Why Do You Snore and Five Simple Steps to Stop Snoring

Snoring is the vibration of respiratory structures and the resulting sound due to obstructed air movement during breathing while sleeping. Or simply put, snoring happens when you can't move air freely through your nose and throat during sleep. In some cases, the sound may be soft, but in most cases, it can be loud and unpleasant. Snoring during sleep may be a sign, or first alarm, of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) according to wikipedia.

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To stop snoring, it’s necessary to first identify exactly how and why you’re snoring. The good news is that no matter the cause, there are solutions to relieve your snoring and help you and your loved one deal with complaints, resentments, and other relationship issues caused by your snoring.

The causes of snoring can be attributed to;

Nasal and sinus problems: Blocked airways or a stuffy nose make inhalation difficult and create a vacuum in the throat, leading to snoring.

Being overweight: Over eating and/or lack of exercise leads to an increase in fat around the throat. If you have a collar size of 16½" or greater, you may not have the muscle tone needed to keep the airway open sufficiently at night to allow normal breathing, and the narrow airway is more likely to vibrate. Someone with a short fat neck is likely to suffer obstruction in the oropharynx during sleep which gives rise to the noise of snoring.  

Other causes are age, the way you’re built, alcohol, smoking, and medications.

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These are the five ways you can stop snoring:

1.      Maintain a healthy weight and diet. Being overweight by just a few kilograms can lead to snoring. Fatty tissue around your neck squeezes the airway and prevents air from flowing in and out freely.

2.      Try to sleep on your side rather than your back. While sleeping on your back, your tongue, chin and any excess fatty tissue under your chin can relax and squash your airway. Sleeping on your side prevents this.

3.      Avoid alcohol before going to bed. Alcohol causes the muscles to relax more than usual during a normal night's sleep. This added relaxation of the muscles makes the back of the throat collapse more readily, which then causes snoring.

4.      Quit or cut down on smoking. Cigarette smoke irritates the lining of the nasal cavity and throat, causing swelling and catarrh. If the nasal passages become congested, it's difficult to breathe through your nose because the airflow is decreased.

5.      Keep your nasal passages clear, so that you breathe in through your nose rather than your mouth.