Do you snore? I know I do when I’m really tired. According to studies conducted by experts, almost half of all adults around the world snore when they sleep. There are many known causes of snoring from your health, to your sleeping position, and even the kind of bed mattress that’s used. The snores of some people go almost unnoticed. But what if the person you’re sleeping with snores unbearably? There are only two ways to go from here: either you sleep elsewhere or you prevent him/her from snoring.

What causes snoring?

The sound you hear from snoring is caused by the reduced airways that struggle to go through the back of your throat. There are a lot of factors that contribute to snoring. Here are some of them:

• Aging: As we age, our throat muscles become increasingly relaxed.
• Obesity: The fatty tissue around our neck also reduces the airways. The nasal track is blocked by the stored fat in your body.
• Nose and throat abnormalities: If you have enlarged tonsils or nose inflammations, the air passageway in your throat is also affected.
• Alcoholic consumption: Alcohol is very effective in relaxing the muscles. Taking any muscle relaxants at night will contribute to snoring.
• Smoking: The nasal passages are blocked by the smoke you inhale. Since it affects your lungs, then it will definitely affect your breathing as well.

Sleep apnea is a disorder in which you are not able to breathe freely thus creating that snoring sound. The loud snorts caused by this chronic snoring can prevent you from falling sound asleep all night long.

Is snoring something to be worried about?

Of course it is. First of all, you, yourself, won’t be able to sleep soundly let alone your partner. If you lack sleep, how can you concentrate on your tasks during the day? You are also at risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, memory problems, weight gain, depression, accelerated aging, and many more.

How can I resolve this problem?

There are many ways to do this including taking antidepressants and surgeries. But it’s always better to try and solve it naturally first. Here are some tips to consider:

• Sleep on your side: I’m sure you’ve heard this solution many times before. It’s an easy and often times, incredible fix to your snoring problems because as you lie on your side, your breathing is not obstructed as the tongue’s base will not collapse on the back of your throat.
• Raise bed’s head: Whenever you have colds, you have difficulty breathing correct? If you lie down flat on your bed, this feeling is magnified. So you get more pillows in order raise your head higher than your body in order to breathe a little easier. The same concept applies to snoring. If you raise the head of your bed by about 4 inches, this will do wonders. You can attach bed wedges to accomplish this.
• Exercise and lose weight: Obesity is one of man’s worst enemy. Not only don’t you look good but it causes a lot of health problems. Do yourself a favor and exercise, go on a diet and lose those extra pounds.
• Get a comfortable bed mattress: If you have a thin mattress or a poorly built bed, then your sleeping position will be awkward which will result in an uncomfortable sleep. Good mattresses should be able to support your back as it should be aligned such that a wider air passage is created allowing you to breathe freely.
• Reduce, if not completely eliminate, smoking and drinking: This is especially hard to do for those who have gotten used to it but nothing is ever easy. But for yourself, and your family, give it a go.
• Proper room ventilation: A well ventilated bedroom will keep you cool and comfortable at night allowing you a good night’s sleep.

Speaking of sleep, this is probably the most basic of basics in solving your snoring problem. Allow your body to get around 7-8 hours of sleep a day. Always remember that there are two general categories when it comes to snoring: external (namely your sleeping environment such as the bed mattress you use) and internal (namely your health). Both these factors are under your control. Keep them in mind the next time you create your own concerto at night.

Author Bio:

Treisha is a portrait of a modern-day Party Girl. Nights of dancing and socializing are not uncommon in Treisha’s life, but she claims to know and respect her limits. When responsibilities and opportunities align themselves, she knows how to prioritize them and keep them in order. Treisha works part-time as a blog manager and writer for Uratex Blog.

The invention is called Jukusui-Kun, which means “deep sleep” in Japanese, and is a robotic polar bear pillow.  The device contains a remote pulse oxygen meter that is attached to the snorer’s hand, in the form of a baby polar bear.  When the snoring gets too loud and the oxygen level in the blood drops, the bear goes into action, and gently paws at the face of the snorer.  Quite often, that gentle touch will make the snorer change position without waking them, stopping the snoring.

The bear also contains a microphone so it can monitor the noise level of the snoring.  A wireless terminal collects and analyses the data and controls the actions of Jukusui-Kun.  It is quite an imaginative and useful tool in the fight against snoring, but the product is still only in its testing stages, and is not yet available to consumers.

