Respiration is controlled by a special nerve center located in the brain. When the level of carbon dioxide in the blood exceeds the permissible norm, the brain directs the command to the muscles, the chest cage contracts, and breathing occurs.
Danger of holding your breath (apnea)
Why does the child hold his breath? In an infant, all body functions are poorly developed. His breathing does not have a clear rhythm. The child holds his breath in a dream and can not control it.
A short stop in breathing is not dangerous for the health of the child, but if it lasts longer than 15-20 seconds and is repeated several times within an hour, the brain stops receiving oxygen, the pulse and heart rate decrease, and loss of consciousness occurs. In medical practice, there have been cases of infant death in a dream, but there is no exact data on the causes. If the child breathes for up to a year, holding the air for 10-12 seconds, there is no reason for concern and control.
Types of Apnea
This is not considered a disease. This is a symptom of various pathologies, diseases and conditions. There are several types of breath holding in a child:
- Central. There are no contractions in the muscles of the chest and abdomen. No impulses from the brain. The departments responsible for breathing do not work well.
- Obstructive. The child attempts to inhale. But air does not pass into the lungs due to problems with the respiratory tract.
- Mixed. There is a pathology of the central nervous system and problems with air intake as a result of various inflammatory processes.
Symptoms of Sleep Apnea
In a dream, there may be some signs of breathing problems:
- Apnea is often accompanied by snoring; the child's mouth is open.
- Troubled sleep, frequent change of poses.
- Twitching of limbs.
- Irregular movements of the pectoral muscles and abdomen. The child holds his breath while exhaling.
- The breathing is uneven, frequent and intermittent.
Children need a full sleep. If they systematically lack sleep, this becomes the cause of irritability, drowsiness during the day, frequent changes in mood, aggression, poor appetite (weight loss), and apathy.
In the future, there may be a delay in mental and mental development, decreased attention, memory.
Unfavorable factors
There are many unfavorable factors affecting a child’s health status:
- Parents do not have enough experience to raise a child.
- Unfavorable living conditions of the family (cold room, mold, dampness, dust, pets).
- Severe pregnancy, the presence of chronic diseases in the mother.
- Complex births (cesarean, contractions stimulation).
- Prematurity, underweight, hypoxia, intrauterine growth retardation.
- Large fruit.
- Smoking, drinking alcohol and drugs.
- Multiple pregnancy.
- Constant overheating of the baby after birth.
- Use of soft mattresses, feather-beds and pillows or vice versa a heavy blanket.
- The baby should have a sleeping place, where he can comfortably sit down and have a good night's sleep.
- Smoking indoors.
- Lack of vitamins and nutrients (rickets).
Parent Tips
About 15-17% of children suffer from apnea. If you do not pay attention to symptoms, breathing problems can have a negative effect on physical and mental health. Identifying the problem yourself is not easy.
It is important to observe the baby during night or daytime sleep. How often does the child breathe holding his breath (how many times per hour) for how long.
All observations can be recorded in a notebook, and sent to a specialist (pediatrician). Only a qualified doctor can help solve the problem.
Actions when breathing is stopped:
- If the baby has stopped breathing and begins to turn blue, they take him in his arms, shake him lightly, hold his hand upward along the spine.
- Then rub the ears, arms and legs.
- Lightly massage the chest and sprinkle cool water on the face.
- After these procedures, the child should begin to breathe on its own.
It is important to detect at what time the respiratory arrest has occurred. If the measures taken have not yielded results, you need to start the artificial respiration procedure and call an ambulance. Severe cases are infrequent.
Respiratory problems
Health problems causing respiratory failure:
- Bacterial and viral infections (influenza, SARS).
- Anemia (a lack of red blood cells).
- Heart disease.
- CNS pathology.
- Epileptic seizures.
- Overweight.
- Allergy causing edema.
- Respiratory diseases (asthma, pneumonia bronchitis, pleurisy).
- ENT diseases (adenoids, sinusitis).
- Curvature of the nasal septum.
Preventative measures
A comfortable sleeping place is prepared: an elastic mattress of medium hardness, a light blanket. Instead of a pillow (up to a year), a diaper folded several times is put.
Toddler dress up in light, loose clothes for sleeping. It should not constrain movements and overheat the body.
The room in which the baby is located is constantly aired. Comfortable temperature for sleeping is 18-21 º. To avoid the occurrence of allergic reactions, do not use long-pile carpets, soft toys, flowers, fluffy rugs, or upholstered furniture in a room setting. All of these objects accumulate dust and bacteria. Cleaning is carried out regularly (dry and wet).
Breastfeeding increases immunity and teaches the child to hold his breath, breathe properly through the nose and train the respiratory muscles. Walking in the fresh air in any weather tempers the body.
With a joint sleep of the baby and parents, the risk of breath holding is reduced. The baby’s body is able to synchronize some parameters with the functions of the mother’s body. So, while being near parents during sleep, the child's heart rhythm and breathing stabilize.
Troubleshooting
A special device that monitors the frequency of breaths and the duration of the pause will help to monitor the state of the child in a dream. If the respiratory arrest rate is exceeded, the device will signal.
If the baby’s health condition is causing concern, contact a pediatrician. It is important to describe the situation in detail in order to identify the cause of apnea, and to begin treatment of diseases that cause frequent respiratory arrest. If the cause is not eliminated, the patient's condition will remain unchanged. Severe complications and pathologies in development will arise.
If the child holds his breath, Komarovsky E.O., a pediatrician, advises to go to hospital for a full examination. The causes of temporary respiratory failure are many.
In severe cases, children wear special masks that facilitate breathing. Complex cases are rare. Prescribe medications. In the presence of ENT diseases, it may be necessary to remove adenoids, rinse the nose, etc.
If the cause is allergy, antihistamines are prescribed to reduce airway swelling. It is important to completely treat colds so that there are no complications (bronchitis, pulmonary edema, pneumonia, pleurisy). Vitamins are prescribed to increase immunity.
Slow or too frequent breathing with pauses of up to 10 seconds. considered a physiological norm. Treatment of diseases causing apnea is considered an important condition for stopping respiratory arrest. Preventive measures and adherence to sleep rules help eliminate their underlying causes. As the body grows, respiratory functions normalize on their own, if there are no serious pathologies.