DIET SCIENCE

A Pound of Muscle Vs. A Pound of Fat: The Truth about Weight Loss

Most people have been around long enough to hear the concept that muscle weighs more than fat. Many people work out frequently as a means to lose weight, and they get frustrated by the fact the scale doesn't go down, or the weight doesn't drop fast enough. Sometimes, people work out every single day and find out that they are can't lose the weight, or even gain a little weight, and they don't understand why.

In the gym, you'll hear the phrase muscle weighs more than fat frequently, and many people don't fully grasp the underlying concept that this is trying to get across. The most important difference between muscle and fat as it pertains to weight loss is that muscle fits more mass into a smaller volume than fat. One pound of fat takes up around 18% more volume than a pound of muscle.

Losing Body Fat Doesn't Necessarily Mean Losing Weight

This is one of the reasons why people that have trouble losing weight while exercising frequently get frustrated, but it doesn't have to be that way. Because exercise builds muscle mass, especially anaerobic exercise, the combination of exercise and healthy eating can lead to a significant loss of body fat without majorly affecting the overall mass of the individual. After a couple of months of dieting and working out, you may only lose ten pounds or so, but the changes in body composition are much more apparent than the minor loss in weight (not to say that ten pounds isn't an accomplishment in and of itself!

Body Mass Index is the basic rule of thumb when it comes to fitness by age and weight, but many people misunderstand the concept and consider it the be-all-end-all when it comes to gauging health. Because muscle weighs more than fat, the stronger that you are and the more muscle mass that you have, the less accurate that the BMI will be at assessing your health based upon your weight. BMI is very much based on the average specimen, and you want to be more than simply average, don't you?

When you stick to a diet and fitness regimen, its certainly important to pay attention to the number on the scale, but understand that it is only one factor in regard to your physical transformation, and other factors such as muscle mass, muscle tone, and body fat percentage are more revealing.

The following image is a cross section of your muscle tissue. Notice how densely packed the tissue is? This is why Muscle tissue carries so much mass in so little volume:

Now look at this cross section of an adipose fat cell. Fat cells take up a lot more space, and are less compact, as you can see:

Fat vs. Muscle: A Visual Representation

The next photo shows five pounds of fat compared directly with five pounds of muscle. It's incredibly clear that muscle takes up a whole lot less space than fat. Even when counting for the compression underneath the skin, fat is going to take up much more space than muscle. Also, fat contributes to the rounding and lumpiness of men and women with too much body fat, because body fat is more amorphous than muscle, which causes the body to take on a more unappealing shape.

It's also important to know that you can't see all body fat. The body also builds fat internally, and your organs are separated by fat tissue. In addition to this, the body isn't designed to carry body fat efficiently. Our ancestors rarely had the opportunity to build a lot of fat, simply due to their hunter-gatherer lifestyle and the fits of feast and famine that they would endure. Body fat was an evolutionary benefit because it could keep people alive longer when times were lean.

Today, however, we in the United States live in a period of veritable, undeniable plenty that our ancestors never had the chance to experience, and thus, never adapted to. This is why being overweight or obese is such a health hazard. On the other hand, as a whole, we have historically been far more fit in the past than we are now. In order to catch our prey and fend off predators and enemies, we naturally stayed strong and fit. Our early ancestors also tended to be much more nomadic, which means that they were used to walking long distances every day. Today, most people can make it through the day with very little physical activity, which causes us to be much weaker and less fit than our ancestors unless we actually take the time to work out, exercise, and build our muscles.

Benefits of Working Out and Building Muscle Mass

Our bodies are designed to function optimally when we build muscle mass and tone. The following are some benefits that both men and women can experience by working out:

Improved Metabolism

A Stronger, Sturdier, Physical Frame, More Resistant to Injury

A More Fit and Attractive Physique

Improved Psychological Health

Enhanced Sense of Well-Being

More Energy

Increased Mobility and Balance

Improves Athletic Performance

Enhanced Healing Due to Improved Metabolic Profile

Healthier Cholesterol and Insulin Levels

And these are just the obvious benefits!

