Embedded Files
What Causes Excessive Yawning?
I was consulting one of my client and taking her diet history when her husband who accompanied her yawned. I was bit disturbed to see him yawning 4 times within 2 minutes. Finally, I offered him water & asked him if his sleep is not sound. It was embarrassing moment for him as he was an energetic young man who is a regular marathon runner. On my way home even I started yawning. It was around 12 pm in afternoon, I realised that even I yawn, it is a very natural response of body. I was dehydrated but had sound sleep previous night. I also remembered one of my maternal Aunt who always yawned too much in her casual talks & I used to make fun of her. As I am nutritionist it was very important for me to learn about excessive yawning its causes & remedies.
Yawning is a mostly an involuntary process of opening the mouth and breathing in deeply, filling the lungs with air. It is a very natural response to being tired. In fact, yawning is usually triggered by sleepiness or fatigue. Some yawns are short, and some last for several seconds before an open-mouthed exhale. Watery eyes, stretching, or audible sighs may accompany yawning.
Researchers aren’t exactly sure why yawning occurs, but common triggers include fatigue and boredom. Yawns may also occur when you talk about yawning or see or hear someone else yawn. It is believed that contagious yawning may have something to do with social communication. In addition, yawning may help cool the temperature of the brain.
Excessive yawning is that which occurs more than once per minute. Although excessive yawning is usually attributed to being sleepy or bored, it may be a symptom of an underlying medical problem.
Certain conditions can cause a vasovagal reaction, which results in excessive yawning. During a vasovagal reaction, there is increased activity in the vagus nerve. This nerve runs from the brain down to the throat and into the abdomen. When the vagus nerve becomes more active, heart rate and blood pressure drop significantly. This reaction can indicate anything from a sleep disorder to a serious heart condition.
Talk to your doctor if you’ve noticed a sudden increase in your yawning, especially if you’ve been yawning frequently for no apparent reason. Only your doctor can determine whether or not the excessive yawning is occurring as a result of a medical problem.
Causes of Excessive Yawning
The exact cause of excessive yawning isn’t known. However, it may occur as a result of:
drowsiness, tiredness, or fatigue
sleep disorders, such as sleep apnea or narcolepsy
side effects of medications that are used to treat depression or anxiety
bleeding in or around the heart
Low blood pressure
Although less common, excessive yawning could also indicate:
a brain tumor
heart attack
epilepsy
multiple sclerosis
liver failure
body’s inability to control its temperature
Diagnosing Excessive Yawning
To identify the cause of excessive yawning, your doctor may first ask you about your sleep habits. They will want to make sure that you are getting adequate restful sleep. This can help them determine whether your excessive yawning is occurring as a result of being fatigued or having a sleep disorder.
After ruling out sleep issues, your doctor will perform diagnostic tests to find another possible cause for excessive yawning. An electroencephalogram (EEG) is one of the tests that may be used. An EEG measures the electrical activity in the brain. It can help your doctor diagnose epilepsy and other conditions affecting the brain. Your doctor may also order an MRI scan. This test uses powerful magnets and radio waves to produce detailed images of the body, which can help doctors visualize and assess bodily structures. These pictures are often used to diagnose spinal cord and brain disorders, such as tumors and multiple sclerosis. An MRI scan is also beneficial for evaluating the function of the heart and detecting heart problems.
Treating Excessive Yawning
If medications are causing excessive yawning, your doctor may recommend a lower dosage. Make sure to discuss this with your doctor before making any changes to your medications. You should never stop taking medications without approval from your doctor.
If excessive yawning is occurring as a result of a sleep disorder, your doctor may recommend sleep-aid medications or techniques for getting more restful sleep. Tips from Pune based expert nutritionist to improve sleep includes as below:
Deep breathing before sleep
Drink warm Milk at bedtime (milk contains tryptophan which can help in stimulating sleep hormone)
Warm Turmeric water can improve sleep (turmeric is an anti-inflammatory herb)
If excessive yawning is a symptom of a serious medical condition, such as epilepsy or liver failure, then the underlying problem must be treated immediately.
