Snoring More Than Just a Nuisance, It Can Take Your Breath A

    A huge part of the world's population of the world snores during sleep, something that is usually made fun of by others.  But in some cases, snoring is not a laughing matter.  It can often be a sign of obstructive sleep apnea, a sleep disorder¹ that can have serious health consequences(后果).
    Just ask around. Very few people will admit that they snore.  Still, 45 percent of the world's adult population snores occasionally and 25 percent snores very regularly.
    "It is most commonly believed that snoring is caused by vibration² of the uvula or the soft palette against the back of the throat, but it's probably multifactorial," noted³ Dr. Stanley Chia of the Washington Hospital Center.
    Chia is an expert on snoring-related surgeries(外科手术).  He often suggests to his patients a procedure known as a "pillar implant⁴."  This is a small piece of braided surgical⁵ fiber⁶ that is inserted into the soft palate.
    "There are usually at least three of them placed at any one given time," added Chia.  "What happens is over the course of about three to five weeks after the procedure, the fiber causes the surrounding inflammatory reaction and that causes the stiffening⁷ of the soft palate so that the snoring lessens⁸."Besides pillar implants⁹ there are several other surgical procedures to address snoring, though Dr. Chia believes none of them provides a complete cure.  He says this is the reason very few snoring-related surgeries are done at his hospital.
    Also there is no shortage of ads for anti-snoring aids in the American media.  Some of which are effective while others not as much, contrary to the manufacturers' claims.  However, the medical community does not think snoring is a serious problem in itself.
    "Snoring itself is not a serious medical problem but sleep apnea can be life threatening," explained Chia.   "[Sleep apnea] is frequent disruption of an individual's(个体的) sleep caused by regular episodes of breathlessness."Dr. David Gross, director of the sleep study center at the National Rehabilitation¹⁰ Hospital in Washington, notes this can have serious health consequences.
    "The upper airway¹¹ cuts off at night so the person, while he is breathing normally in the day time, when he goes to sleep at night his muscles get all relaxed and cut off.  And this can happen over and over again 60 to 100 times an hour.  That's bad for your heart and your oxygen levels can be very low," said Gross.  "So those things can make the person tired and have low energy, bad concentration, fatigue¹² during the day, but also it can cause strokes, heart attacks, high blood pressure and other problems like that."But the question is, how are snoring and obstructive sleep apnea connected?
    "Most of the people who snore don't have sleep apnea but most of the people with sleep apnea snore, especially very loud snoring," added Gross.
    Gross says a sleep study is crucial for the diagnosis¹³ of sleep apnea, because its symptoms are generally very non-specific.
    "There are patients who have talked to me who really think that they have sleep apnea and they don't and vice-versa," Gross noted.  "There is just no way to know for sure without some sort of a sleep study."Once it is diagnosed, sleep apnea is usually treated through the use of a Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) device.  The CPAP blows pressurized air into the patient's nose and mouth - at a pressure level set specifically for him or her.  Many people don't like to use the CPAP, however, because its face mask can be uncomfortable at first.
    Gross says that since obesity¹⁴ is one of the main reasons for sleep apnea, wherever there is an increase in the epidemic(传染病) of obesity in the world, sleep apnea usually follows.(本文由在线英语听力室整理编辑)

1 disorder   

n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调

参考例句：

• When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后，他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
• It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。

2 vibration   

n.颤动，振动；摆动

参考例句：

• There is so much vibration on a ship that one cannot write.船上的震动大得使人无法书写。
• The vibration of the window woke me up.窗子的震动把我惊醒了。

3 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

4 implant   

vt.注入，植入，灌输

参考例句：

• A good teacher should implant high ideals in children.好教师应该把高尚理想灌输给孩子们。
• The operation to implant the artificial heart took two hours.人工心脏植入手术花费了两小时。

5 surgical   

adj.外科的，外科医生的，手术上的

参考例句：

• He performs the surgical operations at the Red Cross Hospital.他在红十字会医院做外科手术。
• All surgical instruments must be sterilised before use.所有的外科手术器械在使用之前，必须消毒。

6 fiber   

n.纤维，纤维质

参考例句：

• The basic structural unit of yarn is the fiber.纤维是纱的基本结构单元。
• The material must be free of fiber clumps.这种材料必须无纤维块。

7 stiffening   

n. (使衣服等)变硬的材料, 硬化 动词stiffen的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• Her mouth stiffening, she could not elaborate. 她嘴巴僵直，无法细说下去。
• No genius, not a bad guy, but the attacks are hurting and stiffening him. 不是天才，人也不坏，但是四面八方的攻击伤了他的感情，使他横下了心。

8 lessens   

变少( lessen的第三人称单数 )； 减少（某事物）

参考例句：

• Eating a good diet significantly lessens the risk of heart disease. 良好的饮食习惯能大大减少患心脏病的机率。
• Alcohol lessens resistance to diseases. 含有酒精的饮料会减弱对疾病的抵抗力。

9 implants   

n.（植入身体中的）移植物( implant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Hormone implants are used as growth boosters. 激素植入物被用作生长辅助剂。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Perhaps the most far-reaching project is an initiative called Living Implants From Engineering (LIFE). 也许最具深远意义的项目，是刚刚启动的建造活体移植工程 (LIFE)。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 医学的第四次革命

10 rehabilitation   

n.康复，悔过自新，修复，复兴，复职，复位

参考例句：

• He's booked himself into a rehabilitation clinic.他自己联系了一家康复诊所。
• No one can really make me rehabilitation of injuries.已经没有人可以真正令我的伤康复了。

11 airway   

n.空中航线，通风口

参考例句：

• Lay them on their side and ensure the airway is unobstructed.让他们侧躺着，并确保呼吸道畅通。
• There is a purple airway in London Airport.伦敦机场里有一条皇家专用飞机跑道。

12 fatigue   

n.疲劳，劳累

参考例句：

• The old lady can't bear the fatigue of a long journey.这位老妇人不能忍受长途旅行的疲劳。
• I have got over my weakness and fatigue.我已从虚弱和疲劳中恢复过来了。

13 diagnosis   

n.诊断，诊断结果，调查分析，判断

参考例句：

• His symptoms gave no obvious pointer to a possible diagnosis.他的症状无法作出明确的诊断。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做一次彻底的调查分析。

14 obesity   

n.肥胖，肥大

参考例句：

• One effect of overeating may be obesity.吃得过多能导致肥胖。
• Sugar and fat can more easily lead to obesity than some other foods.糖和脂肪比其他食物更容易导致肥胖。