
English: The illustration shows the major signs and symptoms of heart failure. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Link between sleep apnea and cardiovascular disease is an established fact and one recent study further supported that treatment of obstructive sleep apnea by continuous positive airway pressure in patients (CPAP) with heart failure would improve left ventricular systolic function.
In a recent study researchers in Spain followed thousands of patients at sleep clinics and found that those with the most severe forms of sleep apnea had a 65 percent greater risk of developing cancer of any kind. The second study, of about 1,500 government workers in Wisconsin, showed that those with the most breathing abnormalities at night had five times the rate of dying from cancer as people without the sleep disorder. Both research teams only looked at cancer diagnosesand outcomes in general, without focusing on any specific type of cancer.
In both studies the researchers ruled out the possibility that the usual risk factors for cancer, like age, smoking, alcohol use, physical activity and weight, could have played a role. The association between cancer and disordered breathing at night remained even after they adjusted these and other variables.
They are of the opinion that cancer linked to possible lack of oxygen or anaerobic cell activity over long periods of time, therefore, it’s possible poor breathing fails to oxygenate the cells sufficiently.
Thus I personlly believe that the research on positive outcome on possible link between breathing and cardiac and cancer clearly demonstrates the importance of regular breathing exercises (other wise known as ‘Pranayama’ in India) as part of our every day life.
http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa022479#t=articleTop
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/05/20/sleep-apnea-tied-to-increased-cancer-risk/
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/245649.php
http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/340838/title/Severe_sleep_apnea_tied_to_cancer_risk
Curator: Dr. V.S. Karra, Ph.D.
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