Solutions for Snoring

Snoring is an annoying problem that affects many people, as well as their partners. Not only does snoring interfere with normal sleeping patterns, the noise keeps others in the room awake. Snoring is a regular occurrence for some, while it happens only intermittently for others. Often, snoring is more of an irritant rather than a serious medical condition, and can be easily controlled.

Close Your Mouth

• Snoring is sometimes caused by a person sleeping with their mouth open. This is more likely to occur when a person sleeps on their back and their chin drops, though it can happen in other positions as well. The most obvious solution is to try sleeping on your side or stomach when you go to bed. Make a conscious effort to keep your mouth shut as you begin to fall asleep. Breathing strips across your nose open your nasal passages further and encourage you to breath through your nose rather than your mouth.

Avoid Alcohol and Certain Medications

• Alcohol, especially in excessive quantities, relaxes muscles in the throat. Muscles of the tongue, palate, pharynx and neck collapse as they become more relaxed, which in turn leads to restriction of the airway. Once the airway is smaller, there are more vibrations from the air trying to pass through a smaller space; these vibrations cause snoring. Medications which relax the muscles have the same effect as alcohol on the throat muscles, which can lead to increased snoring. Refrain from drinking alcohol within three to four hours before bedtime. If you are not a drinker, check and examine your medications. If you are able to stop your medication for a night, do so and see if your snoring subsides. You may have to switch medications in order to lessen the severity of your snoring.

Sing

• Since one of the main reasons for snoring is the collapse and reduction of the airway, you can help prevent this by strengthening muscles in the throat. One way to do this is to sing. Singing gives muscles in your throat a workout, and will help strengthen and tone them. The additional strength and tone will help keep your airway from collapsing and shrinking at night. It is a good idea to take a singing lesson or two before trying to sing on your own, so that you can learn the basic scales and proper form. Daily singing sessions of just 10 to 15 minutes can be enough to help alleviate snoring problems.