Out of all these benefits, the two that are perhaps most important are your metabolism and your Insulin Sensitivity. Let's talk about those a bit more in-depth.

Enhanced Metabolism

Every pound of body fat that you have is the equivalent of 3,500 calories of stored energy. Now, there are two ways to get rid of this body fat. You can exercise and burn through those 3,500 calories, or you can eat a more conscientious diet, and reduce your calories by 3,500 over a period of time, such as a week. Of course, you can combine these two methods as well.

There are three ways that you get rid of stored fat. For example, the respiration process uses up about 86% of the body fat calories that you expend each day. You get rid of around 14% of your fat calories through the acts of urination and sweating.

Increasing your activity level through weight training and resistance training is a highly effective way to increase the rate at which your body burns calories. Although fat carries more volume than muscle, it doesn't burn energy as quickly. This means that pound for pound, the more muscle that you have, the faster your body will burn calories than it will per pound of fat.

How Many Calories Does Muscle Burn vs. Body Fat?

Specifically, a pound of muscle mass will burn around six calories per day, whereas a pound of body fat will only burn around two calories per day.

Of course, its important to remember that the benefits of building muscle mass are far greater than just your weight and your ability to burn calories. Some health specialists, especially those on television, like to emphasize the ability of muscle mass to incinerate calories, but this is a bit of an overstatement.

In the End, The Calories Your Muscles Burn at Rest Are Only a Piece of the Weight Loss Puzzle

On the other hand, most responsible fitness specialists think that it is important that their clients understand that muscle is better than fat at burning ambient calories, but these benefits have their limits, and are often overstated by many times. No one should be building muscle mass just to lose weight, because there is a chance you'll be disappointed, especially if you don't combine you anaerobic exercise with cardiovascular exercise and a healthy and nutritious diet.

In fact, if you just engage in anaerobic exercise, this may influence you to eat more and actually gain body fat if you don't make further efforts to lose weight. This is why you see so many weight lifters at the gym that are obviously strong, but with a layer of fat over their huge muscles.

In the end, losing weight and being healthy is a concerted effort, and it is true that your ambient metabolism is important, but it's only one part of the process. Many people put too much stock in their muscles' ability to burn body fat, which causes them to be lazy or inefficient in following other aspects of a good and healthy lifestyle. A lot of folks also use their workouts as an excuse to overindulge. The brain plays tricks on the mind in order to fulfill its urges, which can be amplified by your increased metabolism.

Don't Overwork Yourself to Lose Weight

Of course, it's no good to spend too much time obsessing over your fitness and nutrition regimen as well. Many people, in an effort to get healthy and lose weight, spend hours at the gym each day, exhausting themselves and overworking their bodies. In an effort to lose weight, they combine this exercise with severely restrictive diets which deny them the necessary calories and nutrients they need to get through the day. In the end, this approach and those like it are incredibly unhealthy, because they actually damage their bodies through their actions. Even worse, these people often lose their gains in the end when they lapse from their hardcore training and dieting, or they succumb to an injury and give up on their health regimen. They often gain all the weight back and more.

The end-goal of a healthy fitness regimen is to provide the body thorough anaerobic and aerobic stimulation without going overboard, and combining that exercise with a thoughtful and healthy diet. It's all about being smart about how you do things.

When it comes to health, strong basal metabolism is an important aspect, but controlling insulin and glucose levels is even more important for maintaining health, and it doesn't involve hours upon hours slaving away in the gym, but a conscientious exercise and diet regimen that promotes optimal cardiovascular health and hormone balance.

Maintaining healthy muscle mass and combining it with a good diet keeps hormone levels optimally balanced, creating homeostasis in which Human Growth Hormone, Testosterone (for both sexes), and Insulin Levels remain in optimal range. When Glucose Sensitivity gets out of whack, this rewires the body, causing it to build body fat more quickly and inhibit weight loss as well as the ability to maintain a health body composition.

How Does Exercise Regulate Glucose Metabolism, Improving Body Composition and Health?

