Falling asleep might take longer and it might not feel as restorative as you age. Aging can also cause you to snore because your tongue and throat muscles begin to relax more with age. As they relax, they cause mild obstruction to your airway and cause you to snore. Smoking anything from cigarettes, pipe tobacco, and cigars can cause inflammation to the tissue that lines the airway.
As a result, it can cause swelling, narrowing, and postnasal drip. The disruption can then cause snoring during sleep. The only way to find out if smoking is the cause of your snoring is to quit smoking to see if your condition improves.
Medical conditions in your throat or nose can also cause you to snore at night. On the flip side, if you have enlarged tonsils or adenoids, it can obstruct your airway and cause snoring. The best way to find out if a nose or throat condition is the cause of your snoring is to see an ear, nose, and throat specialist. You may be recommended surgery to fix your problem. Taking certain medications like muscle relaxers can cause the muscles in your throat to relax which will result in snoring.
Take note of whether or not you snore when you take muscle relaxers. If you do snore when you take them, then you know not to take them unless absolutely necessary.
This is due to the uterus pushing into the diaphragm. Snoring should stop after giving birth. Your anatomy including your jaw, throat, neck, or tongue can be the cause of your snoring. A low and thick palate can cause your airway to narrow. Your tongue might also not rest in the correct position.
Oral appliance therapy can often help resolve snoring as a result of mouth anatomy. The last most common cause of snoring is sleep apnea. Sleep apnea is a serious condition that causes you to stop breathing throughout the night and is a result of an obstructed airway. Snoring is the sound of obstructed breathing, which can be caused by some basic factors, such as poor muscle tone, bulky throat tissue, or a long soft palate or uvula.
It may also be a red flag that you have a treatable health condition that is interfering with breathing while you sleep—such as nasal congestion caused by a sinus infection or allergy, nasal polyps noncancerous growths in the nose or a deviated septum. But in some cases, snoring may be connected to more serious, even life-threatening, health concerns.
It should be found and treated as early as possible. People with sleep apnea have brief interruptions in breathing throughout their sleep. These pauses may happen up to 20 to 30 times every hour. As a result, oxygen levels in the blood fall and the brain jolts you out of deep sleep so that you take a breath.
Your heart and cardiovascular system have to work harder. And you miss out on deep, restful sleep. Johns Hopkins research has shown that severe sleep apnea in middle or old age can up your risk of dying prematurely by up to 46 percent. Treatment for OSA includes the use of continuous positive airway pressure CPAP devices, lifestyle changes, dental devices, and surgery. Alcohol and other sedatives cause snoring by relaxing the muscles that support tissue around the airway.
So, chronic snorers, including those with OSA, who drink alcohol experience more severe snoring. Physicians often recommend avoiding alcohol and sedative medications during the hours leading up to bedtime to reduce snoring.
Although this approach to snoring management has not been evaluated in a randomized clinical trial , some people may experience benefits. Cigarette smoking is another risk factor for snoring. Quitting smoking has been shown to improve snoring, but it can take time. A study showed that snoring rates remained elevated in people who quit recently but within four years declined to match the rates seen in people who had never smoked.
For example, people are more likely to snore if they have a deviated septum , which is when the wall between nostrils is bent or skewed to one side. Additionally, growths in the nasal passages called polyps, having a small jaw, and having an enlarged tongue or tonsils can contribute to snoring. Treatment approaches for people who have one of these anatomical causes of snoring include surgery and dental devices.
Both methods aim to increase the flow of air in and out of the airway during sleep. Having a stuffy nose during sleep may lead to snoring by reducing the flow of air through the airway and causing the airway to collapse. Allergy or infection are the most common causes of nasal congestion, but other contributors include being in a dry air environment or having a deviated septum.
When these conditions persist over time, nasal congestion can become chronic and lead to habitual snoring.
Treatment for snoring due to chronic congestion depends on the cause but may include using nasal decongestants or nasal steroids. Snoring occurs more often when you are laying on your back, also called supine position. When you are on your back, gravity pulls the tissues surrounding your airway downward, which makes the airway more narrow. Research on snorers has shown that the frequency and intensity of snoring decreases in some patients when they lay on their side , also called lateral position.
There are a variety of approaches to positional therapy to treat snoring and sleep apnea. Positional therapy encourages sleepers to avoid sleeping on their backs. These include positional alarms, modified nightshirts, and lateral sleep pillows. Data also suggests that using a special pillow designed to keep the head to the side can decrease snoring. Having extra tissue in the neck can lead to a smaller airway size and an increased susceptibility to airway collapse.
Weight loss may improve snoring in individuals who are overweight. A study found that men who lost at least six pounds experienced reductions in the frequency of their snoring, with greater weight losses being associated with near elimination of snoring.
Older age is associated with a number of sleep changes , including increased snoring. The tongue and the muscles that surround the airway may become weaker as we get older. Engaging in mouth and throat exercises , also called myofunctional therapy, may reduce snoring caused by weak muscles.
A review of studies found that myofunctional therapy reduced snoring intensity and frequency. Hypothyroidism is a condition in which the thyroid gland under-functions and does not produce enough thyroid hormone.
If left untreated, it leads to symptoms such as a puffy face, hoarse voice, slow speech, and slow heart rate. It can also contribute to snoring. Researchers administered sleep studies in twenty hypothyroidism patients and found that all of them snored.
Treatment for hypothyroidism involves taking a medication that replaces the thyroid hormone deficiency. A potential health concern for someone who snores is that snoring may be a sign of sleep apnea. Snoring often goes unnoticed by the snorer; rather, a bed partner or housemate alerts the affected individual about their snoring and other nighttime OSA symptoms.
Alexa Fry is a science writer with experience working for the National Cancer Institute. She also holds a certificate in technical writing. Wright, M. She has a decade of experience in the study of disease. Learn why this may be better for…. Sleep apnea headaches are a type of morning headache common in people with obstructive sleep apnea.
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