Treatments for Snoring Problem
Sixty percent of men and thirty percent of women are known to snore. Seventy percent of the afflicted seem to have found relief from treatments for snoring problem. That is a very good percentage. It encourages one to explore the various treatments for snoring problem.
Before selecting a treatment for snoring problem, one needs to identify the reasons causing the person to snore. Snoring problems could be due to increased body weight, consumption of alcohol, consumption of heavy fat-rich meals, smoking, hereditary factors like jaw structure, sleeping position, etc. Selection of treatment for snoring problem should be based on the cause of snoring.
General treatments for snoring problem:
If snoring is caused due to excess weight then reducing weight is the strategy to be adopted. If it is because of alcohol consumption then reducing alcohol consumption is the treatment. One should abstain from smoking if that is causing one to snore. Some snore when their air passage is blocked or obstructed due to infection or inflammation. These people should take medications to remove these conditions.
Some snore only while they are sleeping on their backs. They could adopt simple remedial action like pinning up a sock with a hard small ball inside to the back portion of their pajama pants. This will make it uneasy for them to sleep on their back. They will immediately revert back to their sides whenever they turn on their back. Tilting the head side of the bed and not using pillows of large height has given relief to some snorers. The snoring of such snorers is dependent on their sleeping positions. Specially designed snore no more pillows can also be tried.
Non-surgical treatments for snoring problem:
Those who continue to snore despite the general treatments mentioned above need to try snore mouthpieces. Snore mouthpieces are also called snore aids or snoring aids. These are available over the medical counter. Dentists provide custom-made snore mouthpieces. These anti-snoring devices position the tongue and jaw in a way which controls snoring.
Anti-snore sprays lubricate the throat tissue for smooth air passage. Palate stiffening injections – snoreplasty, somnoplasty and carbon dioxide laser palatoplasty can also be tried.
Surgical treatments for snoring problem:
In some severe cases surgical procedure is the last resort. Snoring in a child can be treated with removal of tonsils and trimming of soft palate. In adults, adenoids can be removed, large collapsible air passages can be reduced, throat end of the tongue can be reduced, the hard palate can be shortened or even reconstruction of jaws and nose can be tried.
In some people snoring indicates that they suffer sleep apnoea. The problem of sleep apnoea is characterized by the patient having narrow air passages. He does not get enough oxygen and wakes up gasping for air and sweating a lot. Such people should not ignore this severe problem. They should immediately get checked and treated by a physician.
Snoring gives disturbed sleep. Take treatment to stop snoring. You need to have a sound sleep for good health.
Snoring Self Aid Tips
If the noise of your snore has kept you, your partner and your neighbor awake all night, then, you need to follow the below given self aid tips to stop snoring.
Change in Sleeping Position:
If sleeping on your back makes your snore, not sleeping on your back is the solution. Pillows which are designed for this purpose are available in the market. These pillows cause discomfort when you turn on your back. Another method is to pin a sock with a hard small ball in it onto the back portion of your pajama pants. Whenever you try to turn on your back, the small ball will hurt you and discourage you from sleeping on your back.
Change in Diet and Drinks:
Alcohol is a muscle relaxant. When you consume alcohol, the muscles and tissues of the airways relax and collapse the airways. Air moving through the narrow air ways causes the noisy snoring. It is known to make snoring worse. So it is advisable to avoid consumption of alcohol, especially a few hours before bedtime.
Some foods like dairy products, wheat and nuts are suspected to worsen snoring. These foods encourage formation of mucus in the airways. Mucus blocks the airways. Air tries to struggle through this block making you snore noisily. These apart there could be some individual triggers which cause snoring to worsen. One needs to identify such triggers and avoid them.
Avoiding certain foods should not negatively affect your general health. You need to find alternative foods for those foods which you avoid. You need to supplement your diet with these alternatives in order to consume balanced healthy food.
Reducing Body Weight:
Obesity is another major cause for snoring. Excess fat and weight around the neck constricts the airways. The obstructed airways make air passage through the airways difficult causing you to snore noisily.
Reducing body weight through exercises and dieting is the correct way to reduce obesity. Exercising and dieting would also give us peaceful sleep. But many of us do not like exercising and dieting. One needs to find interesting ways of exercising and dieting.
There are many ways of exercising like walking, jogging, swimming, playing games, etc. Some may prefer going to the gym and working out. While some may include some simple exercises in their daily routine like walking to the office instead of traveling by vehicle, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, going to the shop and making purchases instead of shopping through internet.
