Sleep Apnoea and Its Prevalence in Europe and the USA

Posted by Andreas Christodoulou

Description :

There are three known forms of sleep apnea: central (CSA), obstructive (OSA), and complex or mixed sleep apnea that is a combination of both central and obstructive and these constitute 1%, 84% and 15% of cases respectively. In CSA, breathing is interrupted by a lack of respiratory effort. With OSA, a physical block to airflow, despite respiratory effort, interrupts the breathing and snoring is common. Overall 99% of all cases are OSA based. 

If you suffer from obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) - also known as sleep apnea, and by far the most common type, you'll know that this form of sleep-disordered breathing can seriously affect your quality of life and impact your health if left untreated. It is estimated that sleep apnoea affects between 2% to 4% of the adult population in the UK, yet this debilitating condition often goes undiagnosed so we are far from sure.

At 4% there would be approximately 2.5 million sufferers in the UK but very few people are actually being treated currently for the problem.

OSA is a worldwide phenomenon. Studies suggest that in Western European countries from 3-7% of middle-aged men and 2-5% of middle-aged women suffer from OSA, but figures vary widely due to low diagnosis levels.

Living with a sleep apnoea sufferer

Despite the increasing recognition that obstructive sleep apnoea is a relatively common condition, population data used to estimate disease prevalence in the United States and abroad did not exist accurately until about 15 years ago. Since the 1990s much has happened to quantify the levels of obstructive sleep apnea in various populations. A number of studies using large samples representative of the general population are now available and provide prevalence estimates for obstructive sleep apnea in countries such as the United States, Australia, Spain, China, Korea, and India.

According to figures issued by the World Health Organization approximately only 100 million people worldwide have OSA. In the USA, OSA is estimated to affect 1 in 4 men and 1 in 9 women; and affects a total of 23 million working adults. Untreated moderate or severe OSA is associated with a six-fold increased risk of death from all causes, independent of any other illnesses.

Other published figures state much a higher total figure based on detailed analysis of registered sufferers and some of these figures are shown below. If one accepts that the addition of the undiagnosed sufferers would at least double these numbers then the figures are quite alarming.

Country % with OSA    Actual Number

United Kingdom 4,0%    2.5 million

United States 4.1%    18.5 million

Australia 3.1%    0.8 million

India 7.5%    85 million

China 4.2%    57 million

Korea 4.5%    2.3 million

There is evidence that regular snoring and OSA are both independently associated with alterations in glucose metabolism and OSA might be a risk factor for the development of type 2 diabetes. The prevalence of OSA is also found more often in those patients with cardiac or metabolic disorders than it is in the general population.

The prevalence of sleep apnoea is higher in different population subgroups, including overweight or obese people, those of some ethnic groups such as African-American, and in older individuals. The fact that prevalence estimates of obstructive sleep apnea from North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia are not too substantially different suggests that this disease is very common not only in developed but also in developing countries. Moreover, given the widespread under-recognition of this disorder by the medical and lay communities, the public and personal health care costs globally are likely to be absolutely enormous.

Source: World Health Organisation

It is estimated in the USA that although there is a known figure of 18.5 million residents* with sleep apnoea, there are over twice that many with some form of major sleep disorder – 40 million in total. If these figures are to be believed, the difference is mostly attributed to undiagnosed OSA, and the problem is even more enormous than we believe and constantly worsening.

Sources for US Statistics: 27.02.2012 - National Sleep Foundation and The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

It is important for us to recognise that obstructive sleep apnoea often goes undiagnosed. Doctors usually can't detect the condition during routine surgery visits and no blood test can help diagnose the condition. Most people who have sleep apnoea don't know they have it because it only occurs during sleep so a family member or bed partner might be the first to notice the distinctive signs of sleep apnoea.

Untreated sleep apnoea can:

•  Increase the risk of high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke, obesity, diabetes and cancer

•  Increase the risk of, or worsen heart failure

•  Make arrhythmias, or irregular heartbeats, much more likely

•  Increase the chance of having work-related or driving accidents

Sleep apnea is a chronic condition that requires long-term management. Lifestyle changes, mouthpieces, surgery, and breathing devices can successfully treat sleep apnoea in many people, and it is critical to get professional help and support if you suspect that you are suffering from the condition described.

