Snoring: Symptoms, Causes, Cures, and Treatment

The causes of snoring

If the airways in your nose and throat are narrowed during sleep, the air you inhale and exhale has to push its way through a smaller passage. This can create a “snoring” noise, mostly due to vibrations of loose tissue in the back of your throat.
Snorers often have too much throat and nasal tissue, or “floppy” tissue that is more prone to vibrate. The position of the tongue can also get in the way of smooth breathing, as can being overweight – extra fat tissue in the neck and throat can obstruct airways.

Snoring can be mild, meaning that the snoring stops when the snorer wakes up and turns over, or severe, when the snorer suffers from continual snoring, regardless of sleep position.
Causes and risk factors of snoring vary. Some are in our control, and some are not.

Causes and Risk Factors of Snoring
Causes out of our control	Causes within our control
Heredity - You can inherit a narrow throat, or any of the physical deformities mentioned above, which can cause snoring. Being middle-aged or beyond - As you age, your throat becomes narrower, and the muscle tone in your throat decreases. Being male - Men have narrower air passages than do women and are more likely to snore. Allergies, asthma, a cold, or sinus infections - Such breathing problems cause blockage in your nasal airways and make inhalation difficult. This in turn creates a vacuum in your throat, and noisy breathing	Being overweight or out of shape - Excess weight and fatty tissue in the neck cause your throat to become smaller. Poor muscle tone and lax muscles also contribute to snoring. A history of smoking – Smoking (or exposure to second-hand smoke) relaxes muscles and also creates nasal and lung congestion. Alcohol or medications - Alcohol and certain medications increase relaxation of throat and tongue muscles, which makes snoring more likely. Sleeping posture - Sleeping flat on your back allows the flesh of your throat to relax and block the airway.

**Tip: The way you snore can help you diagnose why you snore!**

If you snore…
With your mouth closed: a problem with the tongue is probably the culprit
With your mouth open: your snoring is likely related to the tissues in your throat.

Snoring problems: causes and effects

Snoring is a problem

If you stop breathing during sleep and have to wake up to catch your breath
If you are disturbing your sleep partner
If you are losing sleep because of your snoring

In addition to problems stemming from sleep deprivation, snoring can cause more serious health problems, and have a negative impact on relationships.

Snoring and relationships

Sheila and Paul

Sleep Apnea Sheila’s husband, Paul, snores loudly often wakes her up and keeping her awake. Even more frustratingly, Paul sleeps soundly despite the awful noise he makes. Finally, she decides to sleep in the guest room to avoid the snoring problem. Sheila gets her full night’s sleep, but she misses having Paul’s body next to her, and their nightly chats. Paul is also moping around, feeling hurt and confused. He can’t understand why his snoring is such a problem – after all, it never wakes him up.

Even if your snoring isn’t disturbing your own sleep, it may very likely be ruining your sleep partner’s chance for a good night’s rest.

Snoring can affect both the physical and social intimacies of a relationship. The constant sleep disruption and excessive tiredness caused by noisy snoring often creates problems. Sleep partners of heavy snorers awaken over twenty times per hour, which severely cuts into the quality and quantity of their sleep.

Many partners of snorers decide to sleep in separate rooms, and the resulting lack of bedtime chatting and physical intimacy can lead to a strained relationship. The snorer often becomes isolated and frustrated about a problem they seemingly have no control over.

Negative health effects of snoring

The most typical health problem snoring causes is loss of sleep for both the snorer and his (or her) sleep partner. The snorer may wake frequently, either from the sound of his own snoring, or from jostling related to the snoring. His sleep partner has trouble sleeping deeply because of the snoring noise, plus anxiety about their partner’s health and well-being. This sleep deprivation has consequences during the day: sleepiness, irritability, and lack of productivity, as well as a significant increase in car accidents.

In extreme cases, snoring can cause reduced oxygen flow to the brain, which can lead to Type II Diabetes, high blood pressure, hypertension, stroke, and heart disease.

Chronic snorers are often middle-aged and overweight, and snoring may indicate a more serious underlying medical problem. If you are a severe snorer, see a doctor so you can rule out any serious health problems that are a result of or a cause of the snoring.

Snoring and sleep apnea

Snoring can also be a symptom of sleep apnea, which can be life-threatening. While snoring is caused by narrow airways, sleep apnea is a true breathing obstruction, which requires the sleeper to awaken to begin breathing again. A person with sleep apnea wakes up many times a night to regain breathing, but usually remembers nothing at all about the awakenings. The sleep partner of a person with sleep apnea usually remembers the awakenings and is generally a good witness of the incidents.

Snoring is a common symptom of sleep apnea, but snoring by itself does not involve the cessation of breathing.

See Sleep Apnea for more information

Diagnosing snoring

Most people seek treatment for snoring because a bed partner alerts them to the problem. However, those that sleep alone often find it more difficult to determine if they snore. If you wake in the morning and do not feel rested after a reasonable number of hours of sleep, it may be a sign that you are snoring.