In an article published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism in 2011, researchers presented data which showed that insulin sensitivity is largely correlated with a patient's muscle mass. In fact, a ten percent increase in lean muscle mass led to an average eleven percent reduction in insulin resistance.

More Muscle Mass = Less Risk of Diabetes

This is the main reason that people with more muscle mass have a lower incidence of diabetes. When individuals have optimal insulin sensitivity, this means that the body responds swiftly to the influence of glucose in the body. Patients with poor glucose sensitivity are more prone to directly convert glucose in the blood stream into fat rather than converting it into immediately usable energy.

If the body is creating energy directly from blood sugar, this helps the body burn fat more effectively, and also improves overall, general hormone balance. By taking responsible steps in one's diet and lifestyle, it is possible to rewire the body by encouraging enhanced insulin sensitivity, keeping the body lean, strong, and full of energy.

Of course, this reiterates the fact that the scale doesn't really matter. Improving body composition is a process, and improving hormone balance takes time. By taking fitness and nutrition seriously and responsibly, you put your faith in the science behind your body, and it benefits you most to not think of numbers on the scale as goals, and you really don't have to think about them at all.

Don't Get Hypnotized by the Scale

People that focus too much on the scale get frustrated, because they often don't feel that the effort they've put in at the gym and at the dinner table is leading to the appropriate results. Becoming hypnotized by the scale blinds them to the physical changes occurring within the body and numbs them to the psychological and metabolic benefits that they are likely experiencing. This is actually one of the primary reasons why people lapse from their regimen, but it doesn't have to be that way!

Anyone that has ever made the effort to try to lose weight likely understands this plight, or even knows what it feels like to just give in and give up. It's easy to think of exercise and eating healthy as a simple give and take, where the effort you put in directly correlates with weight lost, but this is simply not the case. Every time you step on the scale, you're excited to see how much weight you've lost, but all too frequently, you've lost no weight, or even gained a bit, and with all that effort!

There's nothing wrong with using the scale as a source of motivation, but don't let yourself get caught up in numbers and strict goals. Allow your fitness regimen to be a process, and give in to that process. If you feel that the scale is a source or frustration for you, put the scale away for a week, or even two weeks, and just keep following your game plan. Come back a week or two later, look at yourself in the mirror and see if you notice any change. Take in your physique and recognize the benefits, then step on the scale. If you take time off from the scale, it makes it more likely that you will either see a noticeable change in your weight, a change in your shape, or both!

Dieting is a Lifestyle

That number on the scale represents only a microcosm of all of the changes that are going on in your body. The scale won't tell you you have more energy. The number on the scale won't make you feel better. The number on the scale doesn't even accurately represent your body composition! Understand that all that work that you are putting in at the gym is not all for naught, if you are sticking with a good exercise and diet regimen, your body is truly going through a metamorphosis, even if the number on the scale remains the same for days or even weeks at a time! You are more than a number!

The difference in volume between a pound of fat and a pound of muscle is positively huge, and in terms of your physique, is more important than the amount of energy each pound of muscle that you burn. In addition to this, your muscles help constrain and control the way that fat distributes across your body, so it even makes the body fat you still have less noticeable!

Understanding the science behind weight loss, muscle mass, and metabolism makes it easier to withstand the effort involved in a successful exercise and nutrition regimen. In regard to physical fitness, knowledge truly is power. Don't give in to the mental shortcuts like the scale that can discourage you and prevent you from reaching your goals. Just follow your plan, focus on gradual change, and appreciate the subtle positive changes in your physical and psychological health and in a matter of months, you'll both look and feel like a new man (or woman)!

Hidden Sources of Sugar

As our knowledge of nutritional science continues to grow, it is becoming increasingly clear how devastating the excess consumption of sugar is for our health. It causes us to gain weight, it causes spikes in blood sugar, and it increases the body's resistance to insulin, just to name a few of the issues caused by our national love affair with sugar.