Dieting is not abstaining from food but substituting food with alternate less calorific, less sugary and less fatty foods. Dieting combined with exercises give holistic health benefits and a good beauty regimen too.
You may follow these simple tips to give yourself, your family and your neighbors an undisturbed sleep.
Snoring Controlling Exercises
Snoring is caused by the air struggling to make its way through airways which are blocked and narrowed down. Snorers have to exercise their throat, tongue and jaws to snore not or snore less.
Airways are narrowed down because of flabby and floppy muscles and tissues in the throat. Exercising these organs will make the tissues and muscles of these organs stronger, taut, well toned and also widen the airways giving less chance for snoring to take place.
Given below are a few easy to follow exercises specific to snoring:
1. Very slowly open your mouth wide open and equally slowly close your mouth shut.
2. For five seconds hold you mouth as for blowing a kiss and then relax your mouth.
3. Smile wide for five seconds and then relax your mouth.
4. Bring your lips together tight for five seconds and then relax.
5. Bring your lips together as though you were going to sip through a straw. Make a noise similar to sipping.
6. Put your tongue straight out. Do not allow it to lift upwards or slant downwards. Hold the tongue this way for five seconds before relaxing.
7. Put your tongue straight out. Then move the tongue left and right alternatively to the maximum extent possible.
8. Bring your tongue out and right down to touch your chin.
9. Bring your tongue out and right above to touch the nose tip.
10. Put your tongue out. With a spoon try to push back the tongue into your mouth. Try to hold the tongue against the pressure exerted by the spoon.
11. Repeat the word ‘ma’ in quick succession uttering the sounds of both the alphabets.
12. You may try the same with the words ‘la’, ‘ka’, ‘kala’.
13. Call out aloud the vowels.
14. Push out your lower jaw ahead of your upper jaw. Maintain it that way for five seconds and then revert back.
15. Move your lower jaw side to side a few times.
16. One of the easiest exercises would be to sing a few minutes a day.
Any of these exercises or a combination of a few of these exercises may be repeated over a few minutes daily to control your snore. You may practice these along with your daily routine work. You need not dedicate a few minutes exclusively for these snoring controlling exercises.
With these snoring specific exercises, the muscles and tissues of your tongue, throat and jaw will not be flaccid. They will become strong, toned and firm. The airways will be cleared of any blocks. Air will move through the airways smoothly. You will have a sound sleep.
A simple exercise like humming your favorite tune will help you control snoring.
Snoring Can Ruin Relationships
Statistics states that sixty percent of men and thirty percent of women snore. One can imagine how many spend sleepless nights. Snoring ruins marriages and relationships.
Snoring leaves the snorer as well as the snorer’s partner sleep deprived. They wake up the next morning, weary, even before the day has started. Weariness leads to physical sickness or mental exhaustion. Physical sickness renders a person unable to work effectively and efficiently. Mental exhaustion makes it impossible for a person to think or talk or act rationally.
Snoring spoils the relationship between marriage partners. Small issues start irritating the couple. They quarrel with each other all day long. Small problems grow and become unmanageable. Gradually over a period of time they reach a dead end in their relationship.
Some snorers get beaten and thrown out of the bedroom. This disturbs the sleep of both the partners. The partners sleep apart. First they lose physical intimacy. Later they lose mental closeness as well.
Those who sleep by themselves never come to know that they snore. They come to know of their snoring when a neighbour comes over to inform them of their snoring. If a person does not feel rested even after having slept for a good seven to eight hours then he can suspect he snores. He should get himself treated for his snoring problem else his relationship with his neighbours will be ruined.
Towards bridging the gap in the relationship the first step that the snorer can take is to find the underlying cause behind his snoring. And then find a way to treat the snoring problem or find a cure for snoring.
The major causes for snoring are obesity, smoking and drinking. Certain foods like dairy products aggravate snoring. Males are more likely to be snorers than women. Those above fifty years of age snore because of age related factors. One who snores only while on his back has mild anatomical reasons causing snoring. But one who snores in all sleeping positions has a severe problem.
If a person snores with his mouth closed, then the tongue is at fault. If he snores with his mouth open, then the throat tissue is at fault. The part of the respiratory system which is vibrating – the mouth, the throat or the nose, also helps find the cause of snoring.
Going to the physician is the second step that the snorer can take. The physician needs to be briefed on what causes snoring in him. Snoring is especially dangerous if it wakes up a person gasping for breath and sweating. It is a case of sleep apnoea where snoring is just a symptom.
Following on the guidelines of treatment suggested by the physician is the next step that the snorer can take.
