Snoring - Identify the cause to find the cure

Forty-five percent of normal adults snore at least occasionally and 25 percent are habitual snorers. Problem snoring is more frequent in males and overweight people and usually worsens with age. Snoring may be an indication of obstructed breathing and should not be taken lightly.

What causes Snoring?
The noisy sounds of snoring occur when there is an obstruction to the free flow of air through the passages at the back of the mouth and nose. This area is the collapsible part of the airway where the tongue and upper throat meet the soft palate and uvula. Snoring occurs when these structures strike each other and vibrate during breathing.
In children, snoring may be a sign of problems with the tonsils and adenoids. A chronically snoring child should be examined by an otolaryngologist, who may recommend a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy to return the child to full health.

The following conditions can affect the airway and cause snoring:
-Being overweight or out of shape. Fatty tissue and poor muscle tone contribute to snoring. Even if you’re not overweight in general, carrying excess weight just around your neck or throat can cause snoring. Exercising and losing weight can sometimes be all it takes to end your snoring.
-Your mouth anatomy. Having a low, thick soft palate can narrow your airway. People who are overweight may have extra tissues in the back of their throats that may narrow their airways. Likewise, if the triangular piece of tissue hanging from the soft palate (uvula) is elongated, airflow can be obstructed and vibration increased.
-Alcohol consumption. Snoring can also be brought on by consuming too much alcohol before bedtime. Alcohol relaxes throat muscles and decreases your natural defenses against airway obstruction.
-Nasal problems. Chronic nasal congestion or a crooked partition between your nostrils (deviated nasal septum) may contribute to your snoring.
-Sleep deprivation. Not getting enough sleep can lead to further throat relaxation.
Sleep position. Snoring is typically most frequent and loudest when sleeping on the back as gravity's effect on the throat narrows the airway.
-Obstructive sleep apnea. Snoring may also be associated with obstructive sleep apnea. In this serious condition, your throat tissues partially or completely block your airway, preventing you from breathing.

OSA often is characterized by loud snoring followed by periods of silence when breathing stops or nearly stops. Eventually, this reduction or pause in breathing may signal you to wake up, and you may awaken with a loud snort or gasping sound.
You may sleep lightly due to disrupted sleep. This pattern of breathing pauses may be repeated many times during the night.
People with obstructive sleep apnea usually experience periods when breathing slows or stops at least five times during every hour of sleep

People who snore may suffer from:
• Poor muscle tone in the tongue and throat: When muscles are too relaxed, the tongue falls backwards into the airway or the throat muscles draw in from the sides into the airway. Some relaxation is natural during deep sleep, but may become a problem if exacerbated by alcohol or drugs that cause sleepiness
• Excessive bulkiness of throat tissue: Children with large tonsils and adenoids often snore. Overweight people may have excess soft tissue in the neck that can lead to airway narrowing. Cysts or tumors are rare causes of airway narrowing.
• Long soft palate and/or uvula: A long palate narrows the opening from the nose into the throat. The excessive length of the soft palate and/or uvula acts as a noisy flutter valve during relaxed breathing.
• Obstructed nasal airways: A stuffy or blocked nose requires extra effort to pull air through it. This creates an exaggerated vacuum in the throat that pulls together the floppy tissues of the throat, and snoring results. So snoring may only occur during the hay fever season or with a cold or sinus infection. Also, deformities of the nose or nasal septum, such as a deviated septum (a deformity of the wall that separates one nostril from the other) can cause such an obstruction.

HOW you snore reveals WHY you snore
Type of snoring, What it may indicate
Closed-mouth snoring may indicate a problem, with your tongue
Open-mouth snoring, may be related to the tissues in your throat
Snoring when sleeping on your back, Probably mild snoring—improved sleep habits and lifestyle changes may be effective cures
Snoring in all sleep positions, can mean your snoring is more severe and may require a more comprehensive treatment

SELF-HELP FOR SNORERS
Adults who suffer from mild or occasional snoring should try the following self-help remedies:
• Adopt a healthy and athletic lifestyle to develop good muscle tone and lose weight.
• Avoid tranquilizers, sleeping pills, and antihistamines before bedtime.
• Avoid alcohol for at least four hours and heavy meals or snacks for three hours before retiring.
• Establish regular sleeping patterns.
• Sleep on your side rather than your back.
• Elevate the head of your bed four inches.

Source: American Academy of Otolaryngology

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