 |
From Tennis Balls to Snoring Relief
Vancouver entrepreneur develops Anti-Snore T-Shirt to keep snorers on their sides and partners happy.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
VANCOUVER, JUNE 18, 2007
– Sleepers who are literally sick and tired of suffering from chronic
snoring can now try a new option to help ease their condition: an
innovative, simple cotton T-Shirt.
The REM-A-TEE Anti-Snore Shirt, designed by Vancouver
businessman and longtime snorer Sean Kerklaan, is based on the age-old
“tennis ball in the back” treatment in which sleeping on one’s side
discourages snoring. This medically researched treatment is known as
positional therapy.
The back of the Anti-Snore Shirt is fitted with three soft,
three-inch-wide Styrofoam cylinders. If wearers involuntarily roll onto
their backs while sleeping, the foam inserts gently nudge them back
onto their sides.
“I’m a snorer. I’ve suffered from it and so has anyone who’s
had the misfortune of sleeping in the same room with me,” said Mr.
Kerklaan, who, after visiting sleep clinics in Montreal and Vancouver,
was diagnosed with sleep apnea. It’s a potentially serious medical
condition in which the sufferer literally stops breathing several times
during the night. The condition can be accompanied by loud snoring, as
in Mr. Kerklaan’s case.
“I’ve tried many suggested treatment
options, including oral devices and appliances that can cost thousands
of dollars,” said Mr. Kerklaan. ”But I’m delighted that this basic,
inexpensive T-Shirt has finally helped me to stop snoring.”
His frustration with his snoring, and the toll it took on a
personal relationship, led him to research comfortable, simple and
effective ways to stop snoring. He decided to advance the
side-sleeping, positional-therapy treatment by sewing a tennis ball
into the back of a shirt. That didn’t work. He continued researching
and redesigning. Twenty prototypes later, the Anti-Snore Shirt was
born.
Dr. Najib Ayas, Assistant professor of medicine at the
University of British Columbia who specializes in sleep-related
breathing disorders, says the side-sleeping that the T-Shirt encourages
may be useful in individuals suffering from positional sleep apnea. “In
some patients, sleep apnea is much worse when they sleep on their
backs,” said Dr. Ayas, who has no financial interest in the T-Shirt.
“For these types of patients, this shirt is a very reasonable way of
keeping them on their side and treating their positional sleep apnea.”
Dr. Ayas, who works at the UBC Sleep Disorders Clinic, has suggested
the Anti-Snore Shirt to clinic patients whom he counsels to sleep on
their sides.
Some users of the Anti-Snore Shirt say it has helped them
with their snoring, while their partners – who suffer sleep
disturbances as much as the snorers - are reporting restful sleeps for
the first time in years. "In the past 37 years of our married life, I
have spent many hours gently tapping, elbowing, or even kicking my
husband to get him to turn on his side and stop snoring,” said Colleen
Feeney, whose spouse recently tried the Anti-Snore Shirt. “But the
first night he wore the shirt, I woke up and was shocked to see him
sleeping on his side, totally quietly and perfectly still. Since then,
both of us are able to enjoy a restful sleep. It's good for him, good
for me, and great for us."
The REM-A-TEE Anti-Snore Shirt sells for $37.99 Cdn. It can
be ordered online. Visit www.antisnoreshirt.com and click on the
Anti-Snore Shirt image on the left side of the home page. You can also
call 1-866-927-6739 or email to: sales@antisnoreshirt.com.
For interviews with Mr. Kerklaan, Dr. Ayas or individuals who use the shirt, contact:
Ann Gibbon
604.263.0634
Cell: 778.999.0064
info@anngibboncommunications.com
|
|
|
Follow Us On Twitter
Like Us On Facebook
Watch Our Videos