A small matter like snoring should not be allowed to cause a break in your marriage or relationship. Get your snoring problem treated.
Snoring Remedies and Snoring Cures
There are many snoring remedies and snoring cures for snoring problems.
The cause for snoring is the main factor to be considered while choosing the cures and remedies for snoring problems. There are two main categories of causes which cause snoring. One category has causes on which we can exercise control, like, alcoholism, smoking, obesity, medicinal intakes, sleeping position, etc. The other category consists of hereditary factors, age, gender, medical ailments like allergies, asthma, etc., on which we have no control.
There is a simple snoring remedy for the snorer who snores only while on his back. He should attach a sock with a small hard ball inside to the back portion of his pajama pants. The hard ball makes it uneasy for him to sleep on his back.
For the snorer who snores soon after consuming alcohol, the snoring cure is to consume alcohol four hours before going to bed. Alcohol loosens up the throat muscles. This causes the throat muscles to slacken and close on the air passage. As a result snoring is caused. The muscle relaxing properties of medications like sleeping pills, pain killers, antihistamines are the same as that of alcohol. Hence they should be taken much before bed time.
Specially designed snore no more pillows can be used to hold the head in a position such that air passage is straight. This causes least snoring.
The obese snorer needs to lose weight to cure him of snoring. The excess fat around the neck obstructs the air passage of the throat. This causes snoring.
There are snorers on whom none of the above snoring remedies work. They may use anti-snoring devices like snoring aids, snore aids, snoring mouthpiece and snore guard. These anti-snoring devices hold the jaw and tongue in such a position that snoring is obstructed. Anti-snore sprays lubricate the air ways along the throat thereby allowing smooth air passage. This provides snoring relief. Nasal strips can be used to draw apart the nostrils. This procedure allows more air passage through the nostrils.
The above snoring aids are available across medical counters. The safety aspects and effectiveness of the products should be verified before use. One may go through medical journals, online articles and product reviews by the consumers of these snoring aids. At the same time one should not get unduly swayed by others verdict on these products. The effect of these products may differ from individual to individual.
When all the above suggested snoring remedies fail, one may try surgical procedure for jaw reconstruction, nose reconstruction, palate reconstruction, tonsils removal, adenoid removal, etc.
Devices like white noise generators reduce noise in the bedroom. These could be used by the snorer in his bedroom to give his partner undisturbed sleep. The partner of the snorer may use ear plugs to sleep undisturbed.
Smoking and Drinking Increases Snoring
At times the solution to a problem is to make some change elsewhere. This may apply to snoring problem also. Snoring could be related to lifestyle problems like smoking and drinking. If snoring is causing problems then it makes sense to look into these lifestyle problems and take corrective measures.
Smoking can cause various health problems. Lung cancer is one such health problem. At times it can also prove to be fatal. People know this yet they continue to smoke. Smoking aggravates snoring. But who is listening? All that we listen to is the sounds of snore.
Cigarette smoke goes into the airways and disturbs the functioning of the respiratory system. The dust enters the lungs and causes breathing problems. It reduces the capacity of the lungs in uptake of oxygen thus depriving it of energy and rendering it ineffective and inefficient. The muscles and tissues of the area become lax and droop. The smoke also aggravates the formation of mucus lining the throat. This blocks the air passages. Blocking of air passages leads to increased snoring.
Smoking affects not only the person smoking but all those hanging around him voluntarily or involuntarily. Likewise, snoring affects not only the person snoring but also those who sleep with them. Snoring wakes him up. Snoring wakes up the others. Any conscientious person will ponder over this and stop smoking. He can think of curing himself of snoring and sleep peacefully. Those who sleep with him can also sleep undisturbed.
There is some evidence that shows that smoking and drinking causes snoring. Alcohol desensitizes the throat muscles and they involuntarily sag. As a result the blood vessels get dilated and swell. This constricts the air passage further causing snoring.
Some restrict alcohol intake to parties and celebrations. But some take alcohol with every meal. And some take alcohol before bed. Alcohol lulls one to sleep. But the sleep lasts only for a short while. Alcohol causes snoring and snoring disrupts sleep.
A person into one form of addiction is very susceptible to form other forms of addiction as well. This is probably due to his addictive personality. So a smoker is very likely to be an alcoholic as well. Smoking coupled with alcoholism increases the intensity of snoring.