SEE ALSO: Seven Great Natural Pain Relievers

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The 5 Most Dangerous Buildings In The World

Posted by Andreas Christodoulou

Description :

Mankind has achieved innumerable architectural marvels over thousands of years. The cutting edge technology used in construction today has not always been required to construct buildings that inspire awe and stagger the mind. However, many great building achievements are as dangerous as they are innovative. In many cases, the element of danger is what provides the construction with such thrilling intrigue. The following buildings are equal in their engineering accomplishments and elements of danger that they present to any visitors who dare enter. 

License: Creative Commons

Cliffside

China is home to the Hanging Temple. This building has stood for more than 1,400 years since the reign of the Northern Wei Dynasty. It faces a sheer drop of nearly 246 feet at the base of Mount Heng. This structure is actually the only temple in existence that serves as a place of worship for three individual religions: Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. The temple is constructed of wood and contains 40 individual halls. Beams have been inserted into hand-chiseled fitting in the rock surface. Visitors brave enough to enter the temple will find over 80 Buddhist statues throughout the structure.

License: Creative Commons

A Stone Tower

At 817 meters above sea level, Lichtenstein Castle in Germany is another structure that seems to totter on the side of a cliff. This castle was not the first to rest on this site. Previous structures had been built and fallen to ruins dating back to about the 1200's. Lichtenstein Castle was commissioned by Duke Wilhelm of Urach in 1840. Although the castle is still under royal ownership, the doors are open to the public that dare to make the trip skywards. Most visitors come for the view and to gaze at the collection of historic German weaponry and armor. Various castles on this site have utilized the popular architectural stylings of their day throughout the years. Lichtenstein adds to its allure high in the sky by employing Neo-Gothic traditions throughout its design.

License: Creative Commons

A Delicate Balance

The Takasugi-an in Japan is perhaps the strangest and most insecure structure ever to be executed. The name literally translates to “a teahouse too high.” It was designed by its architect for his own private use. Built off-site, the one-room building was transported and installed at the top of two chestnut trees. It is constructed primarily of bamboo and plaster, and it can only be accessed by using a single, free-standing ladder that must be propped against the side of one of the supporting trees.

License: Creative Commons

Working on an Incline

As though they were taking a cue from the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Puerta de Europa or in English, Gate of Europe, in Madrid, Spain features two buildings that lean towards one another at a 15 degree incline. Each tower stands 374 feet tall and features 26 floors. The identical towers hover ominously over pedestrians and drivers who can travel beneath their shadows. The project was completed in 1996 as a joint effort between an American and Spanish architectural firm.

License: Creative Commons

An Icon of Architectural Mistakes

The Leaning Tower of Pisa is yet to collapse. This building is actually a bell tower for a central cathedral that went terribly wrong. It was five years after its initial construction in 1173 that it began it's unintended tilt to one side. The lean is due to the lack of solid ground resting beneath its foundation on one side. This side of the structure sinking into the ground is now submerged by over five feet, giving the 16,000 ton building less than stable footing.

Many of these structures are appealing to visitors for their unique qualities and dangerous appearance. While more adventurous people will flock to these as points of interest in their travels, those people who do not have thrill-seeking tendencies will be much happier enjoying photos from a safe distance on a stable foundation.

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How Are Plastic Bags Suffocating The World?

Posted by Andreas Christodoulou

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You’re standing in line at the grocery store when you realize that you don’t have your reusable bag. You’ll have to get a plastic bag. Again. You feel bad for a moment and then think that it’s just one bag. But it isn’t… 

In the U.S. alone, 280 billion plastic bags are used each year, which is enough to stretch around the earth nearly 30,000 times. Making and using plastic bags has more repercussions than you might think. Check out the following infographic to see how exactly plastic bags affect our cities, our environment and even our economy.

SUGGESTED INFOGRAPHIC: Public Health Threats that Could Devastate Society

 

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Should the US be Afraid of China?

Posted by Andreas Christodoulou

Description : 

Due to China's rapid growth, many are wondering if those living in the United States should be fearful of China. As China's GDP grows, their international power grows as well; will China threaten the United States in some way?