If you suspect that you snore, you can see a sleep specialist or any physician that specializes in sleep disorders. This doctor will examine your throat, nose, mouth, palate, and neck, and check for underlying health conditions. The doctor may also enroll you in a test at a sleep clinic, where experts can observe your sleep patterns and diagnose your snoring problem.

To get diagnosed for snoring, you can go to either an ear, nose, and throat doctor (ENT or otolaryngologist), or a sleep clinic. See related links below for information on specialists in your area.

Self-cures for snoring

Mild snoring that isn't related to sleep apnea responds well to home remedies. Finding a cure for your snoring problem can result in an improved quality of life for you and your loved ones. Try some of the self-help tips below to prevent or alleviate your snoring.

Lose weight, stop smoking

Losing weight will reduce the fatty tissue in your airway. Eating less and improving your fitness level can significantly improve your ability to breathe freely when you sleep.

Stopping smoking or reducing exposure to secondhand smoke can help with the noise and intensity of your snoring.

Improve your sleep posture

Do you sleep on your back? If so, you are probably exacerbating your snoring problem - in this sleeping position, the soft tissues in the back of your throat (including your tongue) are more prone to slide backwards, blocking your airway. If you are a mild snorer, switching to sleeping on your side might cure your snoring altogether.

However, it can be hard to break the habit of sleeping on your back. Try the “tennis ball trick”: sleep with a tennis ball (or any ball of approximately the same size) attached to the back of your pajama top. (You can sew a pocket or safety-pin a sock to the back of the pajama top, then put a tennis ball in it.) The tennis ball is uncomfortable if you lie on your back, and you will respond by turning on your side. Soon you will develop side-sleeping as a habit and not need the tennis ball.

Elevate your head

Try sleeping without a pillow; pillows can block your airway by bending your neck. You can also use a specially-designed pillow for snorers, available online or at specialty stores.

An even better solution is to elevate the head of your bed four inches, which may make breathing easier and encourage your tongue and jaw to move forward. Elevating the entire head of the bed is better than using a pillow, which can crimp the neck and contribute to snoring. Placing rolled up towels under the head of the mattress is an easy way to change the angle of the mattress.

Avoid certain foods, alcohol, and sedatives before bed

If you tend to drink alcohol at night, try to cut back. Alcohol is a muscle relaxant; it will relax the muscles in your airways, which can worsen snoring. Likewise, you may be taking sleeping pills or tranquilizers to help you sleep, but be aware - these sedatives also relax your muscles.

Avoid high-fat dairy milk products or soy milk products before sleeping. Non-skim milk products and soy milk products, because of their thickness, can keep mucus from draining properly. The result is mucus retained in the throat, which can lead to snoring.

Clear your nasal passages

Having a stuffy nose makes inhalation difficult, which in turn creates a vacuum in your throat, and noisy breathing. In fact, people who seldom snore often find themselves snoring quite loudly when suffering from allergies or a cold.

Nasal decongestants can help you breathe more easily through your nose while sleeping. There are also homeopathic solutions available, like nasal strips that claim to “open” the nasal passages. On the other hand, you should avoid antihistamines for allergies or stuffiness. Antihistamines relax the throat muscles, which can in turn cause snoring.

Medical cures and treatments for snoring

If your own efforts to stop snoring do not help, consult your physician or an otolaryngologist (ENT, or ear, nose, and throat doctor). If you choose to try a dental appliance for your snoring, you will need to see a dentist specializing in these devices.

Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP)

To keep your airway open during sleep, a machine at your bedside blows pressurized air into a mask that you wear over your nose or face

Dental appliances, oral devices, and lower jaw positioners

Dental devices, which often resemble the mouth guards worn by athletes, can help open your airway by bringing your lower jaw or your tongue forward during sleep.

Most dental devices are acrylic and fit inside your mouth; others fit around your head and chin to adjust the position of your lower jaw. A dentist specializing in sleep disorders can help fit you for one of these devices.

Surgery

Certain surgeries, including Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (UPPP), Thermal Ablation Palatoplasty (TAP), tonsillectomy, and adenoidectomy, increase the size of your airway by surgically removing tissues or correcting abnormalities. Using a scalpel, laser, or microwaving probe (radiofrequency energy), a surgeon may remove tonsils, adenoids, or excess tissue at the back of the throat or inside the nose, or reconstruct the jaw.

The Pillar procedure, or palatal implantation, is a new surgery which has shown promising results for snorers. Small plastic implants, less than an inch-long in size, are inserted into the soft palate using a syringe-like instrument. The procedure is usually performed in a doctor’s office under local anesthesia, with little pain and mild side effects. Scar tissue builds up around the implants, causing the tissue of the soft palate to stiffen which ceases the vibrations that cause snoring. The down-side of this procedure, and any surgical cure, for that matter, is the expense, and most insurance does not cover surgery for snoring.

See your doctor or dentist to discuss the medical treatments available and to decide which might help your snoring.

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