It can be difficult for anyone to stop any addiction. The addicted person needs to have will power to overcome his addiction. The addicted person undergoes withdrawal symptoms which needs treatment. However, there are treatments and organizations that can help people to stop any type of addiction. These organizations educate the addicted on the causes and consequences of addiction. They guide him through the rehabilitation process.
Cure your snoring by stopping smoking and drinking only small and healthy quantities of alcohol.
Lose Your Snore by Losing Weight
When a person puts on weight his body dimensions increase. But the diameter of passages inside his body decreases. Specific to snoring problems, the neck muscles close in on the throat. This gives less room for air passage resulting in the person snoring. Obesity is the commonest cause for snoring problems. Therefore snoring can be overcome by losing weight.
Obesity is not a healthy sign. Obesity leads to cardiac problems, diabetes, arthritis, high blood pressure, and a long list of other ailments. Snoring also finds a place in this long list of ailments. Losing weight can help overcome snoring and also the long list of ailments. Losing weight seems to be an all-in-one cure for many ailments. This information should boost a person’s will to lose weight.
Anyone wanting to lose weight has two ways to lose weight. One way is through dietary changes and another way is through exercises. If a person finds dieting comfortable then he may concentrate more on dieting. If a person finds exercising comfortable then he may concentrate more on exercises.
Dieting and exercises both must be followed simultaneously. Dieting without exercises will leave flabby muscles in the body. Exercises without a good diet will leave the body deprived of food and energy. The body will end up working inefficiently.
Dieting needs to be undertaken under consultations with the physician. Snorers normally have other ailments which should be brought under consideration while working out a diet plan. Certain foods like dairy products are susceptible to cause snoring. Certain personal trigger foods cause snoring. These foods too should be identified. The physician should be briefed on such personal trigger foods.
Exercises too need to be done under supervision of a trained professional. One needs to start with low impact exercises for a short duration of time. The frequency and duration of exercise should be gradually increased. High impact exercises can be included once the body feels comfortable with low impact exercises.
One may even follow the simple aerobic exercises walking, climbing, etc. Walk up to your office rather than using the car, bus or train. Climb up the stairs instead of using the elevator. Do some light house work, gardening, etc.
Exercising increases the metabolic rate of the body. This enables every cell of the body function effectively and efficiently. Including, the respiratory organs which are the chief organs causing snoring.
Exercising removes toxins from the body. Less of toxins in the body mean less infection and inflammation in the body systems. The throat is thus free of mucus and inflammation leaving the air passage wide and clear. As a result, the snorer will not suffer from air passage blockages.
Snoring affects the snorer and also the one who sleeps with the snorer. Both suffer disturbed sleep. The disturbed sleep leaves these two weary and irritable all day long. Their relationship with each other suffers. Their relationship with all others they come across during the day suffers.
Thus it becomes necessary to stop snoring for maintenance of physiological health and the maintenance of healthy relationships.
How to Get Rid Of Snoring Through Exercises
Snoring is a worldwide problem. There are many solutions available to get rid of snoring problems and these include pills, pillows, diets, dentures, gadgets, games, and finally surgery if nothing else works. But surgeries are invasive, painful, expensive and unsuccessful many a times.
When the airways of the respiratory system are choked because of infection or inflammation, or constricted because of flopping muscles resulting from age, sleep position, genetic factors or gender, a noise ensues when air passes through, called snoring. One of the factors responsible for snoring is also muscle mass and fat accumulation around the neck.
More and more people are leading sedentary lives. Lack of time or more work pressure is forcing such a life. We have gadgets to take care of quite a lot of physical work. Food intake has also increased by way of improved and increased means of availability. Of course, to some it is plain lack of will power to do some workout exercises. As a result many people are becoming obese or overweight.
This calls for the need to find snoring solutions. There is so much talk about exercises being able to cure so many ailments, ailments which have outwitted the medical advancements, medical professionals and medical practices. So, can exercises cure snoring?
Exercise helps reduce the excess fat stored in the body. Exercises increase metabolism and cuts down on further excess fat in the body. They also help tone the muscles of the body. When exercises bring down the fat deposits around the neck, maintains the neck fat free, tones the muscles around the throat making it less flabby and less floppy, then snoring is controlled.
There are some exercises which are simple to include in your daily routine without deviating much. There is a very good saying about exercises run when you can, do not stand; stand when you can, do not sit; sit when you can, do not lie down. Therefore, simple changes like walking to your office instead of taking the vehicle, or taking the vehicle up to a point and walking thereafter, not using the lift but climbing up the stairs, can help.
