Please watch this important sleep apnea video on helpful questions on medical coverage for oral appliance therapy, the most frequently prescribed CPAP alternative for apnea treatment.  It also covers what criteria is needed for medical insurance coverage that your doctor’s office will need for filing your claim.

Contact us directly for further details – 630/369-5508

Help us raise awareness about a sleep condition that affects more than 20 million adults each year.  The sad truth is that most people are not aware that chronic snoring is associated with the obstructive sleep apnea, a life-altering condition. Isn’t it time to educate ourselves?

If you or someone you know is frequently snoring or has the following symptoms you should consider getting a medical evaluation.  If a sleep disorder like obstructive sleep apnea is suspected, a sleep test may be requested. Here are some common reasons why a sleep test might be ordered:

• Snoring
• Gasping for breath, after a pause in breathing
• Waking with a dry mouth
• Excessive daytime sleepiness
• Drowsy driving
• Morning headaches
• Depression
• Overweight
• Gastric reflux
• Restless sleep
• Periodic leg jerks/movements
• Frequent trips to the bathroom at night
• Excessive night sweating
• High blood pressure
• Diabetes
• Insomnia
• Sleep walking, talking or eating

A sleep study is the best way to analyze and diagnose your sleep. There are many types of sleep disorders in addition to sleep apnea. Sleep studies can also determine whether you have a problem with your stages of sleep also. Depending on what the testing shows, there are several treatment options.

Do not let the affects of sleeping disorders such as sleep apnea change your life!

Dental Sleep and TMD Center of Illinois, a premiere snoring and apnea treatment center in Naperville has been providing the CPAP alternative treatment of oral appliance therapy for over 15 years successfully. We are extremely passionate in helping individuals that have been struggling with CPAP therapy in Naperville, Wheaton, Aurora, Bolingbrook and surrounding Chicago suburbs. For more information on this physician recommended treatment option, visit www.TiredOfSnoring.com or call us at (630)369-5508.

The holidays are upon us and for many people that will mean giving in to temptation and overdosing on cookies and sweets!  Cravings for sugar are something millions of people experience, so don’t feel you are alone if you are struggling to remove it from your diet.  Sugar is an addictive substance that can be very difficult to break free from once you are in its grip.*

The good news is that there are alternative sweeteners that can be used in place of sugar that will still satisfy your craving for something sweet, yet not wreck havoc on your blood sugar levels.

Keep in mind though, with ANY of these concentrated sweeteners, excessive consumption is the real problem.  If sweeteners are only consumed occasionally in small quantities, they aren’t a problem.  Just because something is listed as a healthier alternative to sugar, does not mean you should go out and pour a cup of it onto your oatmeal thinking you are doing something good for your health.  You want to keep all sweeteners to a minimum, choose the highest quality ingredients that you can and as often as possible, allow the natural sweetness of whole fruits and vegetables to provide the sweetness in your diet that you crave.

Here are some healthy holiday cookie recipes that incorporate some alternative sweeteners or just lower amounts of sugar. You might just be surprised at how they will keep you satisfied, energized and full of the holiday spirit.

Soft Chocolate-Chip Cookies

(Makes 14-20 cookies)

Ingredients:

• 1¼ cups oat flour
• ¼ tsp salt
• ½ tsp baking soda
• 2 tbsp brown coconut sugar (or Sucanat)
• ¼ to 1/3 cup chopped macadamia nuts (or sub another nut) OPTIONAL
• 1 85% cacao dark chocolate bar (3.5oz)
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 2 tbsp coconut oil
• 3-5 tbsp milk of choice, as needed

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 380 degrees. Combine all dry ingredients and mix very well. Add wet and combine. Using a spoon, form little balls on baking sheet.
2. For soft cookies, refrigerate until cold (otherwise, just bake right away). Bake 7 minutes, or until they’ve spread out and look just a little undercooked.
3. Remove from oven when they’re still a little undercooked, then it’s important to let cookies cool at least 10 minutes before trying to remove from tray, as they’ll continue to cook while cooling. For soft cookies, store in a lidded plastic container. For crispy cookies, store in a glass container with a lid.

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Amaranth Clusters

Ingredients:

• 1½ cups rolled oats
• ½ cup amaranth
• ½ cup macadamia nuts, toasted and chopped*
• ½ cup dried cherries, chopped**
• ½ cup dried apricots, chopped**
• ¼ cup raw honey
• 2 large eggs – whites only
• Kosher salt

Directions:

1. Combine oats, amaranth, macadamia nuts, dried fruit, and honey in a medium bowl. Whisk egg whites with ¼ tsp. salt until foamy. Pour over dried fruit and stir to combine.
2. Preheat oven to 350. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Scoop about 2 TBSP of mixture and pat into a 2-inch round on baking sheet. Bake, rotating tray until clusters are golden brown, 15-18 minutes.
3. Let cool completely. Store in an airtight container for up to one week.

