Zosimo T. Literatus, R.M.T.
Breakthroughs

"Forgetting” to breathe may indeed be a cause of death for many condition, as a recent clinical study appears to tell.

The chronic condition has been called “sleep-disordered breathing” (SDB), wherein people experience brief interruptions (10 seconds or so) of breathing during sleep.

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These interruptions so lower the level of oxygen in the blood that they frequently arouse people from deep sleep as they struggle to breathe.

Symptoms of SDB include loud snoring and daytime sleepiness.

So if you find a co-worker sleeping on the job, chances are the person has SDB. Looking at the person more compassionately may be needed, as life may not be that long (8.2 years for this study) at least for those with SDB.

The commonest groups of people who have SDB are the middle-aged, the elderly, and overweight, particularly in the neck area (excess fat around the neck increases airway collapse).

About one in 10 women and one in four men have this condition.

Treatments are usually lifestyle changes, such as losing weight and smoking cessation, the study noted.

Thirteen scientists conducted the study, involving inter-school cooperation between nine universities in the United States, in such states as Maryland, Arizona, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, New York, Ohio, District of Columbia, and California.

Lead researcher Naresh Punjabi of Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore, Maryland) reported in the Aug. 18 issue of PLoS Medicine that of the 6,441 men and women participants, less than one percent died due to mild SDB cases (five to 15 events per hour).

More than one percent died for both moderate SDB (1.17 percent with 15-30 events) and severe SDB (1.46 percent with more than 30 events).

The cause could be any condition, and it is highly risky among men between the ages 40 and 70 years old.

“Walking is the single easiest way for people to increase their physical activity and sustain it over the long term.

“Walking, which is ‘self-paced,’ is the most frequently reported physical activity and most preferred for its low-impact with little risk of injury,” Pal concluded.

These findings remind us on very important things in life that we tend to take for granted. Robert Louise Stevenson has a list: “The best things in life are nearest: Breath in your nostrils, light in your eyes, flowers at your feet, duties at your hand, the path of right just before you. Then do not grasp at the stars, but do life’s plain, common work as it comes, certain that daily duties and daily bread are the sweetest things in life.” (E-mail: zim_breakthroughs@yahoo.com; blog: http://breakthroughs.today.blogspot.com)