Some wariness is certainly warranted. After the fall of the Soviet Union, the United States was left as the only remaining superpower. However, Europe, as a whole, is comparable to the United States in most metrics of economic power, and Japan has become a dominant nation. The rise of these regions has not threatened the United States. 

Others point to China's high population as a reason to fear the growing nation, and some have even speculated a Chinese invasion. This scenario seems unlikely; conquering a nation has proven to be incredible difficult since the latter half of the 20th century, and the prospects of invading the United States seem unreasonable. Further, China has been focusing primarily inward, and China's main goal seems to be improving the lives of its citizens.

Source: Master of Finance Degrees

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Watch Out : China Will Soon Dominate Online Shopping

Posted by Andreas Christodoulou

Description : 

What's up everyone? 

Online shopping has become a way of life for many of us in the developed world. 

Rather than heading out to a brick and mortar store to buy things, people turn to the internet to provide them with a veritable cornucopia of consumer goods - clothes, electronics, even groceries, usually in much greater variety and significantly less expensive than traditional stores. 

In short, online shopping has come to dominate our consuming practices over the past decade. 

Winners and Losers of Ecommerce

As with any emerging market or technology, there are winners and there are losers when it comes to online shopping. The losers have largely been the brick and mortar businesses that have refused to adapt, becoming irrelevant as their customers flocked to the internet. The winners have been companies that took the initiative and aggressively pursued online customers. And while the United States has been the epicenter of the tech revolution, we’re poised to see our dominance in this arena start to slip over the next few years. And who’s going to pick up the slack? Only one of the world’s fastest growing, largest economies - China. 

China’s Ecommerce Stats

According to Lauren Indvik on mashable.com, online shopping in China generated $121 billion in sales last year, and that number is expected to triple through 2015. By then, China’s online spending is projected to be 20% higher than it will be in the United States, coming in at roughly $420 billion. At that point, ecommerce is expected to make up 8% of all retail sales in China. 

Why China?

So what exactly is driving this intense growth? Population is a huge factor. China has 1.34 billion people, and though it’s still a developing country, it’s also becoming increasingly upwardly mobile. Those living in the massive, sprawling urban areas generally have access to some form of internet, and the tech infrastructure is constantly improving. The Chinese economy is also booming, which means more and more people have some disposable income these days. In fact, the Chinese middle class is expected to grow from 200 million people to 800 million over the next 20 years. All those freshly made middle class folks are going to spend at least some of their money online. 

Challenges of the Future

With all Chinese ecommerce has going for it, there are still some major limitations that will need to be addressed in the future. The first is that, much like in the early days of online shopping in the U.S., Chinese consumers must be extremely wary of fraud and subpar or counterfeit goods, and have a difficult if not impossible time returning merchandise. Another major hurdle is the lack of consistent internet access for much of China’s populace -14% of Chinese consumers shop online, while 54% of Americans do. While this might seem like a small percentage, however, it’s important to remember that 14% of 1.3 billion is still a considerable number. 

If the Chinese economy continues to grow as projected, we can expect to see China dominating online shopping very soon, and, one suspects, for a very long time. If the United States wants to stay competitive, we have to ramp up our innovation and hone and innovate our ecommerce software in order to attract online shoppers from around the world - especially China.

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Volvo Introduces V40 World's First Pedestrian Airbag

Posted by Andreas Christodoulou

Description : 

Volvo has come out with the world's first commercial airbag designed to protect pedestrians, rather than drivers in a car accident. That's just one of many smart safety features on display in its latest model of the Volvo V40 compact car. 

The pedestrian airbag inflates across one-third of the windshield and raises the back of the car hood as soon as the bumper detects a collision with a person. Such technology could cut down on lethal encounters between humans and cars that lead to U.S. pedestrians making up 12 percent of all traffic fatalities - a sobering statistic that is over 25 percent in China. 

"The all-new V40, the most compact car in our V-range, has class-leading safety," said Thomas Broberg, senior safety advisor for Volvo. "It is also packed with more intelligent support systems than any previous Volvo. Yet another important step toward our vision that nobody should die or suffer serious injuries in a new Volvo car by the year 2020."

Volvo only plans for the airbag to act as a last defense against injuring or killing pedestrians. Its car also represents the first in its vehicle class to include a "pedestrian detection" system that warns the driver with a loud noise and flashing light if it's headed toward a person. Even if the driver fails to respond in time, the car can automatically hit the brakes.

