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FRIDAY, Feb. 19, 2021 (HealthDay News) -- CPAP therapy for sleep apnea may do more than help people sleep better. A new study finds use of the therapy is also associated with increased physical activity in people with heart disease.The international study included more than 2,600 participants, ages 45-75. They all had heart disease and obstructive sleep apnea, a common condition in which the upper airway repeatedly collapses during sleep. People with sleep apnea often feel drowsy and sluggish during waking hours.CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure) therapy is a common treatment for the condition. Patients receive mild levels of air pressure through a mask to keep their throat open during sleep."We were pleased to find that our CPAP users reported that they were better able to...

FRIDAY, Feb. 19, 2021 (HealthDay News) -- A heart attack and a panic attack share many similar symptoms, so it's crucial to determine which one it is, experts say.Chest pain, racing heart, shortness of breath and sweating can occur with both, but only a heart attack can be fatal, according to a team at Penn State Health.A heart attack occurs when a blockage in an artery restricts blood flow to the heart muscle. Symptoms continue until a person gets emergency medical treatment. In a panic attack, symptoms may last 20 minutes and then go away.However, only a health professional can confirm a heart attack or a panic attack, so any of the common symptoms should be taken seriously, the experts said.Men 45 and older and women 55 and older are at higher risk for heart attack than younger men...

THURSDAY, Feb. 18, 2021 (HealthDay News) -- There's no evidence that the new coronavirus can spread through food or food packaging, U.S. health officials say.Of the more than 100 million cases of COVID-19 worldwide, there hasn't been any epidemiological evidence of food or food packaging as the source of SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) transmission to humans, and national and international surveillance systems have found no signs of such transmission."After more than a year since the coronavirus disease 2019 [COVID-19] outbreak was declared a global health emergency, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention continue to underscore that there is no credible evidence of food or food...

THURSDAY, Feb. 18, 2021 (HealthDay News) -- If you've ever had a "lucid dream" -- one in which you're aware you're dreaming -- new research just might jolt you awake.Not only is it possible during these vivid dreams to perceive questions, but to answer them, too -- at least sometimes.That's the tantalizing takeaway from four independent studies that used different methods to communicate with sleeping volunteers, including some who were experienced in the art of lucid dreaming."When we started the project, we predicted that two-way communication would be possible because there have been all these previous studies of lucid dreamers using eye signals to communicate out of dreams," said study lead author Karen Konkoly, a doctoral student at Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill., who...