Researchers is telling you, If you are a heavy snorer, buying a few extra pillows may
save your life. Your nocturnal drone is already likely to irritate your
other half, but researchers have warned that heavy snorers are more at risk
from sudden de'ath from heart problems - particularly if they sleep on their
back.
New tests found that sleeping flat can be hazardous for
people with sleep apnoea - which causes snoring and dangerous pauses in
breathing at night.
But using pillows to raise the chest to a 45 degree angle
while sleeping cuts the heart risk, say researchers.
At least half a million Britons have sleep apnoea, which is
most often found in middle-aged, overweight men, and many also suffer from
heart failure.
The sleep disorder is already linked with obesity, heart
disease, diabetes and cancer.
Doctors advise sufferers to get treated for the disorder, as
it may reduce the risk of developing related illnesses by maintaining oxygen
levels at night.
According to research presented at the European Society of
Cardiology Congress in London yesterday, people with sleep apnoea are at
greater risk of fatal heart rhythm abnormalities including sudden cardiac dea'th
But raising the chest and head 45 degrees from the
horizontal at night markedly reduces the chance of severe problems.
Researchers carried out a series of tests in 30 patients
with heart failure and sleep apnoea who had their heart and sleeping patterns
monitored in a laboratory.
The scientists, from Ege University in Izmir, Turkey, found
that sleeping in a semi recumbent position - at a 45-degree angle on the back -
lessens the chances of developing cardiac arrhythmias when compared to sleeping
flat on the back.
Heart rhythm irregularities are believed to trigger sudden cardiac
death in these patients, aggravated by the underlying lack of oxygen in the
bloodstream caused by the sleep disorder.
Sleep apnoea causes the muscles in the airway to collapse
during sleep, which cuts off breathing for at least ten seconds before brain
signals cause contraction of the muscles which re-open the airway and restore
oxygen supplies
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