Health Tips for February 20

Health Tip: Warning Signs of Sleep Apnea

Sleep apnea is a condition that causes a person to stop breathing temporarily during sleep. When a person isn't breathing, even for brief periods, it can deprive the blood of oxygen and lead to serious complications.

Here are some common warning signs of sleep apnea that should be evaluated by your doctor. They're provided by the U.S. National Library of Medicine:

• A partner notices that you've stopped breathing for brief periods (often 10 seconds or more) during sleep.
• Feeling tired and lethargic during the day.
• Having headaches first thing in the morning.
• Poor quality of sleep, and waking often.
• Feeling depressed, having problems with concentration and noticing differences in your personality.
• Snoring loudly, especially as soon as you fall asleep.

Health Tip: Keeping Your Children Warm in Winter

In bitter winter weather, it's important to make sure children are dressed appropriately.

The American Academy of Pediatrics offers these recommendations:

• When babies and children will be outside in bitterly cold weather, dress them up in many light, thin layers, including long underwear, pants, a turtleneck, a few shirts, warm socks, coat, hat and mittens.
• When dressing your child, add one additional layer of clothing than an adult would wear in the same weather.
• Inside the home, covering your baby with blankets, quilts and pillows in the crib could contribute to sudden infant death syndrome. So dress your baby in a warm one-piece sleep suit, instead of piling on blankets.
• If you must use a blanket to keep your baby warm, tuck the blanket under the mattress of the crib. Keep the blanket tucked only up to the baby's chest, so that the face can't be covered by the blanket.