Sound Sleep Guide

Posts Tagged ‘How to stop snoring’

The sound of snoring is caused by air struggling to pass through your nose and throat. If they are blocked or obstructed in some way, it can lead to snoring.

One of the more common reasons for snoring is when the muscles in the neck and throat are not well toned. With some simple daily exercises, you can firm up those muscles which will often help with your snoring. Exercises are known to be one of those snoring remedies.

Ask any professional singer and they’ll tell you how important it is to do exercise daily that will help keep their air passages clear. Singers do exercises that help to tone their jaws, their tongues and their throats. Strong muscles in these areas will help them perform better.

These same type of exercises can help with a snoring problem in many cases, by helping to keep the airways clear and breathing easier.

Besides, you never know – these exercise might just help you win American Idol some day!

Here are 7 easy exercises that you can do anywhere to help tone your muscles:

1. Slowly open and close your mouth, to its fullest. Do it in a controlled way and ensure that your lips meet when your mouth is closed.

2. Pucker up as if you’re going to blow someone a kiss, then hold it for 5 seconds before relaxing.

3. Practice your smile – make it big and exaggerated. Hold it for 5 second before relaxing.

4. Press your lips together and hold them tightly for 5 seconds, then relax.

5. Press your lips together and then make a sipping noise, as if you were sipping a drink.

6. Stick your tongue out as far as you can. Keep it straight and horizontal – don’t let it droop.

7. Stick your tongue out to it’s maximum and then move it side to side – touching the corner of your lips on both sides.

Practice these exercises for a few minutes every day and you may find your snoring problem will disappear before you know it.

Understanding what can cause you to snore is the first step in curing your snoring problem. There are quite a few different causes of snoring, each of them treatable in different ways.

Snoring is, generally speaking, brought about by insufficient airflow in the back of the nose and mouth, specifically in the area where the soft palate and uvula come in contact with the upper part of the throat and the back of the tongue.

When these tissues make contact, they vibrate which results in the sound of snoring.

Lack of muscle tone in the throat and tongue are one reason people snore. If the muscles are too relaxed, they can cause the airway to become restricted, which causes blockage and ultimately snoring.

Since alcohol is a depressant, drinking can relax muscles to a point that causes snoring.  If you stop drinking around four hours before you plan on going to sleep, you will be able to reduce the possibility that you will snore.

Other depressants that produce similar results include antihistamines and sleeping pills.

Obesity can lead to restricted breathing by leaving deposits of fat on the throat and neck and thus is another leading cause of snoring.

Some allergies bring about snoring, especially those associated with congestion of the nasal passages, since such blockage makes it difficult to breathe and can cause an individual to snore.

Nasal decongestants are a better option than antihistamines when it comes to dealing with allergies because the latter are a potential cause of snoring.  When it comes to nighttime allergy relief, try to use primarily decongestants in order to prevent both allergy symptoms and snoring.

These are a few of the more common causes of snoring. Whether one of these problems sounds like it might be what is causing your snoring or not, it’s best to discuss the problem with a health care professional to get their informed opinion.

There are about forty-five percent of people that have a snoring problem, many of whom are searching to find out how to stop snoring. Snoring bothers both the person that snores and the person sleeping with them. Sometimes it bothers the person sleeping in the next room also. Many times these people need to move farther away to get away from the noise.

Methods

Today, there are many different methods that can be used in how to stop snoring. The best, and most inexpensive way in how to stop snoring, is to look at making lifestyle changes. Dairy-based items create additional mucus in the system, therefore cutting back on consumption of these foods prior to retiring to bed is one strategy for how to stop snoring. A different strategy is to avoid overconsumption generally, particularly prior to going to bed because this leads to increased snoring. Alcohol, smoking and lack of exercise also exacerbate snoring, so decreasing or quitting these activities can help to reduce the snoring problem.

If you are looking for a way to stop snoring there are many new stop snoring aids available and they can be relatively inexpensive. Swelling in the uvula and tonsils can be lessened by throat sprays, which can help eliminate snoring. They also help to lubricate the throat passage which tends to allow the air a freer passage. Nasal dilation strips open nasal canals all night so the person can breath comfortably from the nose instead of the mouth

You can also purchase pillows or mattresses that position your body to lie on your side to help reduce the snoring, this is a much costlier method. These items are specially formed so that it is more comfortable to lay on the side rather than the back. In addition, there are chin straps and mouth sealing devices that can be obtained to keep the mouth closed during the night and train the person to breathe through their nose during the night instead of the mouth. There are also mouthpieces that help to hold the tongue in place so that it doesn’t drop to the back of the throat, blocking the passage of air.

For those with more extreme problems with snoring, there are surgical methods to remove or shrink the palate and throat tissue, as well as tissue reduction treatments to reduce the size of the tissue in the tongue.

Disclaimer – The information contained in this article is provided for your general information only. This should not be considered as medical advice. Under no circumstances does this article recommend any particular treatment for specific individuals and in all cases we recommend that you consult your physician or local treatment center before pursuing any course of treatment.