep apnea occurs when a person’s brain actually “forgets” to tell the lungs to continue breathing during sleep. Snoring is a common symptom of sleep apnea. Both types of apnea disturb sleep patterns and though they may not entirely wake a person up, they do disrupt the deep level a sleep the human body craves.

Bed Wetting: Adult bed wetting affects 1-2% of the entire 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 eliminate urinate during the night time sleep period. This may cause sufferers to fear going to sleep, increase anxiety about sleeping and ultimately disrupt relationships which can sometimes make the condition worse.

RLS (Restless Leg Syndrome): This sleep condition causes a person to feel a creeping, tingling 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. RLS will often disrupt sleep and can be more than just bothersome if they occur every night. Some doctors believe that Restless Leg Syndrom may also be related to night time calf cramps.

You may want to speak with your primary care physician if you have to deal with any of these conditions yourself. Getting the correct amount of sleep is critically important to your overall health and can dramatically improve your quality of living. All of these sleep conditions can be treated and some are preventable.

A lack of sleep can negatively impact your overall well-being. Visit our site to learn more about some possible causes of leg cramps and the remedies available to you.