Night sweats are considered a condition which may be troublesome and worrying. However, at the same time, it does not have to be. It all depends upon the reasons behind it, since, most of the time, night sweats are just a symptom of something else.
If this phenomenon is experienced by the males over 40 years of age, it can also be caused by several different things. Hormonal changes or underlying illnesses are just some of them. On the other hand, the problem may just be the environmental heat during the hot, summer nights. In the latter case, night sweats are completely justified and harmless. Nevertheless, in many other cases, the reasons behind this mysterious sweating over the course of the night demand taking further steps in treating their culprits.Troubled by Night Sweats
First and foremost, just as women reach menopause after their 40s, where their hormonal balance is disrupted and they tend to suffer from this condition as well, men also experience a similar metamorphosis. Namely, once they pass being 40, their testosterone levels tend to drop significantly. This makes them prone to numerous problems, including experiencing night sweats.
Sometimes, night sweats take place for no reasons at all. Moreover, they just strike a man and cause him to sweat during his sleeping time. Some people claim that this is connected with a specific nerve dysfunction, nerves sending incorrect information to the brain, resulting in the sweating itself. Alternatively, night sweats may also be one of the alcohol withdrawal symptoms.
The worst case scenarios are, of course, some diseases, possibly being behind this bothersome condition. AIDS, tuberculosis, numerous viral or bacterial infections, as well as inflammations of certain body parts, all may be behind night sweats. Naturally, these are not all of the illnesses possibly causing sweating during sleep.
A universal cause of this state of affairs, regardless of age, sex, or any other factors, is stress. Therefore, if a person lies in bed full of troubling thoughts, worries and fears, he or she is bound to ponder upon such thoughts during the sleep.
This, quite often, results in experiencing night sweats. In a similar way, you have to be careful about what you eat before bedtime. Men over 40 should be careful not to eat spicy food, certain kinds of meat, or some other types of food since these can possibly irritate their digestive system, leading to sweating while they are asleep.
People who suffer from diabetes or some sort of neurological imbalance caused either by traumas or some illnesses like epilepsy, all are prone to experiencing night sweats. Also, people who take specific medications regularly, especially anti-depressants, may have high chances for experiencing waking up covered with water.Can CPAP Therapy Help with Night Sweats?
Recommended treatment for patients suffering from sleep apnea is continuous positive airway pressure or CPAP. It is found to be especially useful if the patient is suffering from moderate to severe obstructive type of sleep apnea. Machines used in CPAP treatment are approved by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) of the USA and they are available only by under doctor’s prescription. The same machines can also be used to treat people suffering from sleep apnea combined with heart problems, such as coronary heart disease and heart failure. Also, CPAP machines are present in most hospitals as the standard part of the intensive care units and used for ventilation.
CPAP therapy is beneficial for patients suffering from sleep apnea and helps them sleep well. It prevents fatigue caused by sleeping disturbances. Additionally, this treatment can lower high blood pressure, decrease the risk of heart problems and relieve snoring.
These machines blow the air into the air passages of the patient through a pipe or hose to the nose mask. In some cases patients even wear full facial mask for the treatment. CPAP machines blow the air at some particular pressure, determined after the study of each patient in the sleep laboratory.
Due to the fact that sleep apnea is a condition which can possibly lead to night sweats, the CPAP therapy can prove to be more than helpful in preventing both of these uncomfortable conditions together.
Nevertheless, patients using CPAP machines may have troubles with the masks used on the face. These are made in particular dimensions and they might not be suitable for everyone, so you should try them on with CPAP technicians before the use. Most people find sleeping with the mask on the face quite uncomfortable, but they usually adjust to the situation, especially since the alternative is surgery or some intra-oral dental appliances.
All in all, night sweats can be common in men over 40 due to the hormonal changes their bodies undergo, reaching a state which is similar to the female menopause. Moreover, even though occasional night sweats may not be signs for concern, they can indicate some serious underlying health problems. Fortunately, there are numerous ways of dealing with night sweats and one of these is the CPAP therapy.
So, if you are bothered by this uncomfortable condition often, contact your doctor and have the reason behind it properly diagnosed and treated.
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