Health

When Nancy B.’s only child began acting out on the playground of his elementary school, she realized his behavior was different from the other kids. His teachers noticed as well. Her 6-year-old son was inattentive and disturbed other children at work in the classroom, she said.

Sandra Cullen didn’t think she was a candidate for diabetes or high cholesterol. But that changed in 2002 when the 39-year-old mother of twins sought a physicians help because she wasn’t feeling quite right.

Even though it is commonly associated with the elderly, two-thirds of all arthritis strikes before age 65. According to the National Arthritis Foundation, most people get arthritis between the ages of 15 and 65. It has been diagnosed in patients as young as six months. The disease affects 46 million diagnosed patients in the United States.

The American Academy of Otolaryngology estimates that 45 percent of normal adults snore from time to time and as many as 25 percent are persistent snorers. According to the American Sleep Apnea Association, approximately two to four percent of adults, or an estimated 12 million Americans suffer from some form of sleep apnea. Although the two conditions may be related, they are not the same. It is possible to have one without the other. As Dr. David Brodner, of the American Academy of Otolaryngology stated, “If you snore it does not mean you have sleep apnea, but 99 percent of the people with sleep apnea snore.”