Yawning is a good thing. It is a way we can keep the brain awake and alert. But, there are definitely times when an unexpected yawn can be embarrassing. It gives the impression that you're less-than enthused, and that’s definitely not something you want while you're in the middle of a deep conversation, or an important board meeting.
Here are a few tips to help keep you from yawning at those inopportune moments:
Take a few deep breaths through your nose and exhale through your mouth.
Drink a cool beverage/ Cool water. During those important moments, keep a cool beverage handy. If you feel the need to yawn, take a sip of ice water.
Snack on cool foods, such as refrigerated watermelon or cucumber, whenever you want to avoid yawning.
Keep your environment cool. Because one reason we yawn is when the brain's temperature is too warm, avoid sitting in a hot environment.
Use a cool compress. If you really want to make sure you don't yawn during that important meeting, press a cool compress against your head and hold it there for a minute or two before heading into the boardroom. This should keep you cool enough to ward off the yawns until you get back to your desk.
As this is very common & not noticed symptom, we tend to ignore Yawning. If you have Excessive yawning problem, it’s time to start working on diet lifestyle modifications. Speak to our Pune based Expert Nutritionist & psychologist for further assistance.
Like Us On FaceBook ::
Our other Articles :
Now a days we hear very often from parents, teachers, grandparents, neighbors that “this child is very hyperactive”.
Many parents make the child sit for studies for hours which is beyond their capacity and then complain, call them hyperactive, can’t sit for studies, keeps talking, leaves the place often, etc.
But hyperactivity involves many other characteristics to be identified before we label any child as hyperactive.
Festival Special
Navratri means 'Nine Nights,' the festival is commemorated for nine long days to perform a Puja to one of the nine forms of Goddess.
Being gujarati love this festival apart from religious and traditional significance, during these nine days, people show their best moves and do the garba and dandiya.
People also observe fast & feast all these 9 days.
Energy Secrets of Mr. Modi Revealed
( मोदीजी के अद्भुत ऊर्जा का रहस्य)
Mr. Narendra Modi is India's 14th Prime Minister . He is an inspiration to millions and leader with a Vision. He is a person praised for his policies and decisions which is sure result of hard work and dedication he puts in his profession .
He is hard taskmaster himself and works hard toward implementing change which should benefit masses of India.
With so many international and nations travels & the kind on energy he brings to his work at an age of 66 , it seems Mr. Modi has fitted a Robot Inside himself..
But the real fact against his awesome energy is something else ..
Let's us see his routine habits , which would help us analyse his fitness mantra..
While I visited for regular checkup of my entire family, I came across a report were I got to know majority of them are deficit in Vitamin D3 & Vitamin B12.
Also another problem like every women faces very commonly known is anemia was reflected in my report. If I being nutritionist can have deficiencies many females/males out there might be having deficiencies and until it is alarming enough we don’t go for regular test.
Hence, Here is Some knowledge sharing which become most important for staying away from Micro-nutrient deficiencies in our lives.
Going out to have food this Weekend: Try to think healthy This Time
You want to eat something tasty but are scared for getting overloaded with fat.
Don’t you worry! Some healthy tips will help you choose best n healthiest out of menu card, provided you go for menu card instead of buffet( buffet are bad option you will end up eating much more than required.
Just Remember to Choose Below Option while Ordering ::
Testophobia - Phobia of Exams
Recently a girl Aarohi (name changed) of 24 years came to my clinic. When she came to meet me, she was crying, her eyes were red( which means she was crying since a long time), her hands were shaking, sweating, her body was trembling continuously, her breathing was shallow, increased palpitation. She was vomiting throughout the day. Her mother told that she is talking of jumping from the top of her building since two days. Aarohi had a full blown panic attack when she came to meet me. The reason was she was appearing for C.A. exam and was unable to study.
This kind of reaction is seen in many students who appear for difficult exams. It’s a very normal reaction as the pressure of the syllabus is very difficult to manage. Students develop some unhealthy habits of studying, sleeping, eating which leads to imbalance in their body. Increased stress levels, negative self-talk, paranoid thinking, irrational demands from self, all this unconsciously increase their anxiety. When this anxiety is not managed or recognized by the care givers then it can lead to a full blown panic attack and testophobia.
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse