8 Easy Steps to Stop Your Snoring
1. You Change Your Sleep Position.
Lying on your back makes the base of your
tongue and soft palate collapse to the back wall
of your throat, causing a vibrating sound during
sleep. Sleeping on your side may help prevent this.
"A body pillow (a full-length pillow that
supports your entire body) provides an easy
fix," Slaughter says. "It enables you to maintain
sleeping on your side and can make a dramatic
difference."
2. Lose Weight.
Weight loss helps some people but not
everyone. "Thin people snore, too," Slaughter says.
If you've gained weight and started snoring and
did not snore before you gained weight, weight
loss may help. "If you gain weight around your
neck, it squeezes the internal diameter of the
throat, making it more likely to collapse during
sleep, triggering snoring," Slaughter says.
3. Avoid Alcohol.
Alcohol and sedatives reduce the resting tone
of the muscles in the back of your throat,
making it more likely you'll snore. "Drinking
alcohol four to five hours before sleeping
makes snoring worse," "People who don't normally snore will snore after drinking alcohol."
4. Practice Good Sleep Hygiene.
Poor sleep habits (also known as poor sleep
"hygiene") can have an effect similar to that of
drinking alcohol, Slaughter says. Working long
hours without enough sleep, for example,
means when you finally hit the sack you're
overtired. "You sleep hard and deep, and the
muscles become floppier, which creates
snoring," Slaughter says.
5. Open Nasal Passages.
If snoring starts in your nose, keeping nasal
passages open may help. It allows air to move
through slower, Slaughter says. "Imagine a
narrow garden hose with water running
through. The narrower the hose, the faster the
water rushes through."
Your nasal passages work similarly. If your nose
is clogged or narrowed due to a cold or other
blockage, the fast-moving air is more likely to
produce snoring.
A hot shower before you go to bed can help
open nasal passages, Slaughter says. Also, keep
a bottle of saltwater rinse in the shower. "Rinse
your nose out with it while you're showering to
help open up passages," Slaughter says.
A neti pot could also be used to rinse out the
nasal passages with a salt-water solution.
Nasal strips may also work to lift nasal passages
and open them up -- if the problem exists in
your nose and not within the soft palate.
6. Change Your Pillows.
Allergens in your bedroom and in your pillow
may contribute to snoring. When did you last
dust the overhead ceiling fan? Replace your
pillows?
Dust mites accumulate in pillows and can cause
allergic reactions that can lead to snoring.
Allowing pets to sleep on the bed causes you to
breathe in animal dander, another common
irritant.
"If you feel fine during the day but obstructed
at night, these things may be contributing to
your snoring," Slaughter says.
Put your pillows in the air fluff cycle once every
couple weeks and replace them every six
months to keep dust mites and allergens to a
minimum. And keep pets out of the bedroom.
Beware before spending money on special
pillows designed to prevent snoring,
Chokroverty says. "They may work if it props up
your head, which fixes nasal issues, but can
cause neck pain."
7. Stay Well Hydrated.
Drink plenty of fluids. "Secretions in your nose
and soft palate become stickier when you're
dehydrated," Slaughter says. "This can create
more snoring." According to the Institute of
Medicine, healthy women should have about 11
cups of total water (from all drinks and food) a
day; men require about 16 cups.
Overall, get enough sleep, sleep on your side,
avoid alcohol before bedtime and take a hot
shower if nasal passages are clogged, Slaughter
says. "These simple practices can make a huge
difference in reducing snoring."
8. Make sure you don't go Through Stress.
When you are stress , tiredness alone is enough to build a snoring breathe during sleep. So make your days stress free.
Source: Web MD
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