Each night, in millions of homes all over the world, a familiar enemy will prevent people from attaining a restful night's sleep. This enemy is the curse of ....snoring! After a long and stressful day, we all look forward to the release that a refreshing sleep can bring. However, for many unfortunates, a snoring spouse or partner can destroy this bastion of peace and over time can result in severe sleep deprivation.

Snoring results in countless lost hours of sleep each night. The effects of snoring may not only affect the unfortunate spouse or partner of the snorer. In the quiet of the night, the sound of loud snoring has a way of reverberating throughout the other sleeping areas of the house. As a result, other family members can also have their sleeping patterns disturbed.

The issue of snoring, however, can be more far-reaching than simply being the cause of frustration and sleep disturbance. Snoring can also be a symptom of a more serious condition, known as sleep apnea. A person suffering from this condition can suddenly stop breathing while they are asleep. You may even have noticed this problem, possibly without recognising it, if you have ever been kept awake by a heavy snorer.

What often happens in these cases is that the person snoring settles into a regular breathing pattern that is characterised by a noisy inhaling of breath. As they exhale, the snorer makes the familiar vibrating sound that we know as snoring. Sometimes, however, this rhythm is broken. The snoring stops for a moment and the snorer seems to struggle momentarily to catch their breath. This unexpected lull in snoring could signal the onset of sleep apnea. In this case, medical advice should be sought.

There are a multitude of snoring remedies available to the general public, which claim to alleviate the problem of snoring. A simple search on the internet will find a variety of devices, such as adhesive nose strips (which keep the nasal passages open), special pillows to align the head in the optimal position said to reduce snoring, dental appliances, and so on. There are also a variety of herbal remedies, which claim to aid the snorer. Add to this mixture a collection of alternative treatments, such as acupuncture and hypnotism and you can see, there is no shortage of suggested treatments. Which ones are effective? That is a question which may vary from individual to individual. In cases which warrant it, surgery may also be an option to rectify breathing problems.

Another school of thought suggests that diet can help to aid those who suffer from snoring. It is thought that certain foods may trigger snoring in an affected individual. To explore this avenue you would need to monitor the snorer's diet to record whether snoring is more frequent or heavy after the consumption of particular foods.

It is also thought that being overweight can contribute to snoring. If you are overweight, then slimming down and becoming more active may stop or reduce your snoring problem, in addition to providing other health benefits.

Lastly, your sleeping position may have a bearing on your snoring. Some people think that sleeping on your back makes a person more liable to snore. We have already mentioned earlier in this article that there are special pillows available, which help to aid head positioning. There are also pillows and other devices, which encourage the snorer to sleep on his/her side. This may help to reduce snoring episodes.

In conclusion, we can see that snoring can seriously harm our sleeping patterns and in rarer cases can be a symptom of more serious medical conditions. We have also seen that there are many possible snoring remedies that individuals can investigate in order to find something which works for them. Just remember to check the safety of any snoring remedy with a health professional before you use it.

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Michael Russell
Your Independent guide to Snoring
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