Archive for June, 2008
If you live with someone that snores on a nightly basis, you may be searching for home remedies for snoring that will ease the noise and give you a night of blissful sleep. The good news is that home remedies for snoring do exist and for some can prove to be quite helpful, the problem is finding the one that works best for you and your snoring partner. A simple commitment to trial and error should provide you with the opportunities to experiment with different home remedies for snoring until you determine the one that works best for you.
Tennis Anyone? The Tennis Ball Provides A Home Remedy For Snoring
An immediate home remedy for snoring is the modification of the snoring individuals sleeping position. If your partner snores less when sleeping on their side, consider implementing a sleeping idea that keeps your partner asleep and still keeps them on their side. Purchase a tennis ball and sew it into the back of the pajamas that your partner wears to bed. The tennis ball provides a discomfort when the snoring partner rolls over onto their back, thus forcing them to return to their side and maintains a snore free position. This home remedy for snoring does not work for everyone but it is a good place to start. The use of the tennis ball is to modify the sleeping style and pattern of the snoring individual. The idea is that the ball will reduce the habit of sleeping on the back and increase the desired behavior of side sleeping. It is believed that the tennis ball will provide the stimulus to create and modify the unwanted behavior and soon the tennis ball will no longer be necessary once the habit is changed.
A Pillow Fight Might Provide A Home Remedy For Snoring
Science has determined that for a person that suffers from snoring, pillows only further enhance the problem. Anything that actively places a kink in the neck while sleeping can cause an individual to snore. For someone that is prone to snoring, this is a combination that will most definitely lead to a noisy and disruptive night. So, a quick home remedy for snoring might be to get rid of the pillows all together and thus prevent that initial kink in the neck and the subsequent struggle over pillow comfort and snore volume.
Reach for the Stars, At Least With The Head Of The Bed
Another idea in home remedies for snoring is to simply elevate the head of the bed. Increasing the height of the head of the bed, by placing the two feet of the bed on bricks or another supportive product can reduce often reduce the snoring of the person sleeping in the bed. As a home remedy for snoring, this one is also beneficial for those that become congested during the night or are suffering from a cold or intense allergies. It is by elevating the upper torso that it is possible to prevent the nasal passages from becoming congested and forcing the snoring individual to sleep with their mouth open and thereby increase the sound and amount of snoring that occurs.
Posted in Snoring
A sure sign that you could be affected by sleep apnea is that when sleeping you suddenly finds yourself waking up and the reason is that you were not able to breathe for a short spell of time. The primary sleep apnea cause occurs when you are unable to get air into your lungs while asleep and this may be because of your throat staying open making you unable to breathe, or because of a temporary collapsing of your throat which makes you wake up at night because of having become breathless.
Sleeping on Your Back
Most times sleep apnea happens while sleeping on your back although it can happen in any position. Sleep apnea is usually caused when the tongue or throat muscles relax beyond the usual range and by sleeping on your back, the fact that the muscles have relaxed so much lets the tongue slip up towards the back on your mouth and you are unable to breathe.
Thus, if it is found that sleeping on your back is the main sleep apnea cause, you need to simply change your sleeping position and thus again regain your ability to sleep soundly. Another possible sleep apnea cause is when your adenoids or tonsils become too large and to treat such a sleep apnea cause you may require undergoing surgery, though of course the decision is best left to your doctor.
If you are overweight and have too much body fat you may also be at risk for sleep apnea. Fat deposits can accumulate at the back of the throat and cause it to collapse or a blockage while you are sleeping.
However, by using a mouth piece it will help in case of mild sleep apnea since it will ensure that your tongue stays down and it will also keep your tongue in a position that will enable you to breathe continuously and thus ensure adequate and restful sleep at night.
Even the size of your skull or neck can be a cause of sleep apnea. The shape may force muscles to close over the throat when you lie down and ruin what would otherwise be a good sleep.
The best way to treat this and other sleep apnea causes is by using the Continuous Positive Airway Pressure treatment which is most suitable should you suffer from an extreme case of sleep apnea.
Tags: The first step to stopping a snoring problem is to determine just what’s causing it.
Here are the 5 most common causes of snoring…
Alcohol
If you drink alcohol on a regular basis, check to see whether your snoring is a problem on those nights you don’t drink anything.
Alcohol is a depressant and can contribute to snoring because it relaxes the muscles in your neck and throat. This relaxation is more advanced than with regular sleep and this can cause your airways to become restricted.
If you find that your snoring is better when you don’t drink before going to sleep, the obvious answer is to stop drinking. But if that isn’t a viable option, you should make sure your last drink is at least 4 hours before you go to sleep.
Sleeping On Your Back
A lot of people with snoring problems only snore when they sleep lying on their back. The answer to this problem is to train your body to lie on its side while you sleep.
There are plenty of devices that help with this, but they’re mostly variations of a home-grown remedy.
Put a tennis ball inside a sock and pin it to the back of your pajamas with a safety pin. When you’re asleep, if you roll onto your back the discomfort from the tennis ball will make you roll back onto your side naturally.
Are You Overweight?
Being overweight is another thing that can lead to a snoring problem. If you’re overweight, fat tissue can build up in your neck and throat area, which puts a strain on your breathing by blocking your airways. The obvious solution here is to lose some of the extra weight.
Do You Use Sleeping Pills Or Antihistamines?
These items have a similar effect on your body to alcohol – they cause the muscles in your throat and neck to relax more than normal, which leads to blocked airways and ultimately snoring.
Do You Suffer from Allergies?
One of the symptoms of allergies is nasal congestion, which can make it difficult for your body to get the oxygen that it needs.
The problem is, antihistamines can also contribute to snoring so the best solution is to just take a decongestant rather than an antihistamine.
These are some of the most common causes of snoring, but it’s always best to speak with your doctor or other health care professional to get their opinion on the causes and best treatments for your particular situation.