Is Snoring Keeping You from Your Well-deserved Sleep?

Snoring can be more than an annoying habit. It can keep your partner awake. Over time this can jeopardize your relationship. It can also be harmful to your health, as well.

About 45 percent of adults will snore on occasion. Twenty five percent of adults snore habitually.

What happens when one snores? Yes, there is noise. But what physically occurs?

When one snores the airflow from the back of your mouth and nose is obstructed. Then the soft tissues on the roof of your mouth and on your uvula begin to relax and vibrate as you begin to take each breath.

Over time, this persistent snoring can lead to sleep apnea. Sleep apnea is a condition in which a person will actually stop breathing periodically during sleep.

Common triggers that can cause snoring are: age, excess weight, having a soft palate or large uvula, clogged nasal passages, allergies, and colds. Some medications such as antidepressants, antihistamines, and muscle relaxants can also trigger snoring. Drinking alcohol can cause snoring, as well.

If your snoring continues, you should talk to your doctor about treatment options. He/she may want to have you tested for sleep apnea (since this can be a serious condition and can cause many health problems). You may also want to try to loose weight, sleep on your side instead of your back, try using steroid medications to unclog your nasal passages, and even avoiding alcohol.

Some other treatment options your physician may suggest are:

Wearing a nasal mask at bedtime. This is a very common form of treatment known as continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP). The nasal mask keeps one's airways open by pressurized stream of air that is blown into their throat.

Wearing a custom made mouthpiece that can position the jaw so that the airway stays open all night.

Injecting a hardening agent into the soft palate to help reduce the tissue fluttering.

Laser-assisted uvula palatoplasty. This procedure can actually shorten the length of the uvula and part of the palate thereby lessening the airway obstruction.

Radio-frequency ablations. This actually shrinks the tissues in the palate and the uvula, base of the tongue and inside the nose.

Could any of the above methods be the answer to your snoring problem? Maybe. If you or your partner isn't getting the sleep that is deserved, speak to your doctor today about your treatment choices and options. Everyone deserves a good and quiet night's sleep.