celiac disease and sleep disorder

sleep disorders

The publication of a recently conducted National Sleep Foundation polls reveals that:

• 3 out of 4 of those questioned reported that they suffer from frequent sleep problems.



• Only half of those questioned reported that they usually slept reasonably well.



• A quarter of those questioned reported that sleeping difficulties affected their daily lives.

The poll also revealed that:

• Just under two thirds of motorists questioned reported driving while drowsy in the previous year. (4 % reported that they had had an accident or near-accident because of tiredness or actually falling asleep while driving.)



• People referenced sleep-related issues as the commonest reason for being late for work. Almost two thirds of working adults reported missing work, events/activities or making mistakes at work through sleep-related issues in the previous 3 months.



• Three quarters of people polled reported a sleep problem with their partner - with snoring being the commonest. Partnered adults, suffer doubly disruptive sleep difficulties, as one partner's sleep problem could cause the other to lose, on average, up to an hour of sleep each night.



• A quarter of people polled with partners report troubles in their sexual relationship because of tiredness. They enjoy sex less often or lose interest in sex as a result of tiredness. Many couples sleep separately because of a sleep problem.

A significant number of us suffer from the odd sleepless night without any consequences. When, however, the odd night from time to time turns into a pattern of several nights in a row, you face a sleeping problem.

Narcolepsy affects an estimated 250,000 individuals in the United States. People with narcolepsy get frequent "sleep attacks" during the day, even if they get a normal amount of night-time sleep. These "sleep attacks" can last anywhere from just a few seconds to over half an hour.

People with narcolepsy may also experience cataplexy (the loss of muscle control in emotional situations), hallucinations, temporary paralysis when they wake up, and disrupted night-time sleep. These symptoms are features of REM (rapid eye movement) sleep which appear during waking, indicating that narcolepsy is a disorder of sleep regulation.

Narcolepsy symptoms ordinarily appear during adolescence, although it often takes years to get a correct diagnosis.

The disorder (or at least a predisposition for it) is usually hereditary, but it is sometimes linked to brain damage from a head injury or to neurological disease.

Having been diagnosed, antidepressants, stimulatns, or other drugs can help to control the symptoms and prevent the embarrassing and dangerous effects of falling asleep at inappropriate times. Naps at certain times of the day may also reduce the excessive sleepiness during the day.

Restless leg syndrome (RLS), a familial disorder creating unpleasant tingling, crawling, or prickling sensations in the feet and legs and a desire to move them for relief, is emerging as one of the more common sleep disorders, particularly in older people.

Affecting as many as 12 million adults in the USA, restless leg syndrome leads to constant leg movement during the day and to sleeplessness at night.

Severe RLS is most frequently seen in elderly people, though symptoms may develop at any age. In some cases, it may be associated with other conditions such as diabetes, pregancy, or anemia.

It is considered that over 35 million Americans have a case of chronic insomnia (a difficulty in sleeping each night or most nights for at least, or in excess of, six months), with an additional 20 to 30 million adults suffering shorter-term insomnia (a difficulty in sleeping well for between a month and six months). Further, many individuals suffer from insomnia over shorter periods (less than 4 weeks) and this is commonly known as transient insomnia.

Transient insomnia is usually brought on by excitement (a child anticipating his birthday) or by stress (worry about making a speech). It also often results from air travel (jet lag) and can be seen in people who take exercise late in the day, shortly before going to bed. It is also often associated with illness (colds/flu) and with various over-the-counter medications (for example, some medicines bought for asthma or a cold).

Women and men of all ages suffer from insomnia, but it is more frequently seen in women and in the elderly, particularly after the menopause.

Insomnia can be separated into three categories:

• "Initial" insomnia: where you experience difficulty in falling asleep, typically taking 30 minutes or longer to fall asleep.



• "Middle" insomnia: where, after falling asleep, you have problems maintaining a state of sleep and usually remain awake into the early morning hours.



• "Late" or "Terminal" insomnia: where you wake early in the morning after less than 6 hours of sleep.

Insomnia can often be simply the symptom of an underlying medical conditions which might well require your doctor's advice and medical care. Here it will be a matter of treating the underlying medical problem, rather than the insomnia.

If, however, your lack of sleep results from a pattern of not sleeping, or your body and brain find it difficult to settle into a state of relaxation necessary for sleep, then there are several different choices for achieving healthy sleep without having to resort to prescription drugs.

Put simply, jet lag is an extremely common sleep disorder endured by millions of travelers daily. It affects both those traveling on business and for pleasure and, in a recent survey of international business travelers, 74% of those questioned said that they often suffered from jet lag.

Jet lag affects individuals of all ages and, though it varies widely from one person to another, it tends to increase in severity the older you are.

What is more, if you already have sleeping difficulties, you could find that jet lag is more of a problem.

Jet lag also increases as you cross more and more time zones. If the difference in time between your point of departure and your destination is merely an hour or two, then you're unlikely to experience jet lag at all. However, if the time difference is three hours or more then jet lag will start to appear and its effects will become increasingly pronounced the larger the time difference.

Finally, jet lag symptoms do not always appear immediately and, for some people, it could well be a couple of days before it hits.

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