That system uses radar to detect pedestrians in front of the car and predict whether he or she will step in the car's path. A similar "collision warning" system can also apply the brakes if it detects the driver is headed toward a probable car crash, and can avoid disaster even with vehicle speed differences of up to 22 mph (35 kph).

Volvo's cars don't rival the smarts of Google's self-driving car just yet. But they do include intelligent systems capable of making the driving experience both more pleasant and less dangerous.

"The safety systems are intelligent and work together to make driving more pleasant and safe," Broberg explained. "They are designed to warn about threats. If necessary, they can also step in and intervene in critical situations. And, in some situations where the collision is unavoidable, there are safety features to help mitigate the consequences."

Volvo's new car also includes its driver alert control system that uses a camera and sensors to gauge how well a driver is staying between road lane markings. If the system senses unsafe driving patterns, it alerts the tired driver with a sound and a lit-up coffee cup symbol suggesting a roadside break. 

The car can help out timid drivers by finding big-enough parking spots and automatically steering during parallel parking on a city street. The driver gets step-by-step directions and animations and only needs to control the speed of the car as it steers itself into a perfect parking job. 

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China Stops Marketing and Selling the iPad as Trademark Battle Continues

Posted by Andreas Christodoulou

Description : 

Retailers in Shijiazhuang, China, have halted marketing and sales of Apple’s iPad after it was claimed that the Cupertino company does not have the rights to the iPad trademark in the country. Proview Technology, which believed it still owns the iPad name, is seeking $38 million in compensation from Apple and seems to have secured a ban in at least one city as Chinese authorities begin confiscating the device. 

The Proview dispute came to light last week when it was reported that the company was looking to sue Apple for trademark infringement in China. Apple bought the iPad name from Proview way back in 2006 for around $55,000, but Proview claims it did not sell the rights to the name in China. 

Without permission to use the iPad name in China, Apple’s popular tablet is being banned. Retailers in the city of Shijiazhuang, the capital of Hebei province, have already ceased sales, while Chinese authorities are confiscating the device from store shelves

What’s interesting is that the ban appears to be exclusive to one city only at this point, with retailers in other cities continuing to sell the device. The iPad is also still available in China from Apple’s online retail store.

Proview is looking to secure 240 million yuan ($38 million) in compensation from Apple for using the iPad name, and it isn’t about to back down easily. The company is reportedly in dire straits financially, and it needs this money from Apple to rescue itself.

China is a massive market for Apple, with Tim Cook labeling the country “very key” during a quarterly earnings call last July. It’s likely Apple will want to resolve the issue quickly, then, before the ban expands into other territories and has a huge impact on the iPad.

WHAT TO READ NOW:  Should the US be Afraid of China?

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Apple iPhone 5 - Ready for Production

Posted by Andreas Christodoulou

Description :

We received word from a reliable source at Foxconn in China that the iPhone 5, as it is currently being called, is now gearing for production. 

 The source said various sample devices are also floating around (they vary slightly from one another), so it is impossible to tell which one will be the final. Some things in common with all of them, however, are: 

- 4+ inch display (made by LG on at least one of them). 

- No teardrop-shaped devices, as rumored in the lead up to the iPhone 4S. Samples so far have been symmetrical in thickness (also longer/wider). 

- Neither of the sample devices have the iPhone 4/4S form factor. 

- Neither of the devices are the final versions. 

We also heard the non-teardrop and 4-inch display information previously in a report from iLounge, but what is important to note here is that iPhone 4S production did not gear up until late spring of last year. If we follow patterns and give a five month-ish lead time, it would appear that Apple is back on its new iPhone launch for summer/WWDC pattern that it maintained until last year. 

We are still a long way off however. 

This source is the same that indicated to us late last summer that the iPhone 5 was not happening against the prevailing tide of information, and that Apple was building the iPhone 4S model instead. 

iPhone 5  - Lytro Camera Technology

The iPhone 5 News Blog picked up on a general 9to5Mac story about Steve Jobs having a chat with the CEO of a cool startup, Lytro, that makes a camera using some far-out technology that neither blog seems to really understand, or at least explain.

