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Sleep Apnea

Sleep is essential to life; it is one of several components, including food and water, which keep the living alive. However, a significant percentage of the human population has considerable difficulty reaching and maintaining Stage IV within their sleeping patterns, the stage that allows the mind and body to fall into a deep and restorative sleep, otherwise known as REM sleep(http://www.medicinenet.com/sleep_apnea/article.htm). At the core of this difficulty is a condition known as obstructive sleep apnea, a "serious, potentially life-threatening condition that is far more common than generally understood". The dictionary defines sleep as “The natural periodic suspension of consciousness during which the powers of the body are restored” (http://www.sleepdisorderchannel.com/osa/). If one is waking up on an average of 300 times per night, the chances of complete body restoration are minimal. The Greek word apnea literally means without breath. An estimated 30 million Americans stop breathing during their sleep sometimes 30-40 times per hour and often for a minute, or longer each time. Of these, about 20 million are in the early stages, and about 10 million have progressed to a level of severity that requires treatment(http://www.stanford.edu/~dement/apnea.html).
According to the National Commission on Sleep Disorders Research, about 38,000 Americans die of sleep disorder related problems each year (
http://familydoctor.org/212.xml). Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) is a potentially deadly sleep disorder, where by the uvula and soft pallet collapse on the back wall of the upper airway causing the cessation of breathing and a drop in blood pressure. The hearts need for oxygen increases during apneic episodes, when someone stops breathing carbon dioxide slowly builds up in the bloodstream and the oxygen level quickly decreases (http://www.stanford.edu/~dement/apnea.html). Eventually a signal from the brain triggers the body to partially wake up, this action...