Now, as we become armed with this knowledge, many of us are choosing to take control of our health and our diet, to live a better life by controlling our consumption of sugar. This can be incredibly difficult, however, because we are surrounded by so many concentrated sources of sugar that we aren't even aware of!

The goal of this article is to help you control your consumption of sugar by informing you of a variety of foods which many people don't realize are loaded with sugar.

Pasta Sauces Sometimes Worse than Drinking Soda

Most of us remember when we were children, and spaghetti was a staple of the average American diet. Pasta sauce does provide the nutrient equivalent of multiple servings of vegetables, but it also contains a tremendous amount of sugar. In fact, most of these sauces contain between six and twelve grams of sugar for each serving. Each serving is only a half a cup, and most people end up having even more.

Twelve grams of sugar is like eating two chocolate chip cookies!

Based on current research, it is recommended that men have 150 calories from sugar at most, and only 100 for women. That means that most pasta sauces have way too much sugar for you to keep your consumption down to acceptable levels without diligence. White sauces are even worse than red sauces, because they contain high levels of fat in addition to calories from sugar. We recommend shopping around for pastas that are specially made for aware consumers, or to make your own sauce at home!

Granola Bars Often as Bad as Candy Bars

Many people think of granola bars as the ideal healthy snack. Unfortunately, most of the granola bars that you buy at the store are loaded with sugar and other ingredients designed to make you crave them. Many of them are even covered in chocolate or yogurt.

It's important to recognize that many of the granola bars sold at supermarkets are nothing more than candy bars given a new name to appeal to more health conscious consumers. Granola is still a fantastic snack, but we recommend buying loose granola, which often comes in cereal boxes, and snacking on it that way. You can cut your sugar consumption from your snack significantly by switching to regular granola (8-12 grams of sugar per ounce vs. 5 grams of sugar per ounce).

Yogurt Can Be a Deceiving Health Food

Like granola bars, yogurt is another food which is often advertised as a health food when it is manufactured like a desert. Among dairy products, Yogurt is among the most concentrated sources of protein and calcium per serving, but it is often heavily sweetened to appeal to the consumer while also meeting their latent desire to improve their eating habits.

An eight ounce cup of Low-Fat Yogurt can contain more than thirty grams of sugar...Fully 1/3 of the sugar a woman needs in a single day! That's like eating eight ounces of ice cream! Of course, Greek Yogurt and similar forms of yogurt aren't inundated with sugar in the same way, and there are plenty of types of yogurt on the market which are low-sugar or naturally flavored which can fulfill your desire for a high-protein snack without loading you up with unhealthy sugar. Another option is to buy plain yogurt and add your own healthy fruits to naturally sweeten your snack!

Packaged Flavored Oatmeal Much Unhealthier than Plain Oatmeal

Oatmeal is an awesome way to get a lot of fiber along with some complex carbs, but the prepackaged flavored oatmeal that you buy at the store is almost like eating a bowl of sugary cereal. One serving of instant oatmeal contains as much as fifteen grams of sugar, whereas low-sugar packages still contain five or six grams of sugar.

Oatmeal is quick enough to make on its own. Plain oatmeal takes just a couple of minutes and is way healthier than flavored oatmeal. Try adding cinnamon and chopped up banana to meet your breakfast needs more completely without resorting to processed sugar. Plain oatmeal has less than a single gram of sugar.

Be Careful with Salad Dressing

Most people think about fat when they think about salad dressing, but these products are also often a major source of sugar. Catalina, French, and sweet vinaigrettes are the worst offenders, with as much as seven grams of sugar in just two ounces of dressing.

When using dressings, think of them as a means by which to add a source of healthy fat to your meal, and don't go overboard. There are a number of awesome dressings that are low in sugar while also adding a lot to the flavor and texture profile of your salad, such as oil and vinegar.

Breakfast Cereals Often Infused with Excess Sugar

Most people are aware of the unhealthy cereal brands that are targeted to children, but many of the cereals marketed as healthy foods are also quite loaded with sugar as well. Many bran, corn, and oat cereals have ten, twenty, or even more grams of sugar per cup.