With the high-tech gadgetry the bear contains, there is the question of how effective the device is.  The Waseda University in Tokyo is probably the only institution that can answer that question when their testing phase is complete.  But you have to admit that the premise behind it is “sound” one.

If you have information on similar devices to help with a snoring problem, please share it in our comments section for all of our fellow snorers.

Diagnosing obstructive sleep apnea is easily done through testing in a sleep laboratory.  If you or your significant other have a snoring problem you should see your doctor in order to have the testing scheduled.  It normally requires a night away from home so that you can be monitored in the sleep lab to determine how many times a night you quit breathing.  This determines whether or not you have obstructive sleep apnea or merely a common snoring condition.

With either diagnosis, there are many effective treatments available to reduce or prevent snoring.  It your doctor determines that you have obstructive sleep apnea he or she may prescribe the use of a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machine.  It provides a steady stream of air through a nasal mask, allowing the airways to remain open during sleep.  This prevents, and quite often even cures, a snoring problem.  However, not everyone can tolerate wearing the CPAP mask.

In some cases, snoring can be prevented by the use of an oral device that is similar to the mouth guards worn while playing sports.  The device allows the bottom jaw to move forward during sleep, keeping the airways open.  The effectiveness of the device depends on how severe your snoring problem is.  You can discuss this treatment option with your doctor, who may refer you to a dentist that specializes in the fitting and creation of the device.

If you have a snoring problem, please let us know which of the many treatments you are using and how effective it is.

Believe it or not, these people do bring their home lives with them to work in the fact that they get very little quality sleep each night.  Their sleep is interrupted because of the noise of their snoring bed partner.  This causes that sluggishness and lack of productivity that can cost companies upwards of billions of dollars in a year due to sleep deprivation, both on the part of the snorer and their bed partner.

Although there are many causes for snoring, one that causes the persistent snoring that occurs night after night is sleep apnea.  This is when the muscles of the throat relaxes, allowing the tissues to vibrate with the inhale and exhale in breathing and even for the trachea (the wind pipe) to constrict or collapse.  The result is that the snorer quits breathing for a few seconds, making them gasp and even snore louder in order to get the air they need.  They change positions, either by themselves or by the elbow jabbing of their bed partner, and return to sleep.  But by them, the damage is done.  They already have that interruption in sleep that causes all of those daytime symptoms.  Not only that, but have the lack of oxygen that gives their body a restorative sleep.

It’s important you learn more about this condition if you have a snoring bed partner, or even if you snore yourself.  Feel free to share experiences here for others to learn from.

Obstructive sleep apnea is the most common thing when it comes to interruption while sleeping. What usually happens is that the airways actually collapse, which in turns causes blocked or shallow breathing, and the sound of snoring accompanies it. So, what did these studies find? Well, the couples were allowed to sleep together for two nights in a lab to get a baseline before being treated. After the men went home, they were hooked up to a breathing device that delivers CPAP, which is known as continuous positive airway pressure.

Believe it or not, the studies found that the treatment worked much better when men slept in the same bed as their wives. The couples that shared the bed with each other had fewer wake-ups. The women who left the bed woke up more often, even when their men were not snoring. In a news release the Doctor whom conducted these studies said that married couples should be educated together and treated together. That way, they go through everything together, and it’s already been proven that sleep apnea is nowhere near as bad when couples are with each other.

If you have any comments about this article, feel free to leave them in our comments section. We always love hearing what our readers have to say about our articles.

Snoring, even if it is something you have never done before in your life, is a very common occurrence during pregnancy. It can disrupt your sleep, and whomever you are sharing your bed with. In severe cases, it could also affect people that you are not even sharing a room with. Usually, snoring is just nothing more than an annoyance. In some cases, however, snoring can be a sign of gestational diabetes or sleep apnea, which is a disorder that can deprive you and the infant you are carrying of oxygen. Sleep apnea and pregnancy can go hand-in-hand, especially in the third trimester. People whom are overweight are especially susceptible.

So, what can you do about snoring during pregnancy? Well, I am going to outline some tips below that should be able to help you out.

• Take advantage of nasal strips. Put one on right before you go to sleep. Don’t worry, they are completely drug free.
• A warm mist humidifier is another great thing you can use in your battle against snoring.
• Fluffing up your pillow and trying to sleep with your head elevated should be of some help.
• Keeping an eye on your weight, and your calorie intake, so you can make sure excess weight is not contributing to your snoring problems.
• Ask your Doctor about sleep apnea, gestational diabetes, and about your snoring problems.