*Let cool after toasting and before chopping or you will lose the good oils. You can also substitute any nut such as almonds, walnuts, etc.

**You can substitute any dried fruit such as raisins, cranberries, strawberries, blueberries, dates, etc.

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Nut Butter Brownies

Ingredients:

• 1 cup all natural nut butter (peanut butter, almond butter, etc.)
• ½ cup raw honey
• ½ tsp baking soda
• 1 egg

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Mix all ingredients together and bake for 25-30 minutes.

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Chewy Chocolate Dream

Ingredients:

• 6 egg whites
• Pinch sea salt
• ¾ cup organic evaporated cane juice
• ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• ½ tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 oz dark chocolate (75% cacao or greater), chopped
• ½ cup chopped raw (unsalted) walnuts

Directions:

1. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 350.
2. In a large bowl, beat egg whites with salt using an electric beater until soft peak forms. Gradually add cane juice and continue beating until stiff peaks form. Add cocoa powder, vanilla, chocolate and walnuts and mix well until combined.
3. Drop batter by rounded tablespoon onto prepared cookie sheets, dividing evenly. Bake 1 cookie sheet at a time on oven’s middle rack for 10-12 minutes per sheet, until cookies are no longer shiny.

Per cookie: 56 calories; 1g saturated fat, 1.5g unsaturated fat, 8g carbs, 1g fiber, 6g sugar, 2g protein, 23g sodium, 0g cholesterol.

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Oatmeal-Raisin Cookie “Larabars”

Ingredients:

• ½ cup raisins
• 6 TBSP quick oats
• ½ cup walnuts
• 1/8 tsp plus 1/16 tsp salt
• ¼ tsp pure vanilla extract

Directions:

Pulverize the oats in a food processor, then add all other ingredients and blend very well. Form into balls or bars. (If you want, you can portion the dough into plastic bags before smushing the bars, so your hands don’t get sticky.)

This recipe makes a little over three Larabar-sized (45g) bars. I like to double the recipe—the bars last at least two weeks in the fridge. They can also be frozen.

Each Larabar-sized bar (45 grams) will have around 175 calories, 8 grams healthy fat, 2 grams protein, 25 grams carbs, 5 grams fiber, and zero grams of added sugar.

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Healthy Holiday Granola Bar

Ingredients:

• ½ cup chopped pistachios
• ½ cup chopped pecans
• ½ cup sunflower seeds
• 2 cups Multi-grain Hot cereal (rye, barley, oats, wheat)
• ¼ cup flax seed meal
• ¼ cup wheat germ
• 4 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 2 Tbsp dark brown sugar
• ½ cup light Agave nectar
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 3/4 cup dried sweet cherries
• 3/4 cup dried Turkish apricots
• 3/4 cup dried black mission figs

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees
2. In a large bowl mix chopped nuts, sunflower seeds, multi-grain cereal, flax seed meal and wheat germ.  Spread onto baking sheet.  Toast for about 15 minutes stirring occasionally.
3.  In large saucepan melt butter, brown sugar, agave nectar, salt and vanilla.
4. Stir in lightly toasted dry ingredients.  Spread mixture into a 9×11 buttered glass baking dish.  Press down evenly.  Bake for about 25 minutes at 300 degrees.
5. Allow to cool completely. Cut into squares and refrigerate.

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Thanks Debbie for guest blogger and sharing these great holiday treats!

Debbie Slutzky, CHHC, AADP
Founder, Nutrition and Health Counseling

Debbie Slutzky is a Certified Health Coach, marathon runner, and loving mother of twins. She decided to become a health counselor to fulfill her passion of working with people to improve their health and life goals.

Debbie received her training at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition in New York City, and she is Board Certified by the American Association of Drugless Practitioners. Debbie leads workshops on nutrition, writes blogs on health and nutrition and offers individual health and nutrition coaching. She also received her BA from The George Washington University in Washington, DC.

www.NutritionAndHealthCounseling.com
630-470-7634

*For more information on beating your sugar addiction, please contact Debbie at Debbie@NutritionAndHealthCounseling.com

From insomnia to snoring, Americans lose billions in dollars from affects caused by sleeping ‘dilemmas’.

With the holidays approaching, we’ve put together some gift giving ideas in hopes of improving sleep. Some of our picks help promote a calmer night, others may help you awaken easier. If you have other ideas, feel free to share them.

