Log in
Snoring is something you often don't realize you're doing, but it can be dangerous if left untreated and can also negatively affect those around you, so it's best to address it as soon as possible.
In fact, snoring can have various causes and types, and the treatment method differs depending on these factors.
What causes snoring?
First, let's look at the mechanism of snoring.
During sleep, muscles relax, and the tongue falls back towards the throat due to gravity, narrowing the airway. When air passes through this narrow airway, it vibrates the surrounding mucous membranes, causing snoring. Temporary snoring due to fatigue or alcohol consumption is usually not a problem, but chronic snoring can disrupt the sleep of others and potentially lead to unexpected relationship issues.
It can also be a sign of various illnesses, so it's important to take proper measures.
Characteristics of people prone to snoring
Next, let's look at the characteristics of people who are prone to snoring. If any of these points apply to you, you should be careful.
Irregular lifestyle habits
Smoking and drinking are lifestyle habits that can make you prone to snoring. Smoking weakens the mucous membranes of the throat and nose, causing them to inflame and swell with minor irritation, narrowing the upper airway. Drinking also causes muscles to relax, leading to the tongue falling back and narrowing the upper airway.
Being overweight
People with fat around their neck or a short, thick neck often have fat on their tongue and throat, which narrows the upper airway. Furthermore, compared to Westerners, Japanese people tend to have smaller and recessed lower jaws, making the base of the tongue more prone to falling back, which also contributes to snoring.
Frequent nasal congestion
Nasal congestion (nasal blockage) caused by a cold or hay fever can lead to snoring. When nasal congestion occurs due to inflammation and swelling of the nasal cavity from a cold or allergic reaction, people tend to breathe through their mouths during sleep to get enough air, which can cause snoring.
Poor sleeping posture
Poor sleeping posture can narrow the airway and lead to snoring.
Unsuitable bedding
If your pillow is not the right height, your sleeping posture will be unnatural. If you sleep in this position for a long time, your airway may not be secured, causing snoring.
Snoring improvement methods by cause
Here, we will introduce methods to improve snoring based on its causes.
Snoring due to excessive drinking
Excessive alcohol consumption causes muscles to relax due to the anesthetic effect of alcohol, which can lead to the tongue falling back during sleep and narrowing the airway, making snoring more likely. This can be improved by avoiding excessive drinking.
Snoring due to obesity
However, snoring due to obesity is surprisingly troublesome. When fat accumulates around the neck due to obesity, ventilatory impairment occurs, making it difficult for air to move in and out efficiently, which makes snoring more likely.
This can be quickly improved by losing weight, but losing weight is not always easy, so be careful about obesity in your daily life.
Snoring due to nasal congestion
You can improve snoring by treating nasal obstruction at an ENT doctor or similar specialist. Also, since dust mites and dust in futons are often the cause of nasal congestion, reviewing your bedding might be one solution.
Snoring due to sleeping posture
The key is whether the airway is secured during sleep, so be mindful of a correct sleeping posture. Generally, among back, stomach, and side sleeping, side sleeping is considered the least likely to cause snoring.
Snoring due to incorrect pillow height
If the height of your pillow is not right, your sleeping posture will be unnatural. In particular, using a pillow that is higher than the appropriate height can cause your neck to bend and compress the upper airway, leading to snoring. Choose a pillow of the appropriate height.
If an illness is present, treat it properly at an ENT or internal medicine clinic.
Some people suffer from diseases in the ENT area or organic diseases such as chronic sinusitis (a condition where pus accumulates or mucous membranes swell due to bacteria in the paranasal sinuses; formerly known as "empyema") and tonsillar hypertrophy, or those with severe allergies, may constantly experience nasal congestion and find it difficult to breathe without mouth breathing.
If this situation worsens, it could develop into pathological snoring accompanied by sleep apnea syndrome. Sleep apnea syndrome can trigger serious illnesses, so it is recommended to first properly treat the condition at an ENT or internal medicine clinic.
Sleeping on your back is not good; sleeping on your stomach or side is okay.
To improve simple snoring, sleeping posture is very important.
During sleep, relaxed muscles and excess flesh sink due to gravity, narrowing the air passage in the throat and making snoring more likely. Sleeping on your side or stomach, rather than on your back, helps keep the throat clear, making it more likely to reduce snoring. Using a body pillow to maintain a side sleeping position is also effective in preventing snoring.
It is also possible to treat snoring at a medical institution.
If you wish to treat snoring at a medical institution, a clinic specializing in snoring is likely the best option. Alternatively, you can start by visiting a nearby ENT clinic to determine the cause, and then request a referral to a specialist if necessary.
Particularly for snoring accompanied by sleep apnea syndrome, which increases the risk of subsequent complications, it is necessary to visit a specialized clinic as soon as possible.
When treating snoring at a medical institution, the method involves widening the narrowed air passage to alleviate snoring. In some cases, surgical procedures may be necessary, while in others, commercially available devices are used to reduce snoring.
Snoring can also occur simultaneously with conditions like sinusitis.
For acute sinusitis, medication is used, while for chronic sinusitis, surgical procedures such as endoscopic sinus surgery or intranasal reduction are performed.
These surgeries previously required about three weeks of hospitalization, but recently, they can be done as day procedures or with only about 3 days of hospitalization. If a deviated septum or hypertrophic rhinitis is the cause of snoring, septoplasty or submucous inferior turbinate resection is performed, and these too can now be done as day procedures or with about 3 days of hospitalization.
First, it's important to understand the cause.
The treatment for snoring varies depending on its cause. While some cases can be improved by reviewing lifestyle habits, in others, medical treatment is better. When seeking treatment at a medical institution, each person's condition is different, so it's important to thoroughly discuss it with a doctor first.
When you notice your bed partner snoring, first pay attention to whether their breathing occasionally stops.
Generally, sleep apnea syndrome requiring treatment involves breathing cessation of 10 seconds or more, occurring 15 or more times per hour. Therefore, by observing snoring for a few minutes, it is often possible to determine whether it is sleep apnea syndrome. Even if nasal breathing stops, the brain often tries to breathe, causing the chest and abdomen to move alternately. Even without apnea, blood oxygen levels can drop, causing daytime sleepiness.
If you have such symptoms, you should consult a sleep medicine specialist. Visiting a sleep medicine specialist certified by the Japanese Society of Sleep Research or a sleep medicine certified medical institution is recommended.