Never trust the advertising when it comes to breakfast cereals, always look at the spine of the box and check the sugar content, as well as the general nutrition content! Good breakfast cereals should be fortified and full of fiber and complex carbs.

Energy Drinks Frequently Loaded with Sugar

Energy drinks are often marketed as metabolism boosters that give you a shot in the arm when you need it most, but many rely on a heavy dose of sugar to provide the brunt of their energy. There are a number of energy drinks on the market that have as much as 25 grams of sugar in a small can.

If you are interested in the healthier ingredients contained within energy drinks, think about buying B-Complex or Vitamin C supplements from the grocery store and combine them with a nice, tall glass of water to simultaneously rehydrate you and supply you with healthy nutritional supplementation. Supplements containing Taurine or Guarine may also be an option, but do your research.

Packaged Fruits Contain Much More Sugar than Fresh Fruit

One of the biggest culprits for excess sugar is canned fruit. The so-called light syrup commonly advertised on the can isn't so light, and drastically increases the sugar content per serving. In fact, just draining the syrup from the can can decrease the sugar content by more than half.

Rather than turn to canned fruits, buy them fresh at the store, and eat them before they go bad. Also, it's important to note that frozen fruits have a higher nutrition content than even their fresh counterparts, as frozen fruits are usually frozen immediately after they are harvested, whereas fresh fruit loses some of its nutrition content during transport and delivery. Both are still quality sources of dense nutrition, however.

Cole Slaw is a Poor Alternative to Salad

It almost seems like a little salad, doesn't it? This side, which is commonly one of the healthier-sounding sides at many restaurants, is usually also loaded with sugar, as well as fat. This is true for coleslaw from fast food restaurants as well as that which is sold at supermarkets and served at most eating establishments. Generally, cole slaw contains around fifteen grams of sugar.

Before going to a restaurant, consider looking up their sides on the web in order to see if their cole slaw meets the grade. If you are a big fan of cole slaw, start making your own batches, designed to meet your personal needs.

Many Teas Loaded with Sugar

In the recent past, people consumed lots and lots of juice, without thinking about the tremendous amount of sugar that is contained in many popular fruit juices. As consumers have become more aware, many have changed to specialty teas. Unfortunately, many of these forms of tea are just as bad, or worse. For example, Sweetened tea with lemon can contain more than thirty grams of sugar per 16 ounce bottle, even more than some fruit juices, including apple juice.

Teas are a fantastic way to infuse your diet with flavonoids and other healthy ingredients, but go for unsweetened tea or lightly sweetened tea, or better yet, make your own and control the content! Also consider sweetening your tea with Stevia, a natural no-calorie sweetener that is far better for you than artificial sweeteners.

High Sugar Volume in Dried Fruit

Dried fruit is often a solid choice for an on-the-go snack, but it's important to recognize that dried fruit has a high concentration of sugar. The dehydration process actually means that there is more sugar per ounce in the product, meaning that you have to be much more conscientious, and because of the reduced water content, will perhaps not be filled up as easily. For example, half an ounce of raisins contains ten more grams of sugar than eight ounces of grapes.

Sugar Content in Ketchup

Ketchup is a heavily sweetened and processed product by the ounce, but luckily, most people don't drown their food in ketchup. A single tablespoon of ketchup contains around four grams of sugar. If you have your sugar under control, this isn't an issue, but if you are looking to reduce your sugar consumption by any means necessary, turn to other condiments such as mustard, which contains less than a quarter of the sugar contained in ketchup.

Limiting Sugar is a Constant Battle

In this world of High Fructose Corn Syrup and sugar-infusion, it can be very difficult to contain the level of sugar in one's diet. It takes a conscious effort, because everywhere in society, there are advertisers trying to sell you products that sate your desire for flavor as well as your conscience with intentionally misleading labels.

By taking your nutrition into your own hands, it is possible to overcome these societal norms and optimize your diet for a long and healthy life without giving up the wonderful tastes and flavors that make eating such a pleasure!

How Is Sleep Apnea Identified and How Is It Treated?

