Page 18 THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FriDAy, OCTObEr 25, 2024 THE SOUNDS | FROM PAGE 17 ed. Leaves should be left outside at the curb by 7 a.m. on the appropriate days. Please ensure that leaf containers are physically separated from trash and recycling. Paper leaf bags are the preferred method of leaf disposal. If you are using barrels, they must be clearly marked with yard waste stickers. Yard waste stickers, which are free, may be obtained at Inspectional Services in the lower level of Saugus Town Hall at 298 Central St., or at the Saugus Department of Public Works at 515 Main St. Barrel covers must remain removed so that the leaves are visible. Plastic bags, cardboard boxes, branches and brush will not be accepted. Please note that separate trucks collect the rubbish, recycling and leaves, so the leaves may be collected at a diff erent time of day. “Missed pickups” will not be conducted. Please contact Recycling Director Scott Brazis at 781-2314036 with any questions. Hammersmith Quilters Guild Craft Fair is Nov. 6 The Hammersmith Quilters Guild Craft Fair will be held Wednesday, Nov. 6, from 7-8:30 p.m. at the Saugus Senior Center (466 Central St., Saugus). The Guild members will be selling handmade, beautiful items. Think holiday shopping! Cash and checks are recommended. A scissors sharpener will be available. www.hqgsaugus.org Selectmen meet Nov. 7 Meredith Casagrande, the clerk of the Board of Selectmen, announced that the board meeting set for Oct. 29 has been canceled because there is nothing on the agenda for that date. The next meeting scheduled will be Nov. 7, 2024, at 7 p.m. in the Auditorium in Town Hall – to be followed by Nov. 19 at 7 p.m. Here’s what’s going on at the Saugus Public Library Five bucks for a bag of books! The New Friends of the Saugus Public Library are offering quite a bargain – $5 for a bag of books. Purchase a New Friends of the Saugus Public Library mesh book bag at the Main Desk for $5 and fi ll it with as many books as you’d like. Proceeds benefi t the New Friends so they can support public library services in Saugus. Pongala Photographs: Susan Olesiw has been visiting India and photographing its people and festivals since 1976. In her photograph exhibit on display this month and November in the fi rst fl oor readRON’S OIL Call For PRICE MELROSE, MA 02176 NEW CUSTOMER’S WELCOME ACCEPTING VISA, MASTERCARD & DISCOVER (781) 397-1930 OR (781) 662-8884 100 GALLON MINIMUM ing room at the Saugus Public Library, she focuses on the ninth day of the annual 10-day Pongala festival held in Trivandrum, Kerala, South India. It is the largest gathering of women in the world; up to two and a half million women attend each year, and though primarily Hindu, the festival is open to all devotees of any faith. The color photograph display and the photo captions are worth checking out. Halloween Costume Party at the Iron Works: There will be costumes, candy and dancing at the Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site on Thursday, Oct. 31, in a Halloween Costume Parade being organized by the Saugus Public Library. Meet us at the Iron Works in your costume for Halloween music, a parade and trick or treating. Special guest Matt Heaton will perform seasonal tunes. Please check the online event calendar for weather updates. A Pumpkin Parade at the library: Decorate a pumpkin inspired by a favorite book! Paint it. Dress it. But don’t carve it. Ages three to 12. Drop off the pumpkins until Oct. 27. All participants will win a Halloween treat. MEG’s Christmas Tree Festival The MEG Foundation’s 2024 Christmas Tree Festival will open on Nov. 8, from 3-8 p.m. and continue on Nov. 9, from 3 to 8 p.m.; Nov. 10, from noon to 5 p.m.; Nov. 15, from 3 to 8 p.m.; and Nov. 16, from 3 to 8 p.m. Stay tuned for more details or contact Linda Ross at 617-686-4645. Notes from the Town Democratic Party SOUNDS | SEE PAGE 19 Say nior Say nr Sa y Senior Senio by Jim Miller Best CPAP Alternatives for Sleep Apnea Dear Savvy Senior, I’ve been diagnosed with sleep apnea and have been trying to use a CPAP device for the past six months but can’t tolerate it. Are there any alternative treatment options you can tell me about? Sleepy Sam Dear Sam, I’m sorry to hear your CPAP mask is keeping you awake at night, but I’m happy to hear that you’re addressing your obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) problem. Left untreated, OSA is linked to daytime sleepiness and an increased risk of anxiety, diabetes, hypertension and stroke. For those whose aren’t familiar, OSA causes your breathing to pause during sleep because something blocks your airway, like your tongue or relaxed throat muscles. Losing weight, quitting smoking, and limiting alcohol can all help ease obstructive sleep apnea symptoms such as snoring. The primary treatment for people with moderate or severe OSA is a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machine, which keeps your airway open by pumping air through a mask you wear over your mouth and/or nose when you sleep. But many people, like yourself, have diffi culty tolerating CPAP and don’t stick with it. But CPAP machines have become smaller and quieter, with more comfortable options available. And for some people with mild to moderate OSA, less invasive alternatives to CPAP may be worth considering. Here are several to ask your doctor about. Dental device: This is designed to move the jaw so that the tongue shifts toward the front of the mouth to help keep the airway open. It’s one of the primary alternatives to CPAP and can also be used with CPAP to help make severe obstructive sleep apnea milder. A dentist who specializes in sleep medicine (fi nd one at dentalsleep. org) will be able to customize its fi t to help your breathing without causing harm to your bite or teeth. These custom-made oral appliances can cost between $2,000 and $4,000 but may be covered by insurance. There are much cheaper options available online to treat snoring, but experts say these may not help with OSA, and could move teeth out of place or cause jaw issues if they’re not properly fi tted. Position therapy: For some, sleeping on the back can make obstructive sleep apnea dramatically worse. In these cases, switching to side sleeping – perhaps using pillows or a tennis ball attached to a shirt back – can sometimes help. Tongue trainer: In 2021, the Food and Drug Administration approved a tongue-stimulating device for mild sleep apnea called eXciteOSA (exciteosa.com), which people wear for 20 minutes a day for six weeks and then 20 minutes a couple of times a week indefi nitely. It costs $1,650 and is not covered by insurance. Surgery: Those who can’t tolerate CPAP could have upper airway surgery to reduce the size of their soft palate or other tissue in their throat. But such options don’t always work, have serious potential complications, and cannot be reversed. So, in general, they should not be fi rstline treatments. A newer option is a surgically implanted device called Inspire (inspiresleep.com). Approved in 2014, it stimulates a nerve that moves your tongue to keep your airway open. Inspire can be removed if it is not tolerated, but it should also be tried only if someone is unable to use CPAP, and it is not an option for everyone. Drug therapy: A new study, recently published in the New England Journal of Medicine, found that tirzepatide – the main ingredient found in type 2 diabetes medication Mounjaro and weight loss treatment Zepbound – helps reduce symptom severity by almost twothirds in adults with obesity and obstructive sleep apnea. Ask your doctor about this option. Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior.org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book. ior
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