Sunday, February 28, 2010

Sleep Apnea and room temperature

Whether it is in the middle of summer or the dead of winter I sleep better in a cold room. Well, I sleep as well as someone with sleep apnea can. Does the room temperature matter when you have sleep apnea?


It seems that a lot of people say that a cold room is better for sleeping than a warm room and that makes sense. In the middle of summer our air conditioning is cranked up and blowing cold air all night (not good for keeping the electric bill down). According to a study the ideal temperature for sleeping is in the 60’s. Above or below this range and it becomes uncomfortable.

There must be something to this because at each sleep study that I went too the room was always very cool, to the point of being cold. I definitely needed a blanket to sleep.

The problem that I have that is tied to sleep apnea is that I sleep with my mouth open. If the air is cool from the window being open or I have a fan blowing on me I will wake up with a sore throat or at least with a raspy throat. I have to be careful not to have too much air blowing on me.

Of course if you have a cpap mask (and you have learned to live with) the room temperature shouldn’t be an issue for you. Most cpap machines have humidifier so if you are an open mouth sleeper your throat won’t become dry. So that would be a definite advantage of being able to use a cpap.

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3 comments:

  1. I don't suffer from sleep apnea, maybe just a mild case of insomnia, although I am the exact same way as you regarding temperature. I need the room to be cool, almost to the point of frigidness, to fall asleep quickly. My friend who suffers from sleep apnea and has to use a CPAP machine also prefers it to be cold, but I don't think it has anything to do with a sore throat.

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  2. I have too found out that room temperature effects my sleeping patern,regarding intensity of sleep apnea episodes.When the room is cold (around 20C) i find myself sleeping with no interuptions.During summer,when the air is much warmer than 25C often 30C+ i find myself waking up due to sleep apnea episodes.I have also found that when I use marijuana(THC),my night's sleep is also uninterupted.Some studies indicate that THC blocks serotonin in the nervous system lowering frequency of sleep apnea episodes.Data shows that the CB1 receptor agonist
    Δ9THC stabilizes respiratory pattern during all sleep stages by
    producing a dose-dependent reduction in apnea expression.
    I hope this is helpful information for you and anyone suffering from sleep apnea.

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