From A to ZZZZZ: Dr. Ash Visits TODAY to Launch Sleep Awareness Week

In honor of the National Sleep Foundation's annual Sleep Awareness Week, a seven-day celebration of sleep health kicking off for 2016 on March 6, Carol Ash, D.O., Director of Sleep Medicine for Meridian Health, dropped by TODAY to help answer the question, "What's keeping you awake?"

According to Dr. Ash, upwards of 60 to 80 percent of Americans aren't getting the essential seven hours of sleep per night - the minimum needed to avoid long-term health consequences.

So what is keeping us awake at night? According to Dr. Ash, the answer could be right outside your window.

"There was a study recently done at Stamford, which looked at 16,000 people over eight years," says Dr. Ash. "They found that those living in communities of 500,000 people or more found it much more difficult to get the sleep they need."

So... what's the solution? Watch Dr. Ash's TODAY segment below to find out.

Top Health Stories of 2015: Preventive Medicine News Evokes Unmatched Response

As another year passes on into our rearview, so too arrives the opportunity to look toward a new year full of bold challenges and uncharted horizons. Before we set off on our journey toward a healthier, happier 2016, let's look back on some of our most popular stories of the year, courtesy of our own Meridian Health experts.

Sleep Well, Wake Healthy

In November, nationally renowned sleep expert Carol Ash, D.O, director of sleep medicine for Meridian Health, was the keynote speaker for “Power of an Hour.” The free event, held at Oyster Point Hotel in Red Bank, focused on the ways sleep habits can impact (and be impacted by) stress management, fitness, diet and overall health.

“We are dealing with a health crisis right now,” Ash said. “Sleep is the backbone of your health.”

Watch video from the event here.

Light Up Your Life

2015 was a year of adversity in many forms, challenges we all felt the brunt of in some way. When adversity seems insurmountable, it’s all too easy to be overcome by stress, anxiety and depression - serious health conditions with potentially life-threatening consequences. On November 18, Stacy Doumas, M.D., director of education for the department of psychiatry at Jersey Shore University Medical Center, hosted a special inspirational event in which she shared tips for maintaining mental and emotional strength in the face of adversity. Read Dr. Doumas’ piece, “Light Up Your Life: Celebrating Your Life, Helping Others & Finding Hope.”

Changes to Mammography Guidelines

In response to the American Cancer Society’s revised mammography screening guidelines, Denise Johnson-Miller, M.D., FACS, medical director of breast surgery for Meridian Health, offered several important points to keep in mind when considering these new recommendations. Read Dr. Johnson-Miller’s article here.

Mighty, Mighty Metabolism

Weight management and the obesity epidemic continued to dominate headlines in 2015. In March, Alexandra Woodrick, M.S., weight management coach and clinical exercise specialist at Meridian Fitness & Wellness at Jackson, contributed a piece for Meridian Weightless that helped explain the relationship between weight loss and body metabolism.

Read Alexandra’s article here.

Join Us in Freehold for a "Mall Walk" and Wellness Discussion Featuring Dr. Carol Ash!

Join us Wednesday, July 22 at Freehold Raceway Mall  for a relaxing morning mall walk, followed by a special discussion with Meridian's own authority on sleep health, Carol Ash, D.O.

Dr. Ash will talk about how making small, gradual adjustments to sleep and lifestyle habits can dramatically improve your long-term health. 

Register by calling  1-800-560-9990.  More information is available here.

For expert sleep advice, here's Dr. Ash on FOX News discussing some of the long-term effects lack of sleep can have on the overall health of adults and teenagers.

Don't "Ignore the Snore"

Ignoring Snoring?

Check out Dr. Carol Ash on "CBS This Morning" discussing sleep related health issues, and why simply "ignoring the snoring" could have serious consequences.

Adjusting Your Internal Clock for Daylight Savings Time

As you prepare to "spring ahead" for daylight savings, it's important to adjust your internal clock accordingly.

Watch Dr. Carol Ash on the TODAY show discussing the impact of springing forward on everyday health:

Get Your New Year Off to a Healthy Start with Our Top Stories of 2014

Another year, another step toward a healthier you. Health and wellness topics were hotter than ever in 2014, a year of breakthroughs, outbreaks and trends that had people all over the world talking. So what did we learn in 2014? Read on for some of the year's top health advice from Meridian experts.

1. Sleep Disorders Are No Walk in the Park

   Red Sox first baseman Mike Napoli's decision to undergo surgery to treat his sleep apnea was yet another call to action for public discourse on the seriousness of the ongoing struggle roughly 18 million Americans have with this potentially life threatening disorder, characterized by brief interruptions of breathing during sleep. Read the full article here.



2.  Do Our Kids Need More Sleep?

   Meridian Health Director of Sleep Medicine Dr. Carol Ash took on this hot-button issue during a visit to CBS This Morning. Hear what she had to say here.



3. What's Making Us So Tired?

   On a visit to the TODAY Show, Dr. Carol Ash joined Julie Bain, Health Director of the Ladies Home Journal to discuss answers to the commonly posed health question, "Why am I so tired?" Listing common causes that include diet and stress, both Ash and Bain agreed that most cases of daytime fatigue can be remedied with adjustments to both habit and lifestyle. Watch the full clip here.