Because Sleep Apnea cannot be diagnosed in the context of a routine medical visit, it requires a certain protocol to be effectively diagnosed. An effective way to establish to one's physician that you may be suffering from sleep apnea is to keep a sleep diary for fourteen days leading up to your appointment. You can use this diary as evidence that your sleeping habits are being disrupted, which may prompt your physician to set you up with an appointment with a sleep specialist.

Also, be open with your doctor about your energy levels and how your sleeping issues impact your quality of life. It's also important to share your personal and family medical history in order to provide further evidence of your deficiency.

Sleep Apnea Physical

Further evidence of sleep apnea can be evaluated via physical examination. Your doctor can look into your throat, nose and mouth in order to identify the presence of tissue which may impede the ability to breath easily during the night. For example, many adult Sleep Apnea patients have a soft palate or uvula which is larger than normal and restricts airways during sleep.

If your physician considers you a potential sleep apnea sufferer, he or she will likely recommend that you visit a sleep specialist. There are a number of tests that can accurately diagnose sleep apnea, but these tests require you to have an opportunity to be monitored sleeping comfortably.

Polysomnogram for Sleep Apnea Diagnosis

The most frequently used test for sleep apnea is known as a Polysomnogram. This test uses various diagnostic devices in order to evaluate blood pressure, heart rate, eye movement, and brain activity during sleep. This test also measures other factors, including the rise and fall of your chest, snoring, and the rate at which air flows in and out of your nose, as well as oxygen levels in your blood stream.

As you can imagine, this test is fairly elaborate, so it generally requires that you visit a specifically designed sleep laboratory or sleep center. There is no pain involved with the procedure, and it's no different than a normal night's sleep, except of course, you will be fitted with a number of sensors attached to your finger, limbs, chest, face, and scalp.

These devices will help your sleep specialist provide you with an informed diagnosis with regard to your sleep apnea, which will help him or her provide you with the most effective form of treatment to meet your needs.

CPAP Sleep Apnea Treatment

The most effective method to treat Sleep Apnea is known as a CPAP, or Continuous Positive Airway Pressure device. This works exactly how it sounds. It enhances air flow through your nose and throat, widening your airway and helping you sleep more soundly through the night. The elaborate testing during your sleep study will help your physician properly calibrate the CPAP to meet the needs of your body at rest.

There are also tests which can be administered at your home to provide diagnostic data regarding your sleeping pattern. The most commonly used device is known as a Home-Based Portable Monitor. Of course, this device will not provide the same depth of results as a Polysomnogram, but it can provide valuable data at a cheaper cost. In particular, the home monitor measures the rise and fall of the chest, heart rate, air circulation, and blood-oxygen levels. Often, this test is used as a preliminary examination for patients, in order to see if they actually need a sleep study.

What Are Sleep Apnea Treatment Options

There are a number of options available to sleep apnea patients, dependent upon the severity and source of their apnea. These options include breathing devices, mouthpieces, changes in lifestyle, and surgery. Obstructive sleep apnea is generally not treated with medication

What Are the Goals of Sleep Apnea Treatment?

• Reduce Fatigue

• Stop Snoring

• Make It Easier to Breath During Sleep

Because sleep apnea is commonly associated with other conditions such as hypertension and obesity, Sleep Apnea treatment is often combined with other forms of treatment in order to relieve these other related medical conditions.

It is important to treat sleep apnea, because in doing so, you can reduce the risk of a variety of related medical conditions, especially those related to the heart and cardiovascular system, including stroke and heart attack.

The treatment that will work best for you depends both on your medical condition and your personal preferences, and your sleep specialist will help you pick the ideal treatment option to meet your needs.

For patients with mild sleep apnea, the best form of treatment may simply be a mouthpiece, combined with changes in lifestyle. On the other hand, patients that experience more severe sleep apnea will likely be most effectively treated with a CPAP or with surgery.

In some cases, your issues with daytime fatigue may come from sources other than Sleep Apnea, and if your Apnea Therapy isn't providing you the results you need, it's likely that you aren't allowing yourself adequate rest. You need seven to eight hours to become fully rested, and some patients actually need more.

