You may be among the 45% of normal
adults who snore at least occasionally
or you likely know someone who does.
He (or she) may be the brunt of jokes
at family gatherings (“Uncle Joe snores
so loudly he rattles the windows!”), but
snoring is serious business.
For one, a snoring spouse often keeps
the other person from a good night’s
sleep, which can eventually lead to
separate bedrooms. “Snoring can
create real problems in a marriage,”
says Daniel P. Slaughter, MD, an
otolaryngologist and snoring expert at
Capital Otolaryngology in Austin,
Texas.
Not only is snoring a nuisance, but
75% of people who snore have
obstructive sleep apnea (when
breathing is disrupted during sleep for
short periods), which increases the risk
of developing heart disease, Slaughter
says.
Use caution before you self-treat with
over-the-counter sprays and pills until
you’ve checked with your doctor, says
Sudhansu Chokroverty, MD, FRCP,
FACP, program director for Clinical
Neurophysiology and Sleep Medicine
at JFK Medical Center in Edison, N.J.
“Many stop-snoring aids are marketed
without scientific studies to support
their claims,” says Chokroverty, who is
also a neuroscience professor at Seton
Hall University’s School of Health and
Medical Sciences.
Instead, try these natural solutions and
lifestyle changes which may help you
stop snoring.
Causes of Fatigue and Sleepiness and
How to Fight Them
1. Change Your Sleep Position.
Lying on your back makes the base of
your tongue and soft palate collapse to
the back wall of your throat, causing a
vibrating sound during sleep. Sleeping
on your side may help prevent this.
“A body pillow (a full-length pillow that
supports your entire body) provides an
easy fix,” Slaughter says. “It enables
you to maintain sleeping on your side
and can make a dramatic difference.”
Taping tennis balls to the back of your
pajamas can also stop you from
sleeping on your back, Chokroverty
says. “Or you can recline the bed with
the head up and extended, which
opens up nasal airway passages and
may help prevent snoring. This may
cause neck pain, however.” If snoring
continues regardless of the sleep
position, obstructive sleep apnea may
be a cause. “See a doctor in this case,”
Chokroverty says.
2. Lose Weight.
Weight loss helps some people but not
everyone. “Thin people snore, too,”
Slaughter says.
If you’ve gained weight and started
snoring and did not snore before you
gained weight, weight loss may help.
“If you gain weight around your neck,
it squeezes the internal diameter of
the throat, making it more likely to
collapse during sleep, triggering
snoring,” Slaughter says.
3. Avoid Alcohol.
Alcohol and sedatives reduce the
resting tone of the muscles in the back
of your throat, making it more likely
you’ll snore. “Drinking alcohol four to
five hours before sleeping makes
snoring worse,” Chokroverty says.
“People who don’t normally snore will
snore after drinking alcohol.”
4. Practice Good Sleep Hygiene.
Poor sleep habits (also known as poor
sleep “hygiene”) can have an effect
similar to that of drinking alcohol,
Slaughter says. Working long hours
without enough sleep, for example,
means when you finally hit the sack
you’re overtired. “You sleep hard and
deep, and the muscles become
floppier, which creates snoring,”
Slaughter says.
5. Open Nasal Passages.
If snoring starts in your nose, keeping
nasal passages open may help. It
allows air to move through slower,
Slaughter says. “Imagine a narrow
garden hose with water running
through. The narrower the hose, the
faster the water rushes through.”
Your nasal passages work similarly. If
your nose is clogged or narrowed due
to a cold or other blockage, the fast-
moving air is more likely to produce
snoring.
A hot shower before you go to bed can
help open nasal passages, Slaughter
says. Also, keep a bottle of saltwater
rinse in the shower. “Rinse your nose
out with it while you’re showering to
help open up passages,” Slaughter
says.
A neti pot could also be used to rinse
out the nasal passages with a salt-
water solution.
Nasal strips may also work to lift nasal
passages and open them up -- if the
problem exists in your nose and not
within the soft palate.
6. Change Your Pillows.
Allergens in your bedroom and in your
pillow may contribute to snoring.
When did you last dust the overhead
ceiling fan? Replace your pillows?
Dust mites accumulate in pillows and
can cause allergic reactions that can
lead to snoring. Allowing pets to sleep
on the bed causes you to breathe in
animal dander, another common
irritant.
“If you feel fine during the day but
obstructed at night, these things may
be contributing to your snoring,”
Slaughter says.
Put your pillows in the air fluff cycle
once every couple weeks and replace
them every six months to keep dust
mites and allergens to a minimum. And
keep pets out of the bedroom.
Beware before spending money on
special pillows designed to prevent
snoring, Chokroverty says. “They may
work if it props up your head, which
fixes nasal issues, but can cause neck
pain.”
7. Stay Well Hydrated.
Drink plenty of fluids. “Secretions in
your nose and soft palate become
stickier when you’re dehydrated,”
Slaughter says. “This can create more
snoring.” According to the Institute of
Medicine, healthy women should have
about 11 cups of total water (from all
drinks and food) a day; men require
about 16 cups.
Overall, get enough sleep, sleep on
your side, avoid alcohol before
bedtime and take a hot shower if nasal
passages are clogged, Slaughter says.
“These simple practices can make a
huge difference in reducing snoring.”
—By Louise Chang, MD