Here are highlights from the September issue of Mayo Clinic Health Letter. You may cite this publication as often as you wish. Reprinting is allowed for a fee. Mayo Clinic Health Letter attribution is required. Include the following subscription information as your editorial policies permit:
Ways to Quiet Ordinary Snoring
Ordinary, loud snoring doesn't seem to be harmful, according to the September issue of Mayo Clinic Health Letter. But snorers still may want to seek treatment to stop snoring, reduce embarrassment and improve sleep for themselves and their bed partner.
Snoring is caused by relaxed and sagging tissues. As sleep deepens, the tongue relaxes, as do the soft tissues of the throat and the roof of the mouth (soft palate). The tissues can sag into the airway, causing it to narrow. As air is inhaled or exhaled through the narrowed opening, the relaxed tissues of the soft palate vibrate. The result is snoring. Though most snoring is harmless, snorers should consult a doctor to rule out sleep apnea, a serious health concern where breathing stops during sleep.
For ordinary snoring, a doctor will likely discuss conservative treatment options first. Assistive devices or, as a last resort, surgery, can help reduce snoring. Mayo Clinic Health Letter covers these treatment approaches:
Lose weight: Extra bulk narrows airways, contributing to snoring.
Avoid alcohol: Alcohol consumption can cause excessive muscle relaxation. Avoiding alcohol for at least four hours before bedtime may help.
Relieve nasal obstruction: Adhesive nasal strips (Breathe Right, others) or corticosteroid nasal sprays can help reduce nasal obstruction that can contribute to snoring.
Change sleep positions: In back sleepers, the tongue can sag and narrow the airway during sleep. A doctor can suggest techniques to learn to sleep comfortably in other positions.
Stop smoking: Smoking is associated with an increased risk of snoring. People who stop have a lower rate of snoring.
Try assistive devices: The most effective treatment for snoring is a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machine. It delivers pressurized air through a mask, keeping the upper airway open during sleep. Some people have difficulty wearing a mask at night. An oral appliance from a specially trained dentist or orthodontist can help keep the throat open, too, and may be less obtrusive than a CPAP machine.
Consider surgery: Several surgical procedures can help reduce snoring, either by cutting away excess mouth and throat tissue or by stiffening tissues of the soft palate to prevent vibration and sagging. Surgery is considered a last resort because it can cause side effects and complications. Typically, there's only a 50 percent chance that snoring will improve over the long term.
Let's Not Repeat That Pain: Tips to Reduce Risk of Kidney Stones
Passing kidney stones can be an extremely painful process that no one wants to repeat. But patients who have experienced kidney stones have a 50 percent chance of recurrence within 10 years. The September issue of Mayo Clinic Health Letter covers how kidney stones are formed, treatment options and ways to reduce the risk of a repeat.
Kidney stones are made up of crystal-forming minerals in the urine. Normal urine contains substances that inhibit crystal formation. However, if urine is too concentrated or if the crystal-preventing compounds aren't working properly, crystals may gradually accumulate and grow to form one or more kidney stones.
Most kidney stones pass naturally through the ureters (tubes that connect the kidney to the bladder), through the bladder and then out in the urine. Passing a kidney stone may take hours or weeks. Most often, the process takes seven to 14 days. Small stones may not be a big bother. Larger ones can cause extreme pain, typically on the side and the back, just below the rib cage and radiating to the lower abdomen and groin. There are a variety of treatment options, from pain management to surgical removal of the stone.
Once the stone has passed, the focus switches to prevention. Prevention strategies depend somewhat on the composition of kidney stones. About 70 percent are formed primarily of calcium oxalate. Others are formed mainly from calcium phosphate, uric acid or struvite stones. Recommendations for prevention of kidney stones in most people may include:
Drink enough fluid: Drinking at least 12 cups of fluid -- preferably water -- a day is the most basic way to prevent kidney stones. The fluid dilutes the urine and decreases the risk of crystal formation.
Limit meat intake: Consuming more than 6 to 8 ounces of meat daily can increase calcium and uric acid in the urine, increasing the acidity of urine and reducing the chemicals that inhibit crystal formation.
Get adequate calcium: Meeting daily calcium intake recommendations based on age reduces the risk of kidney stone development, probably because calcium binds to oxalate in the gut, reducing oxalate levels in the urine.
Avoid excess vitamin D: Often consumed with calcium to help absorption, vitamin D may raise the risk of developing calcium-based stones. Vitamin D has many health benefits, but for those at risk of kidney stones, limiting vitamin D consumption to age-specific recommended daily limits may be advised.