Does your child snore? It could be a harmless (and cute) quirk, or it could be a sign of a dangerous illness.

Sleep apnea can cause behavioral, metabolic and respiratory problems for kids. Up to 3% of kids suffer from this illness. In the past it’s been hard to diagnose.

Researchers at the University of Chicago are looking to change that with a new urine test that will diagnose the disorder. Sleep researchers at the University looked at children’s urine the morning after a sleep study and found that children suffering from sleep apnea had different concentrations of proteins in their urine than those who did not snore dangerously.

Based on this, they believe they can develop a simple color-based urine test, similar to a pregnancy test. The test could be used by doctors or parents to screen children for sleep apnea.

Currently, diagnoses is done by keeping kids overnight in a sleep clinic. There are long waitlists for the service, and it is very expensive.

The presence of different proteins in the children’s urine also reveals new information about the disease. It suggests that kid’s kidneys and renal functions are being affected by the snoring disorder.

Obese children are at higher risk for sleep apnea, as are those with larger tonsils.

Photo: Samiksha Kanchankar

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As a married woman, I never expected that I would spend every night sleeping alone in a king-sized bed with only my cat for company.  I don’t do this because my husband travels for business or works the overnight shift.  I sleep alone because my husband snores like a freight train.  Like a chain saw.  Like a space shuttle blasting off.

Of course I am exaggerating, but only a little.  The noise he makes when sleeping is excruciatingly loud.   When we travel and must share a room together, he’s the only one who gets any sleep.  And it is at those times that I understand how people can snap and totally lose their cool.  I’ve never assaulted him, but that is due to my amazing powers self-control.  Not everyone possesses such control.  Continue reading »

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For most of us, the first weeks or months after a new baby are a haze of sleeplessness. But for some mothers, it never quite goes away. Instead, we develop postpartum insomnia, staring at the ceiling while our babies snooze blissfully away.

And that, I can tell you as someone who’s contending with it right now, pretty much sucks. I’ve gone from being someone who sleeps like the dead for as many hours as I can cram in to someone who usually wakes at least once or twice in the night. And then the real fun starts — I worry about money, about the economy, about rising crime and plummeting property values in my neighborhood, about swine flu, car accidents or many other ills which could befall my kids. And just as I am starting to think I might be able to go back to sleep, my husband commences snoring, or the kitten decides it’s playtime, or one or both of my kids needs some attention.

As one of the insomniacs profiled in the story says, “your brain goes to these really dark, twisted places, which, in the cold light of day, seem like nothing.”

I’d be willing to bet that lots of parents are experiencing this right now. We’re living in very anxious times, and the kind of small interruptions you’d normally be able to roll right over and ignore can snowball into big anxious worries at night. The story has a few suggestions: first, do what you can to break the cycle by taking medication, leaving the house for the night, even taking to a spare bed somewhere in the house and putting your kids and spouse on notice that you are not to be disturbed. Exhaustion can breed anxiety which breeds insomnia, so breaking the cycle by getting a few good nights of sleep can sort of hit the “reset” button.

Also, try to avoid middle of the night interruptions to prevent those scary thoughts from creeping in.Your body transitions into a pre-awakening lighter sleep at around 3 am, and being stressed and hyperalert can make your body very receptive to those waking-up signals. And finally, breathe slowly and consciously to relax and allow yourself to fall back asleep.

My trick? Naming all 50  states. It’s engaging enough to keep my mind from wandering, but boring enough that eventually I just drift off.

Anybody else out there? And do you have any tricks to beat it? Share!

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