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What Are The Treatments For Snoring?

Snoring can be much more that the thing that annoys your friends when you doze off on movie night (although indeed, for many people that ‘annoyance’ has bee known to cause severe marital problems). It can also be an indication of underlying maladies, and even a cause of illness in itself, as the vibrations we hear as snoring can lead to stroke.

Snoring occurs when, either as a result of lax soft tissue in the throat or of weak throat muscles, the airways collapses in on themselves during sleep. The result is strained breathing and heightened turbulence of air in the throat, which causes the soft tissues in contact with one another to vibrate. Most snoring treatments focus on clearing the blockage in the breathing passage, in much the same way that a medic performing CPR tries to open up their patient’s airways.

Snoring treatments can be effected via long or short term solutions. Snorers are frequently advised that losing weight will help their condition, as it will reduce the deposits of fat around their neck and chest, which can weigh down on the throat during sleep. For this reason, exercise is also suggested, as, in addition to fat loss, it can bring about a strengthening of the lungs and the muscles of the throat. For many people, a dual approach, focusing on diet and exercise, can be one of the most effective snoring treatments.

Another frequently recommended change in lifestyle is for snorers to quit smoking. Smoking weakens the throat muscles, reducing the elasticity of soft tissues while also bringing about a reduction in lung capacity. Furthermore, it often causes the overproduction of phlegm, which can exacerbate breathing problems.

Alcohol has a less permanent but equally serious effect on the functioning of the airways. Alcohol’s pleasant effects are tied to its powers as a muscle relaxant, and the body’s resting muscle tone is diminished after consuming just two or three units of alcohol. Alcohol’s capacity to temporarily weaken throat muscles has been known to exacerbate snoring (even doubling the severity of obstructive sleep apnea), and any individual experimenting with snoring treatments should keep this in mind, even if alcohol is not the root of their problem.

One of the simplest home treatments for snoring is simply learning to change your sleeping position, sleeping on your side instead of your back. Sleeping on your back puts more pressure on the throat, and, in some individuals, can lead to the tongue falling back into the throat, blocking the airways. There are now anti-snoring pillows (see blackstonepillow.com for an example) that help to keep your neck in the right alignment for unobstructed breathing.

Other snoring treatment options include the use of nose clips, lubricating sprays, and even dental appliances, such as mandibular advancement splints. These devices pull the lower jaw slightly forward, causing a tightening of the soft tissue and muscles of the upper throat. This tightness prevents the upper airway from vibrating as air passes over it. Mandibular advancement has become increasingly popular and more convenient in terms of design – but the devices are still uncomfortable and can cause gradual movement of the teeth and temporomandibular joint disorder (essentially arthritis of the jaw). They can’t be bought without a prescription, as they are considered to be class two medical devices.

CPAP (which stands for Continuous Positive Airway Pressure) machines provide a less invasive form of snoring treatment. They’re about the size of a shoebox and connect to a full-face mask, which delivers a flow of air at a consistently high pressure to keep the airways open, and the soft tissues of the throat separated. They range in strength (since different people will require different pressures) usually falling between 6 and 20 cm H20, as titrated pressure is measured. The unfortunate fact is that these machines are still quite expensive – in the range of five or six hundred dollars for the most basic of models.

There is, however, a much more low-tech device on the market which, while not effective for everyone, has been estimated to help or eliminate snoring in as many as 60% of cases. The inventor, one Stephen Matthews, manufactured the prototype by ripping off a piece of bathtowel, and tying it round his head, discovering that it allowed him to sleep hassle-free.

Since then, the device has been redesigned to be vastly more comfortable – yet it remains a cheap and effective solution to the problem, selling for less than $70. It’s available for online order at mysnoringsolution.com.