If the combination of sleep and medical treatment aren't effective, you and your sleep specialist will have to explore other potential options.

Adopting Healthier Habits to Encourage Better Sleep

For patients that only have light sleep apnea, you may actually recover from your condition simply by altering your habits and lifestyle in order to improve your sleep.

• If you suffer from a stuffy nose due to allergies or other conditions, use medications or nasal sprays to improve your condition

• Make the effort to sleep on your side. Obstructive Sleep Apnea is most commonly an issue when a patient sleeps on his or her back. There are shirts and pillows that can inhibit back-sleeping and help alter your habits.

• If you are overweight, make the effort to lose the weight and reach a healthier weight. Soft tissue can inhibit airways, making it harder to breath during sleep.

• Don't take medications that cause you to become sleepy, and limit your use of alcohol, entirely if necessary. Depressants cause your airway to become more restricted because the muscles relax.

• If you are a tobacco user, stop smoking.

• For some patients, a simple device known as an oral appliance can mitigate the effects of sleep apnea. It can also be used for snorers.

In regard to mouthpieces, you can actually visit an orthodontist or dentist, that can built you a mouthpiece designed specifically for your mouth to increase airflow. This mouthpiece will open your mouth very slightly, preventing your tongue and your jaw from getting in the way of your breathing.

Breathing Devices for Sleep Apnea

For patients that have more troublesome sleep apnea, there are medical devices that promote airflow by actively circulating air, keeping the airway open. The most prescribed treatment for more severe sleep apnea is the CPAP. There are two types of CPAP. The most common device utilizes a mask which covers your nose and mouth, but some devices just introduce airflow through the nose. This product provides a slow and steady stream which delivers air to the throat. In doing so it makes it easier to breath.

It's important to recognize that snoring and sleep apnea are related but not identical health conditions. Just because you are no longer snoring doesn't mean that you no longer need your CPAP or have been cured of your condition. Sleep Apnea is chronic and moderate to severe sleep apnea will return if you suspend treatment.

Under most circumstances, a professional will visit your home in order to prepare the CPAP for use, dependent upon the recommendation of your physician. It's also important to recognize that your condition may change over time, and this might necessitate changing the settings on your CPAP periodically to improve air flow. Of course, this should only be done by your sleep doctor.

Some people experience side-effects as a result of using a CPAP. Most common side effects include headache, dry mouth, skin irritation, and stuffy or dry nasal passages. Also, if the CPAP isn't programmed correctly, it can lead to stomach discomfort and bloating.

For the most part, these side-effects can be easily treated, helping you to get the most out of your CPAP device. It's important to be open with your sleep doctor and the tech that comes to your home to make sure that your CPAP treatment is optimal.

For patients that experience issues with runny or dry nasal passages, there are ways to increase the moisture content of the air to improve response. Also, you may benefit from choosing a mask that fits your face more securely.

Most patients that use CPAP find that the device improves their sleep quality and their energy levels and are satisfied with the treatment.

Sleep Apnea Surgery

In major cases of Sleep Apnea, the patient may benefit most from surgery. The form of surgery required depends on the specific cause of Obstructive Sleep Apnea. In general, the goal of Sleep Apnea Surgery is simply to open airways more securely. This can be done by removing, stiffening, or shrinking soft tissue in the throat and mouth, and can also be accomplished by adjusting the jaws to increase airflow.

Soft tissue surgery can be done either as an outpatient procedure or at a hospital. If the goal is simply to shrink soft tissue, it may simply require an injection or other form of treatment, rather than surgery. If the goal is to increase the thickness of the tissue, the surgeon may make a small incision and place a bit or sterile, hard plastic into the tissue.

If the goal of the surgery is strictly tissue removal, this form of treatment will only be provided at a hospital, and you will require anesthesia. After treatment, there is a chance that you will experience pain of the throat for seven to fourteen days. Finally, pediatric patients may benefit from tonsil removal, which is a common and standard surgery.