Snoring is the noise generated when air moves past relaxed throat tissue.Though the resulting noise is quite harsh on the ears, nearly everyone suffers from snoring to a certain degree. However, snoring has the potential to cause issues when it is chronic and severe. Aside from waking a significant other who’s sharing the same bed, snoring is also worrisome as it can indicate an underlying health issue.

Snoring Treatment

Patients might be able to eliminate snoring or at least reduce its frequency and volume by making certain lifestyle changes. Avoiding alcohol prior to going to bed, losing weight, and even sleeping on one’s side can help prevent snoring. Often, these changes aren’t enough to eliminate harmful snoring patterns and further treatment is necessary.

Snoring Symptoms

Some snorers also suffer from obstructive sleep apnea or OSA for short. If snoring occurs in unison with restless sleep, morning headaches, trouble concentrating, daytime sleepiness, or a sore throat when waking, it is a clear sign that a visit with the doctor is in order to determine if OSA is the underlying problem causing the snoring.

Above all, the top symptom of snoring is its unique sound when sleeping. Those who sleep next to a significant other can easily find out if they snore by asking their bedmate.  However, those who sleep alone can determine if they have sleep apnea by making an audio recording of their room while sleeping.

Snoring Causes and Risk Factors

The unique anatomy of an individual’s mouth has the potential to compromise the airway within the throat and cause snoring. A particularly soft, low, or thick palate is much more likely to narrow the airways. Overweight individuals are more likely to have more throat tissue that can narrow airways. Furthermore, if the triangle-shaped tissue that hangs from the palate is particularly lengthy, it has the potential to obstruct airflow and cause the vibrations that result in snoring.

Sleep deprivation is also likely to cause the throat to relax to the point that snoring is more likely. Nasal issues, sleep position, and the consumption of alcohol prior to bed are also risk factors for snoring. Alcohol prior to bedtime is particularly problematic as it relaxes the muscles within the throat, sabotaging the defenses that prevent the obstruction of the airway within your throat. Finally, sleep position also impacts the chances of snoring. Those who sleep on their back are usually more likely to snore as this position causes gravity to narrow the airway within the throat.

Snoring can be a serious issue, so it’s important not to ignore your snoring. If you’ve made lifestyle changes to help alleviate your snoring to no avail, it’s time to speak with your doctor about treatment options.