1) Side Solution™ Pillow – Deluxe:

This pillow helps promote side sleeping. Its height is adjustable optimizing your spine’s alignment, while the curved indentation cradles your shoulder, neck and head.  http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?SKU=17848410&RN=970

2) Tranquil Moments® Advanced Sleep Sounds

16 soothing sound programs to help you sleep, relax and renew.

Exclusive Sleep Enhancement Technology™ gradually slows playback speed of each sound program over a 30-minute period to gently lull you to sleep. http://www.brookstone.com/tranquil-moments-advanced-sleep-sounds-machine?bkiid=SearchResults|CategoryProductList|672519p

3) Travel Tranquil Moments Alarm Clock Sound Therapy Machine

“Brookstone’s top-rated sound therapy machine can now travel with you. Immerse yourself in eight therapeutic sound programs designed to help you achieve healthier states of mind. Our travel sound therapy machines organize sound choices into two groups—Sleep and Relax. The Sleep channel includes White Noise, Rain, Celestial and Summer Night. The Relax channel includes Ocean Surf, Thunderstorm, Jet Lag and Unwind.”

http://www.brookstone.com/Travel-Tranquil-Moments-Sleep-Sound-Machine?bkiid=SearchResults|CategoryProductList|590877p

4) Revolutionary, Patented SLEEP MASTER Sleep Mask

by SLEEP MASTER tm

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=bl_sr_hpc?_encoding=UTF8&field-brandtextbin=SLEEP%20MASTER%20tm&node=3760901

5) Verilux Rise And Shine Natural Wake-Up Light Clock Radio

Enjoy a good night’s rest and wake up feeling energized with this wake-up light by Verilux.

http://www.lampsplus.com/products/verilux-rise-and-shine-natural-wake-up-light-clock-radio__r4196.html

6) Breathe Right Nasal Strips- a great stocking stuffer!

Safe and drug-free, Breathe Right nasal strips open nasal passages so you can breathe through your nose.

(Available at most drug stores.) http://www.walgreens.com/search/results.jsp?Ntt=breathe+right&x=0&y=0

7) The Promise of Sleep: A Pioneer in Sleep Medicine Explores the Vital Connection Between Health, Happiness, and a Good Night’s Sleep [Paperback]

William C. Dement (Author), Christopher Vaughan (Author)

http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017

8. Air-O-Swiss Portable Travel Humidifier

Ultra-quiet operation with a humidity output of up to one gallon per 24-hour period, this portable, state of the art humidifier is ideal for use at home, in the office or while traveling. Includes

http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?sku=16030902&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&gclid=CIuPpPiU87MCFao7Mgod6z4AxA

9. Contour Sleep Back Wedge

This wedge pillow relieves lower back pain, muscle spasms, and other everyday discomforts while you relax and sleep. Use it to sit up or lie on your back at an angle. http://www.relaxtheback.com/contoursleep-back-wedge.html

Dental Sleep and TMD Center of Illinois, a premiere snoring and apnea treatment center in Naperville, has been providing the CPAP alternative treatment of oral appliance therapy s for over 15 years successfully. We are extremely passionate in helping individuals that have been struggling with CPAP therapy in Naperville, Wheaton, Aurora, Bolingbrook and surrounding Chicago suburbs. For more information on this physician recommended treatment option, visit www.TiredOfSnoring.com or call us at (630)369-5508.

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With the end of the year approaching, and people getting busier, it’s easy to forget about maximizing medical insurance benefits. Knowing important factors of the medical insurance puzzle could save you hundreds of dollars, if not more, and might add years to your life!

Snoring is often a symptom of a serious medical condition.  Evaluating your snoring might save you from developing serious conditions including high blood pressure, stroke and heart attack as well as and  daytime sleepiness that can cause major accidents.

If you would  like to know more about the  medical insurance ‘pieces’, I urge you to visit Using Your Dental and Medical Insurance Benefits Before Year’s End (Part 1)

Dental Sleep and TMD Center of Illinois, a premiere snoring and apnea treatment center in Naperville, has been providing the CPAP alternative treatment of oral appliance therapy s for over 15 years successfully. We are extremely passionate in helping individuals that have been struggling with CPAP therapy in Naperville, Wheaton, Aurora, Bolingbrook and surrounding Chicago suburbs. For more information on this physician recommended treatment option, visit www.TiredOfSnoring.com or call us at (630)369-5508.

   >>To receive notice of when we add blog posts please subscribe by RSS feed or enter your email address to the left and receive notice in your inbox.<<