"iPhone 5 enthusiasts are hearing more about Lytro camera technology," writes Michael Nace, of The iPhone 5 News Blog. "Will Apple equip the iPhone 5 with Lytro, or go with the new Sony camera sensor?"

Nace inadvertently reveals one of the central dynamics that drive iPhone 5, and iPad 3, rumors. "With this kind of technology, it's no wonder that analysts have imagined it being included on the iPhone 5," he writes. If it's awesome, how can it not be in the Next Whatever?

We couldn't find dimensions for the Lytro camera, but a picture we found online shows fitting it into any current or future iPhone would qualify as a "radical" redesign. And the price tag, ranging from $399 to $499, would radically redesign the iPhone in another way.

9to5Mac built its story on two points : Lytro's technology (which you can try to follow at the company's website) and a brief passage from an upcoming book about Apple, describing a brief meeting between Steve Jobs and Lytro CEO Ren Ng. Even Nace notes, "While Apple and Lytro never forged any kind of partnership or licensing agreement, Steve Jobs reportedly picked their brains over the technology, and was incredibly excited about its possibilities."

And so, clearly, is the iOSphere.

And then after all that buildup, Nace topples it like a house of cards. "In spite of Jobs loving Lytro, however, it is still more likely that the iPhone 5 will debut with the new Sony 8MP camera sensor we wrote about recently," he concludes. Partly because Lytro "is still a relatively bulky technology that isn't at all suited to the ultra-thin trend that the iPhone 5 form factor seems to be moving toward."

If he'd just made that point at the beginning, we'd have been spared another rumor about another rumor.

iPhone 5 Will Be Named... iPhone 5

Must be a slow rumor week over at Beatweek. The Beatweek staff posted a story with the headline "iPhone 5 is sixth generation, but likely to retain '5' moniker."

"If the iPhone 4S is the fifth generation iPhone, then what is the iPhone 5? That's the question for Apple marketing execs to chew over from now until the device's launch later this year, as their upcoming sixth generation smartphone has already been popularly branded 'iPhone 5' even as a handful of skeptics point out that such a moniker would be outside of standard naming conventions."

It's so easy to imagine the anguish of Apple's marketing execs, hands pressed to their heads, moaning, "Oh woe! What are we to do? What will we call it? If we call it 'iPhone 5' all those skeptics will point out that it's outside of standard naming conventions. Oh woe. What would Steve do?"

iPhone 5 Will Have NFC

Power Retail thinks "Rumours That iPhone 5 Will Support NFC Ring True"

And that's because there's actually a foundation in fact, as reported by Power Retail's Campbell Phillips : "Visa confirms it is in discussion with Apple to include NFC technology in the next version of the iPhone, but it may still be months away. There is light at the end of the tunnel after all for iPhone users, Bill Gadja, the Global Head of Mobile Product says."

This is almost shocking : a real person, with a name and a title and company affiliation, offers an opinion.

"I can't tell you when Apple is going to put NFC in the next version of the iPhone," Gadja told business magazine Fast Company, "but we've had discussions with them around the PayWave standard and they've asked to look at our specification and certification process so that when they do decide to do something those lines of communication are open."

iPhone 5 Will Have a Physical Camera Button Because it Really Needs One

Technically speaking, Matthew Panzarino's thoughtful story at The Next Web, "Why the iPhone should have a dedicated physical shutter button" is an argument for the button, not a rumor about it.

But we're shortcutting the iOSphere rumorization process of linking to a post and then extending it: "Will iPhone 5 have shutter button?" and then "iPhone 5 expected to have shutter button" and "Sources say iPhone 5 have shutter button" and finally "iPhone 5 likely to have shutter button."

In any case, Panzarino, the news and Apple editor for TNW, clearly has given this some thought. His basic argument is that the current position of the rear-facing camera and the use of the volume button as the shutter button makes for an awkward, unstable and suboptimal shooting experience.

Instead, he wants a grip that looks like (this) where an index finger can just naturally press a dedicated button, and the grip keeps the whole thing steady. His hope: Apple is positioning the iPhone as your primary everyday camera, and the dedicated physical shutter button will be a big step toward that goal. And he notes the new Nokia 800 has come to the same conclusion.

READ ALSO: 8 Reasons to Buy the iPhone 5c

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