Overview
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Snoring is a common sleep disorder that many people suffer. According to the National Sleep Foundation, about 90 percent of adults have this problem of snoring, and snoring is not limited to age and gender.
And 37 million often snore in their sleeping, and snoring has become part of their sleeping habits. But snoring is not an insignificant thing, and it’s not just about “breathing loudly” while you sleep.
Not only does it worsen with age, but it can also lead to natural waking and restless sleep, which can affect yourself, and it can also affect your family.
Sleep is one of the most important foundations of optimal health, and a lack of quality sleep can expose you to a variety of health problems. Besides, snoring may also be a symptom of obstructive sleep apnea, a breathing problem that can lead to various health risks.
This article will explore the basics of snoring and how you can improve your health by making simple adjustments to your lifestyle, especially your sleep habits! To help you significantly eliminate this common problem.
Why do people snore?
Snoring usually occurs when the muscles in your throat area are relaxed, which is when you sleep.
As you fall into a deep sleep, your throat muscles relax, allowing your airway to become narrower and softer. Your tongue also sticks back out. Every time you inhale and exhale, your throat vibrates – this leads to the typical sound of snoring.
As your airway becomes narrower, the vibrations become more intense, and your snoring becomes louder.
This is because the air passes through your soft palate, tongue, lingua franca (the triangular tissue that hangs down from the soft palate), and tonsils. In some cases, the airway can become blocked, causing breathing problems and louder snoring. Sleep apnea is one example of this problem.
What Causes Snoring?
The following are common factors that cause snoring.
- Sleeping Position
One of the most common views about snoring is that it is caused by sleeping on your back. To some extent, this is true, as one research has found that 54% of snorers are affected by their sleeping position.
These people are called “sleepy snorers,” meaning they only snore when they sleep on their backs.
But sleeping on your back is not the only trigger factor for snoring, and many other factors can contribute to the problem. In addition to sleeping position, snoring can be caused by some other common causes.
- Anatomy of the oral cavity
Enlarged tonsils or tonsils, a curved septum (the part of the nose that bends in the middle of the nostrils) or nasal polyps may also cause the throat area during sleep Further narrowing. The airway may also be narrower in people with a lower, thicker soft palate. An overly long, small tongue may even cause airway obstruction. One of the problems is the Nasal problem about inflammation of the nose and throat, especially when you have a respiratory infection or an allergy attack can cause snoring. Chronic nasal congestion is also one of the factors that can lead to snoring.
Another problem is Sleep deprivation. Not getting enough sleep at night can also lead to further relaxation of the throat.
Then Drinking alcohol is also one of problem to cause snoring and drinking whiskey, especially before bedtime can cause the muscles in your throat to relax and reduces your natural resistance to airway blockages. Sleep Apnea is also known as Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA); it is unable to breathe due to airway obstruction during sleep.
OSA affects a quarter of women and more than half of men and is a condition that needs urgent treatment because of studies that have shown that it can be prevented by sleep apnea. It has been found to cause a cascade of health problems, including heart disease, gout, type II diabetes, low immune function, and depression. Etc.
Best Ways to Get Rid of Stop Snoring
- Lie on one’s side
For some people, this simple method is effective enough because it prevents the tongue from reaching back into the throat and causing an airway Blocking.
- Raise your head a little higher
Raising your head will prevent your airway from becoming compressed. You can try elevating a 4-inch thick wedge or blockage by placing it under the mattress.
- Try using an oral appliance
Some dentists can help you create a device that changes the airway’s opening, leaving enough room for your tongue so that without blocking your airway.
- Use the steam bowl
Before you go to bed, pour a bowl of hot water, then cover yourself with a towel, place your head directly over the boiling water, and breathe in the steam. This will help clear your airways and reduce the swelling of your nasal passages.
- Don’t overeat at night
A stomach stuffed with food can squeeze your diaphragm, further hindering your ability to breathe freely.
- Managing your weight
Overweight people often have extra tissue in their throat area, which can also lead to snoring.
- Perform tongue and throat exercises
This method can make those body structures stronger, and here is a very simple workout.
- Gently bring the upper and lower molars together
Open your mouth and keep the molars as far apart as possible without overstretching your mouth.
Repeat 10 – 20 times. After 5 to 10 repetitions, you should feel the muscles in your jaw getting stronger and the back of your mouth opening up considerably!
- Try using a nasal strip or external nasal dilator
You can apply these tapes to the bridge of your nose to widen your nasal passages and improve your breathing.
Also, a dilator can be used on the outside of your nostrils to reduce resistance to airflow and make it easier for you to breathe. (It doesn’t work for people with sleep apnea).
- Do not drink alcohol or smoke
Both relax your tongue and throat muscles, making snoring worse. Smoking also irritates the lining of the throat and nasal passages, causing them to swell and reduce the airflow.
- Don’t drink milk before bed
Drinking milk can make snoring worse as it creates a layer of mucus in your throat and on your tongue. If you feel thirsty, just drink water.
- Relieve nasal congestion caused by infections or allergies
Nasal congestion reduces the amount of air that passes through your nose, forcing you to breathe through your mouth and prompting you to snore.
Don’t take sedatives
Like alcohol, these drugs depress your central nervous system and cause your muscles to relax excessively, including the tissues in your throat.