Then there are those who would like to go to the gym and workout with others rather than in isolation. Some might like swimming as an exercise. Some may go horse riding. Some like dancing. Whatever the mode of exercise, it is important to check with your physician first, especially if you are suffering from other ailments. The duration and intensity of exercise should be gradually increased as you exercise more.
Including exercises in your daily routine will provide many health benefits. Snoring could be just one of them.
Home Remedies for Snoring
It is well known that remedies for medical conditions are available at the doctor’s and at the pharmacists. Snoring can be cured using simple home remedies. Are you eager to know a few home remedies for your snoring problem? This article will present simple techniques that you can use to cure snoring.
There are quite a few special exercises as a cure for snoring. One very successful one is soft palate exercise. When the muscles of the throat flop down because they are slack, snoring is caused. Soft palate exercises make the muscles in the throat taut. These exercises do not hurt and can be easily practised at home. All you need to do is touch your palate with the tip of the tongue. Simultaneously you need to press the portion of your tongue towards the throat. The muscles of the palate will strain and tighten. You may find this exercise a bit difficult at first. It needs a little practice to get going smooth with the exercise. The soft palate will be no longer soft but taut.
Some people snore only when they are sleeping on their backs. The simple home remedy for them is not to sleep on their back. It is as simple as that but not as simple to follow. You need to put something hard and small like a tennis ball or a walnut in a sock and attach it to the back portion of the pajama pants. This should make it uneasy for you to sleep on your back at all. This is fine as long as you do not get a sore shoulder sleeping on one side all night long.
Changing the angle of your air passage helps. The air passage needs to as straight as possible. A curvature in the air passage is sure to narrow down the air passage further and cause heavy snoring. So one needs to bring down the height of the pillow if need be.
Certain foods are known to trigger snoring and so these foods should be avoided. Dairy products which cause mucus to form and collect in the throat block the air passage. Alcohol loosens up the throat muscles making them to flop down and close the air passage. Heavy meals rich in fats are known to aggravate snoring. A few medications which cause the muscles to relax can cause more snoring. Certain habits like smoking make the situation worse for the snorer.
Snoring can be caused due to many reasons. When snoring is accompanied with choking, gasping for breath and sweating in the middle of the night, it could be a serious health disorder called sleep apnoea, which calls for medical attention. If left unchecked it could also lead to death due to stroke. One should not look out for home remedy for this condition.
There are some factors such as age and gender which can cause snoring, and these factors cannot be changed. But extraneous factors like alcohol consumption, smoking, obesity, sleep position are very much in our control. These can be brought under control using some home remedies.
Change Diet to Stop Snoring
Diet seems to be the common factor for finding relief from many ailments. Change in diet can help stop snoring. Diet as a means of cure for snoring is easy and simple. It also provides for holistic health benefits.
Just twenty percent excess weight causes a person to snore. He needs to lose this weight as his snore fix. He needs to change his diet structure and adapt a low calorie one. This will bring down the extra weight that he carries.
Particular foods are known to trigger snoring in some people. Likewise particular foods are known to lessen snoring in another set of people. One needs to find one’s own triggers and moderators. Statistics state that dairy products often cause disturbed sleep.
A cup of warm milk is oddly recommended to put oneself to sleep. Milk puts one to sleep. But it wakes one up a few hours later. Milk or dairy products encourage production of mucus in the throat which blocks the air passage. This blocking of air passage causes a person to snore. Snoring often wakes up the snorer.
For a few weeks, one needs to test oneself by not taking dairy products before bed. If there is a relief from snoring then this can be taken as that person’s snoring relief. The person may switch over to alternatives to dairy products like soy milk or cow’s milk. Or the person may take dairy products only in the morning half of the day. The idea is for the dairy product to get digested and assimilated well before going to bed.
To help track down your triggers and moderators, maintain a diary of foods that you take, jot down the time of food intake and the record of snoring at nights. If you are able to zero down on any triggers then you need to stop consuming those foods. On the other hand if you find no correspondence between the food intake and snoring then it is time to consider other alternative snoring remedies.
Heavy meals consisting of foods rich in fats have the same effect as dairy products. One needs to avoid consuming this kind of meal especially before bed. One should not avoid fats altogether. Fats have an important role to play in digestion, assimilation and absorption of certain vital nutrients.
Before making dietary changes consult a dietician. The dietician needs to be informed about your snoring triggers. Only the trigger foods need to be adjusted. People who snore are often found to have other bodily ailments as well. The dietary changes you make should not affect your general health. It should conform to the diet prescription for other ailments, if any. Similarly it should conform to the medications that you take, if any.