4. Sleeping Apart Could Boost Mind, Body and Relationship

   He likes it cold; she likes it hot. She's a mover and a shaker; he's down for the count. Opposites may attract, but when it's time to call it a night, some differences come at a cost. It sounds extreme, but on an episode of "The Doctors," Dr. Carol Ash discussed how sleeping separately from your partner could provide a healthier night's sleep all around. Read all about it here.



5. Healthy Sleep Impacts School Performance

   According to the National Sleep Foundation (NSF), two-thirds of American children age 10 and younger have sleep problems. They noted 60 percent of children under the age of 18 complained of being tired during the day, and 15 percent fell asleep at school. So what can a parent do? Read on to find out.

Dr. Ash Visits Dr. Oz

Does caffeine really keep you up at night? Will going to bed earlier really help you sleep better? Watch as Dr. Ash visits with Dr. Oz to set the record straight.

Athlete's Decision to Undergo Facial Surgery Draws Further Attention to Seriousness of Sleep Disorders

According to an article on ESPN Boston, Red Sox first baseman Mike Napoli will undergo surgery in early November to treat his sleep apnea.

The decision is yet another call to action for public discourse on the seriousness of sleep apnea and the ongoing struggle roughly 18 million Americans have with this potentially life threatening disorder, characterized by brief interruptions of breathing during sleep.

The procedure Napoli will undergo is called bimaxillary advancement surgery, which separates the front portions of the lower and upper jaw and moves them forward to allow more room behind the tongue, reducing the chances of obstruction.

 Carol Ash, DO, Director of Sleep Medicine for Meridian Health, had this to say during a recent interview with CBS This Morning:

"When we go to sleep at night, our muscles lose tone and our airways start to narrow. This is true of all of us, but we can continue to breathe."

"But in people with sleep apnea, when they lose that muscle tone, their airway collapses all the way down. Airflow is compromised and oxygen can't get in."

Bimaxillary advancement surgery is just one of a range of treatment options used to treat sleep apnea, which include Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP).

CPAP utilizes an air splint, which blows air to the back of the throat, splinting the airway open so it can't collapse.

During the interview, Dr. Ash discussed another potentially game changing advancement in sleep technology, currently awaiting FDA approval, called a pulse generator. By sensing the body's effort to breathe, the device stimulates nerves in the neck contriving the muscles that keep the airway open.

"When you look at the range sleep disorders, and how we are just not getting enough sleep, this is the biggest public health issue facing society today," Ash says.

Dr. Ash featured on Livestrong.com

With features in national media outlets such as Today, Good Morning America, The Dr. Oz Show, The New York Times, Woman's Day, Shape, Prevention and Reader's Digest, Meridian Health Director of Sleep Medicine, Carol Ash, DO, is a board-certified general internist, fellowship-trained pulmonary, critical-care and sleep-medicine specialist with more than 15 years of experience in clinical medicine.

Dr. Ash recently contributed a Livestrong.com piece on "resetting" your internal clock, in which she suggested natural, cost effective alternatives to over-the-counter sleep medications, which she calls "short term solutions to recurring problems."

One potential remedy Dr. Ash lists is mindful breathing, an elegant solution for alleviating stress and achieving deep rest.

Read the full article here: http://www.livestrong.com/blog/reset-internal-clock-better-sleep/

Improve Mind, Body and Relationship By Sleeping Separately

He likes it cold; she likes it hot. She's a mover and a shaker; he's down for the count.

Opposites may attract, but when it's time to call it a night, some differences come at a cost.

It sounds extreme, but on an episode of "The Doctors," Dr. Carol Ash discussed how sleeping separately from your partner could provide a healthier night's sleep all around.

Dr. Ash discussed findings from a study that found people who sleep alone tend to get a better night's sleep - as over 50% of those surveyed blamed their mates for their sleep disturbances.

Researchers add that relationships and overall health can improve dramatically when couples opt to sleep separately.

So what does Dr. Ash have to say? Is "divide and conquer" an option worth considering for couples not getting adequate sleep?
 

 "We think of sleeping apart as taboo and something we should never do," Ash says. "But the truth of the matter is, sleep is so important,  if that is what you have to do to get a good night's sleep, then, yes, it is."

Watch the full segment below and decide for yourself.

Deciphering the Enigma of Your Slumber's Multiverse

We've all had those types of dreams. Whether funny, creepy or just plain bizarre, they're the dreams we can't seem to shake, at least until we get an answer to "What did that mean??"

On FOX News' "While You Were Sleeping" segment, Dr. Carol Ash took on that very question and offered insight into the body's slumber responses and how to go about "decoding the mysteries of your mind and unlocking the meaning from your dreams."

"You have to remember that the brain is taking in all the old information and new information and processing it in new patterns to help you come up with solutions to the problems of the day," Ash says. "Dreaming allows you to work through all those negative emotions and solve them in a safe environment, your bedroom."

Watch the full segment below to hear Dr. Ash's interpretation of dream scenarios such as losing control of a vehicle, being chased, being lost and having your teeth fall out (which is more common than you think.)