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CPAP user is constantly awakened at night by a dry mouth

Columns

DEAR DR. ROACH: I am 74 and have sleep apnea. I’ve used a CPAP device for over 20 years. Over the past four to five years, I’ve been awakened several times each night with a seriously dry mouth. I will get a drink, use the bathroom, and get right back to sleep, only to have the same thing happen over and over again. I’ve used several different types of face masks with a full face mask working the best, and I’ve tried using a chin strap without success. This impacts my quality of sleep. I am otherwise in pretty good health and have an active life. — G.I. ANSWER: Dry mouth is ...

The oil market that sets today’s gas prices was invented in western PA

Columns

The fall of 2026 is a moment of energy centrality, when geopolitics unfolding far away shows up in Americans’ everyday lives. In Pennsylvania, the statewide diesel price averages US$6.50 per gallon. In Iowa, farmers are paying more than $6 a gallon for diesel. And in Alaska, unleaded gas runs more than $9 a gallon. As a distinguished professor of history and environmental studies at Penn State Altoona, I write widely about oil and energy issues. This moment has me thinking about how the oil industry began nearly 170 years ago in northwestern Pennsylvania. Setting crude prices ...

Finding fact from fiction on the proposed KeyState project

Letters to the editor

Emily Wildman Philadelphia The recent public information session regarding the proposed KeyState chemical plant in Clearfield County highlights a crucial debate facing central Pennsylvania. As global supply chain disruptions and geopolitical conflicts continue to drive up synthetic ammonia-based fertilizer prices, finding ways to support Pennsylvania farmers is critical. Global ammonia production is roughly 200 million metric tons annually. Despite the story being told, the amount of ammonia this facility plans to produce (less than 100,000 metric tons per year) is less than .05% ...

Congress should keep its promise to combat injured veterans

Columns

When Americans are injured in combat, we have a responsibility to make sure they receive the benefits they earned through their service and sacrifice. For tens of thousands of veterans, we are falling short of that promise. Under current law, many veterans who were forced to retire from the military because of combat-related injuries must give up a portion of their military retirement pay in order to receive disability compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The Major Richard Star Act would change that. The bipartisan legislation would correct what DAV and other ...

Vance and Agnew

Letters to the editor

Jim Newton Itasca, Ill. Vice President JD Vance has given me newfound insight on, of all things, history. In Peter Baker’s recent NY Times column on Vance, Baker quotes the VP saying “If you’ve ever met him (a conservative columnist who criticized the administration’s Iran policy) in person it’s quite obvious the man has never missed a burrito.” Baker reminds us that similar insults aren’t particularly rare in today’s political climate, but that Vance has taken it to new levels. I agree, but former President Richard Nixon’s first VP Spiro T. Agnew comes to mind. ...

Bilger is the only choice for Congress

Letters to the editor

Mary Bruce Serene State College Central Pennsylvanians deserve a representative who has their needs and interests at heart. Glenn (GT) Thompson isn’t it. Thompson’s actions have hurt constituents. His failure to oppose tariffs contributed to inflation. His support of the Iran war helped drive up gas and diesel prices. His votes threatened food benefits and health insurance for hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians. He knows he’s not representing constituents because he hides from us. No town halls in nine years. Refusing, as in the past, to participate in debates. ...