There are two types of
snoring: primary
Snoring and
Snoring indicative of
obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). If your significant other is
a snorer, you can conduct a sleep study, which is called a
polysomnogram, to determine which type of snoring your
significant other is suffering from. Of the two types of
snoring, primary snoring, which is also called simple
snoring, is the one that you should be concerned about the
least. A person will not suffer from any health problems or
lose out on any sleep because of primary snoring. You can
tell a person is suffering from primary snoring if you can
hear loud breathing while that person is sleeping. Primary
Snoring is uninterrupted and periodic. The noise from the
loud breathing can be of any decibel level. Primary snoring
results from some type of nasal passage blockage. The other
type of snoring is more of a health concern and a doctor
should be consulted for treatment recommendations. OSA can
occasionally cause a complete blockage of the air passages
for as long as 10 seconds and this may result in death due
to suffocation. According to the National Institutes of
Health, 12 million Americans have OSA and it is as common as
diabetes. OSA sufferers can have as many as 20 to 30
involuntary breathing pauses per hour during sleep. These
pauses occur because the throat muscles and tongue relax and
block the opening of the airway. A person suffering from
this type of
Snoring will have early morning headaches,
problems staying awake during the day and low oxygen levels
in the blood. If OSA is left untreated, a person can have
high blood pressure and increased risk of cardiac arrest,
stroke and heart disease. Unfortunately, 90% of OSA
sufferers are undiagnosed and untreated.
Snoring occurs because of the
vibrations of tissues against each other in the back of the
mouth and nose. These tissues obstruct the airway and
consist of the soft palate, the throat, the uvula, the
tonsils, or the adenoids. Snoring occurs during sleep
because deep sleep is what causes the relaxation of the
throat muscles. This partially closes the airway. This
narrowing of the airway obstructs the air flow, which causes
the
Snoring. A narrower airway will cause louder noise
because there will be more friction. There are several other
causes of
Snoring. If you're not in shape, this can lead to
poor muscle tone and lax muscles, which can contribute to
Snoring. Alcohol, sleeping pills, or antihistamines can
increase the relaxation of throat and tongue muscles.
Excessive fatty tissue in the neck can cause your throat to
become smaller. A long soft palate or uvula can narrow the
opening of the airway. A stuffy nose from a cold can block
your nasal airways and make it harder to pull air through
it. This will create a vacuum in your throat and pull
together the tissues of the throat. Smoking or exposure to
secondhand smoke can cause the throat muscles to relax and
also creates nasal and lung congestion. Men are more likely
to snore than women because they have narrower airways. When
you're middle-aged or older, your throat become narrower and
the muscle tone in your throat decreases. A deviated septum,
which is a deformity of the wall that separates one nostril
from the other, can cause obstructed breathing.
