Sleeping on their side or with their upper body in a slightly raised position can help people who wantto stop snoring. This was concluded by the German Otolaryngologists Association. 

Other methods to cure this problem are losing weightand refraining from a nightcap before going to bed, it said. If these measures are not giving results, the snorer may be suffering from sleeping disorder called "sleeping apnoea." This disorder is marked by dangerous pauses in breathing. Should this be the case, a doctor can prescribe nighttime use of a continuous positive airway pressure CPAP) device, which comes with a special mask.

A minor operation is also advisable in some cases to stiffen soft palatal tissue. According to German ear, nose and throat doctors, the procedures significantly increased the quality of patients' 

sleep - they wake up rested again and are no longer so tired during the day. (With Input from Agencies)

In a recent study conducted in Germany, it was concluded that stress which continues over a long period of time can trigger pain and physical discomforts such as stomach and intestinal

problems, back pain, asthma, skin rashes and headaches. This study was conducted by Germany's professional association of psychiatrists. Sufferers of such problems should consider what in

their lives has put them under pressure and what they can change about their situation, if there is no physical cause of the problems. If that alone doesn't help, psychotherapy could be the solution.

It is estimated that up to one-third of people who consult a doctor because of these various complaints are suffering from a psychosomatic illness.

The stress often is the result of demands or conflicts with colleagues or superiors at work or it can result from relationship problems. (With Input from Agencies)

Indian Exports grew by 11.5% in January


Indian exports reported growth for the third consecutive month as in January exports grew by 11.5% comparing to the same period last year, commerce and industry minister Anand Sharma told reporters today. In January, exports were reported at $14.34 billion while the exports figures were posted $12.9 billion last year. The increase in exports shows that the country is making its strong presence in the international marketplace.



The official foreign trade data, including the import figures, would be released on March 2. The preliminary data had earlier expected a growth of 8% the export figures in January.

Not only in January, exports from India were on a high for the past three months as in November 2009 India's exports grew by 18.2% and were posted $13.2 billion and in Decemberexports grew by 9.8% to reach on a 15 month high and touched $14.61 billion. Before November, India's export saw 13 successive months of decline because of the global economic slowdown since October 2008.

"Between now and March 31, we hope to maintain and further strengthen the growth, which will help us in registering healthy export figures and reducing gap dip in year-on-year exportssubstantially," Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma said, Revealing the January export numbers.

Many people describe tension headaches in different manners. According to Hans-Christoph Diener, spokesman for the German Neurology Society (DGN) 70 percent of Germans show symptoms of such headache twice a month.

Tension headaches, known medically as tension-type headaches, are a real problem if they become chronic, however. "As defined by specialists, this is when the pains occur 15 or more days a month for a least three consecutive months," explained Volker Limmroth, head physician at Cologne-Merheim Hospital's neurological clinic.

Diener, who founded the West German Headache Centre at Essen University Hospital, said that people with frequent tension headaches should by all means see a neurologist or pain therapist. "There seems to be a time factor," he said. "If you catch a person on the way to chronification, it's possible to 'roll back' the tension headaches with the help of multimodal therapy."

The first pillar, out of four main pillars of multimodal therapy, is long-term medicinal treatment. Painkilling drugs are unsuitable, though, because when taken over a long period they can not only have various side effects but also aggravate the headaches or cause them to become chronic.

The second pillar is behavior therapy. "Two methods are particularly effective against tension headaches: progressive muscle relaxation as developed by (American physician Edmund) Jacobson and autogenic training," remarked Susanne Grohs-von Reichenbach, a relaxation therapist in Munich.

As a third pillar in multimodal therapy, neurologists recommend engaging in an endurance sport such as jogging or swimming three times a week. And finally, physiotherapy as a fourth pillar can target muscle tension, for example in the neck.

Grohs-von Reichenbach noted," Many of the people in my class point to work at a computer screen as a precipitating factor. I advise them to take a two-to-three minute break every hour, roll their shoulders and move their eyes."