Oxygen and Peripheral Neuropathy
 

Sleeping with my head covered by a sheet started when I had to turn the room temperature down to quieten my nerves enough to get to sleep. But that meant I'd only breathe cold air. But I couldn't sleep while inhaling cold air.

I was tired, wanted to get to sleep, and didn't bother to go online to see if there were any health risks. I didn't wake up choking or anything, but eventually I asked my doctor if this could be a health hazard. I was actually more concerned at the time about carbon dioxide than oxygen.

He said: "Probably not."

Now I wonder if it can cause a very small amount of damage each night and the process of worsening health because of it is so slow you don't notice for years.

Yesterday I found a site that says poor oxygen while sleeping with your face covered by a sheet/blanket can cause health problems. (Not a scientific study, so I'm not sure.)

I also read somewhere else that your nerves benefit from oxygen and lack of oxygen can cause PN. "Chronic hypoxia is a well known cause of peripheral neuropathy." [Source]

There's even talk about hyperbaric chambers of oxygen bringing healing from PN.

Does anyone here have any research, experience, or opinions on the importance of oxygen, fresh air, etc., on nerve health and neuropathies?

See also: Obstructive sleep apnea: an underestimated cause of peripheral neuropathy

Low oxygen also occurs with sleep apnea, and with vascular problems which cut off oxygenated blood the the extremities.
Poor blood flow in the periphery also allows toxins to accumulate there. So the oxygen issue is not the only one.

When you rebreathe carbon dioxide you change the pH of the blood.

This article goes into this complex situation and you can see that it remains controversial still.
http://www.panicattacksymptoms.org.u...breathing.html

Some people at the RSD forum do hyperbaric oxygen treatments. You should look over there and "search" the term "hyperbaric oxygen" and see what you can learn about it.

Instead of covering your head to warm the air you breath, you may want to try the ear loop face mask found in drug store at night. I have found, by accident, that it can help if your airway or nasal passages are irritated and cannot tolerate the dryer cold air.

Once when I had a cold, I slept with one to contain my germs. Didn't want John to catch what I had. Found it kept the air moist and warm so I could fall asleep quicker.

They are the probably the lightest masks on the market so have better oxygenation than you would putting your head under the covers. You're not rebreathing what you exhaled nearly as much. But you have to change them pretty often because they will harbor germs over time.

That is a great idea, Marlene!

association
 

I've been reading about this as I have COPD and PN, was told for 4 years it was idiopathic. :mad:

They don't seem to know much about it yet, they have discovered a good % of people with COPD have sub-clinical PN, fewer have symptoms. Possible causes I've seen have been hypoxia, hypoxemia, nerve damage from the nicotine and toxicity from meds used to treat it. My PN is worse at higher doses of inhaled steroid. Some studies have shown that the length of time a person smoked was more predictive of PN than hypoxia.

That said, I think if your O2 sats dropped low enough to cause a problem you'd probably wake up or feel some effects in the AM. The point at which they feel there is tissue damage is O2 saturation of 88% normal, people with COPD can drop into the 60s and 70s.

I've been sleeping with my head covered up as long as I can remember, of course I do have PN..lol
Zygo