Dr. Steve Info: Tuesday

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7:00am Segment Info:
Do you ever wake up in the middle of the night with a nightmare wondering where did that come from? I'm a grown-up, I’m not supposed to get nightmares. Sleep experts say nightmares can be triggered by lots of different things like stress, medications, fear, anxiety, sleep disorders, or the recent loss of a loved one. Nightmares are pretty common, even in adults, and they often involve negative emotions. Whether or not a nightmare wakes you up has nothing to do with how serious it is.

Is there a way to prevent nightmares?

There's no guarantee, but there are some things you can do:

Reduce stress with relaxation techniques, exercise and just talking about what's bothering you. Talk to your doctor about your medication, some are known to cause nightmares. Cut out illegal drugs and alcohol and get onto a regular sleep schedule. Studies show going to bed and getting up at the same time every day can prevent nightmares.

In other news, there's an interesting report about breast cancer.

We know that having dense breasts increases a woman's risk of breast cancer. In fact, for every one percent increase in breast density the risk of breast cancer goes up 2 percent. Now researchers in London say women who live in urban areas or work in urban areas appear to have more dense breast tissue than women who live in the suburbs. In the report urban women had a 54 percent greater chance of having dense breasts than women living in rural areas, and suburban women had a 14 percent higher risk of dense breasts than rural women.

How does breast density increase the risk of cancer?

If a breast is dense there's more glandular tissue and ducts rather than fatty tissue. That means more area for breast cancer to develop. According to the American cancer society. Each year, almost 180 thousand American women are diagnosed with invasive breast cancer, and about 40 thousand die from it. Some risk factors include a family history of breast cancer, not having children or having your first child after 30, being overweight, drinking more than one alcoholic drink a day, and living a sedentary lifestyle.

MORE INFO ON BREAST CANCER: breastcancer.org