If you have any other tips about snoring while pregnant, please feel free to share them below.

Weight

It is thought that if you are overweight, you are likely to snore because you have more fat surrounding the neck. If you are worried that your weight is contributing to your snoring condition and you have already taken steps to improve your health, such as eating more salads, signing up to Aviva Life or your local insurance company, or joining the gym, then you are on the right path to reducing your snoring habit.
A man who has a collar size greater than 16 inches, might not have the muscle tone needed to keep the airway fully open. Someone with a short, fat neck will have a narrower airway, resulting in louder throat vibrations. Losing weight will reduce the fat around the neck and create a wider air passage.

Sleeping Positions

Your sleeping position plays an important role during sleep. Several studies have shown that people who sleep on their backs are more likely to snore than those who sleep on their sides.
When you sleep on your back, gravitational forces pull the tongue and soft palate to the back of the throat, thus causing a narrower airway which leads to snoring.

Smoking

Each cigarette which is smoked causes the throat to inflate, as well as irritating the lining of the nasal cavity. This causes the airway passage to become congested, making it difficult to breathe through the nose. It has been proven that children of parents who smoke are more likely to snore than children of non smoking parents. However, by having your last cigarette at least 4 hours prior to going to bed, will give your body time to reduce the effects of the cigarette smoke and help you to sleep more soundly.

In this study, researchers at the University of Pittsburgh asked over 800 people between the ages of 45 and 74 about their sleep quality. After three long years, the people whom reported that they snore loudly while sleeping were more than twice as likely in opposed to people that do not snore loudly to have metabolic syndrome, which is a cluster of risk factors for heart disease, diabetes, and stroke that includes high blood pressure, high blood sugar, low cholesterol levels, high triglycerides, and excess fat in their stomach.

People who reported having trouble falling asleep or who woke up feeling groggy, or like they did not have a good night’s sleep occurring at least three times per week were about 80 percent, and 70 percent more likely than quiet sleepers to develop three of more of the risk factors listed above. In other words, if you have a snoring problem, it could have a major negative impact on your life. Therefore, you should get treated right away.

If you have any comments about this post, please leave them below in our comments section. We always enjoy going over our readers comments and hearing your thoughts.

Believe it or not, although men are more likely to suffer from snoring than women, but for men it is only a physical thing. When it comes to a snoring problem for women it can actually affect them psychologically as well. Since society has labeled snoring men as something that is seen as being masculine and “manly-like”, women feel that when they snore it is embarrassing or not very lady like.

The problem can certainly run much deeper with women than just the fact that they are losing some well-needed sleep, and it can also affect their partner. The embarrassment that this can cause for women can be mild, but it can also be much more serious than that. Snoring women may actually begin to suffer from self-esteem levels beginning to fall. They also may be weary of entering a relationship with men, because of their embarrassing problem.

That being said if you are a woman that snores you are not alone and there are treatments and cures for your problem. Do not let snoring ruin your life any longer and get the help you deserve. If you are a woman with a snoring problem, or you know a woman that snores please leave a comment in the section below.

Badiola, who is a psychiatrist that practices at the Brain Chemistry Center LLC in Lakeland, would find himself getting sleepy throughout the day, and as a result found himself taking naps, and this was a daily occurrence for over five years. When it came to exercising, he thought it would give him more energy, but it actually had the opposite effect. He would exercise regularly, but would still gain weight despite his efforts.

Fortunately for Dr. Badiola, he had a chance conversation with another doctor whom led him to get tested in a sleep disorders lab in sunny California. The findings came as a bit of a shock to him, as he was diagnosed with sleep apnea, which is known as one of the leading causes of excessive daytime sleepiness.

This finding helped him understand the symptoms, but it did not do much for his wife, Catalina, whom would elbow him through-out the night because of his excessive loud snoring. It would keep her awake many nights, affecting her own life in a negative manner.

Sleep apnea is a common disorder found through-out many Americans, and it can range from mild to intense severity, which people have pauses in their breathing while sleeping, or they suffer from shallow breaths. Badiola’s disorder was so severe that it was found in the tests that he would actually stop breathing 69 times while he was trying to sleep. As a result, it lowered his blood oxygen levels and dropped it to 62, while below 90 is considered being low.

If you have any stories to share with us about your sleep apnea disorder, please leave us a comment, as we would love to hear your horror story about this terrible disorder.