Snoring Treatments
- Sinusitis
Sinusitis causes 20% of snoring causes, and symptoms include nasal congestion, facial pain, and headache. Hold one side of the nostrils and use the other side to shut up and breathe. If breathing problems occur on one side, you should see your doctor confirm the diagnosis of sinusitis and a deviated septum.
Treatment recommendations
Some steroid nasal sprays (e.g., beclomethasone, budesonide, etc.) help open the nasal passages, but you can also cleanse the nasal passages with a saline solution daily. Insist twice. Also, actively treat sinusitis and lose weight appropriately for obese people.
- Smoking and drinking
Many people don’t realize that drinking alcohol, especially one glass of wine before bed, can relax muscles throughout the body, including the throat muscles. It induces snoring. Smoking can also cause inflammation of the mucous membranes in the nose and throat, leading to narrowing of the airways and increasing the risk of snoring.
Treatment recommendations
Quit smoking and change the bad habit of drinking alcohol before bedtime. Sleeping on your back may also increase the risk of snoring and is best corrected promptly. If you often dance around while sleeping, check for conditions such as restless leg syndrome.
- Injured nose
If there has been a severe injury to the nose, such as being struck by a football or tennis racket, it may lead to fractures, nasal septal deformities, etc., which can further cause Sleep Snoring.
Treatment Recommendations
People who have suffered trauma to the nose, especially those who have experienced injury resulting in cosmetic changes such as a collapsed nose, should go to the ENT department for a thorough check-up and perform surgery if necessary. The operation can ensure that both nostrils can breathe.
- Thick and short neck
People with short, thick necks have a lot of fat attached to their airways, which narrows the upper airways and affects airflow, making it easier for them to sleep.
Treatment Recommendations
Appropriate weight loss. Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) and orofacial appliances can be used to treat snoring if necessary. This device enlarges the narrow part of the pharynx by “ballooning” the airway.
- Enlarged tonsils
Enlarged tonsils or enlarged adenoids can easily cause the airway in the throat to narrow, thus increasing the chances of sleep snoring. In addition, if the bite is too deep and the jaw is retracted, it is easy to make the tongue block the airway and cause snoring.
Treatment recommendations
Undergoing a tonsillectomy can address airway narrowing and reduce the risk of snoring. Frequent steam fumigation can also help open the airway.
- Allergies
Some patients are more prone to snoring after exposure to allergens such as cats and pollen, which can worsen airway obstruction.
Treatment recommendations
Allergy lovers are advised not to bring their pets into the bedroom. Appropriate use of steroid nasal sprays and antihistamines helps in relieving the symptoms of allergic nasal congestion. In severe cases, a nasal dilator can be used, which is an effective way to prevent snoring.
Best Natural Snoring Cures
Tongue Extension Exercises: stick out your tongue as far as you can, retract it, stick it out again as far as you can, and repeat the cycle at least 200 times until you reach the pharynx. Feel very sore.
Dry gargling exercise: without water, puff up your cheeks, retract them, and so on, doing at least 200 strokes at a time until The pharynx feels very sore. Rinsing with water is also acceptable.
Roll your tongue against your palate and forcefully roll your tongue backward without leaving your palate, doing 50 or more until your soft palate feels very sore.
Drink a glass of water before bedtime dry air can irritate the mucous membranes of the nose and throat, causing or worsening snoring. Be sure to pay attention to the humidity of indoor air in general, especially in the dry season, one to buy a humidifier! Leave it at home. Also, take a hot bath and a glass of warm water before going to bed so that your body is well hydrated and the mucous membranes. It will be much more comfortable. It’ll be right for you.
Peppermint Oil: Sometimes, snoring occurs from a stuffy nose. Peppermint oil can help relieve sinus congestion and ease sore throats. Some studies have shown that the compounds in peppermint oil have many antibacterial, antiviral, and antioxidant properties, which can also fight against Respiratory infections.
Take Vitamin C: Vitamin C is a natural medicine that strengthens the immune system and respiratory health. One of the leading causes of snoring is airway obstruction. By consuming enough vitamin C, it will help cleanse your sinuses and airways.
Some of the best foods rich in vitamin C are broccoli, oranges, lemons, red peppers, papaya, and pineapple.
Weight: Sometimes, excess weight, especially around the neck, can increase snoring by narrowing the throat when lying down. Overweight people are more likely to snore than others because of the narrowed airways. Losing weight can improve sleep and enhance respiratory health.
Humidify: If your snoring is caused by a stuffy nose or allergies, dry air can exacerbate symptoms. Congestion occurs due to the dryness of the throat and nasal membranes. This blockage restricts the airways and creates vibrating tissue, which causes snoring.
Quit smoking: Tobacco irritates the nasal passages and throat, causing them to swell and become inflamed. When the nasal passages are blocked by smoking, it is difficult to breathe through the nose due to reduced airflow. Even when smokers inhale smoke from other smokers, they are more likely to develop chronic inflammation in the nose and throat, increasing the risk of snoring.
Improve your diet: A diet rich in antioxidants and enzymes that reduce inflammation in the body is the best way to eliminate snoring. Eating dairy products before bedtime can exacerbate your snoring because it leaves a layer of mucus in your throat and mouth, which then clogs up! Respiratory tract. Also, avoid eating large meals before bedtime.
