Originally published February 1 2006
Playing the didgeridoo may provide relief to patients with sleep apnoea
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
According to a study recently published in the British Medical Journal, playing the didgeridoo, a reed-like instrument, can help patients suffering from sleep apnoea to reduce their daytime sleepiness and snoring.
Regular didgeridoo playing reduces snoring and daytime sleepiness, finds a study published online by the BMJ today.
Snoring and obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome are common sleep disorders caused by the collapse of the upper airways.
Continuous positive airway pressure therapy is effective, but is not suitable for many patients.
Reports of didgeridoo players experiencing reduced daytime sleepiness and snoring after practising, led experts in Switzerland to test the theory that training of the upper airways by didgeridoo playing can improve these disorders.
They identified 25 patients with moderate obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome and who complained about snoring.
Patients were randomly allocated to an intervention group (didgeridoo lessons and daily practice at home for four months) or a control group (remained on a waiting list for lessons).
Compared with the control group, daytime sleepiness and apnoea scores improved significantly in the didgeridoo group.
Partners of patients in the didgeridoo group also reported much less sleep disturbance.
Although overall quality of sleep did not differ significantly between groups, a combined analysis of sleep related measures showed a moderate to large effect of didgeridoo playing.
The authors conclude that regular training of the upper airways by didgeridoo playing reduces daytime sleepiness and snoring in people with moderate obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome and also improves the sleep quality of partners.
"Larger trials are needed to confirm our preliminary findings, but our results may give hope to the many people with moderate obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome and snoring, as well as to their partners," they say.
All content posted on this site is commentary or opinion and is protected under Free Speech. Truth Publishing LLC takes sole responsibility for all content. Truth Publishing sells no hard products and earns no money from the recommendation of products. NaturalNews.com is presented for educational and commentary purposes only and should not be construed as professional advice from any licensed practitioner. Truth Publishing assumes no responsibility for the use or misuse of this material. For the full terms of usage of this material, visit www.NaturalNews.com/terms.shtml