Snoring

‍Snoring is a common and noisy disruption in your breathing during sleep. If you snore regularly, visit Quiet Dental PC in the Pelham Bay/Morris Park section of the Bronx in New York.  The team offers expert advice on reducing snoring and treats problems like sleep apnea that sometimes cause severe snoring. Call the Quiet Dental PC office for help to stop snoring, or schedule a consultation online today.

What causes snoring?

Snoring happens because your muscles relax when you sleep, including the ones supporting tissues at the back of your throat and mouth. As you breathe over the relaxed tissues, airflow causes vibration and produces snoring sounds.

You’re more likely to snore if you have excess body weight. Smoking, alcohol, an inactive lifestyle, and sleeping on your back can all worsen snoring. You might snore when you have a cold or sinus infection, even if you don’t usually.

Structural mouth, sinus, and nasal septum abnormalities could also make you snore.

Should I worry about snoring?

Snoring generally bothers the person listening to it rather than the snorer and is a nuisance more than a health concern. However, it can be a symptom of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), which does require medical attention.

OSA develops when the soft tissues relax so far that they block your airway. Your brain senses you aren’t breathing, and you wake up briefly, then fall back asleep. This can happen multiple times every night, but people generally don’t remember the next day.

Without treatment, OSA can affect your long-term health and make you vulnerable to strokes and heart conditions. It also causes potentially dangerous daytime sleepiness.

How do I know if snoring means I have OSA?

One of the chief problems with OSA is that it’s difficult to tell if you have the condition because you don’t remember waking up during the night. Very often, it’s a partner or someone who sees you asleep that realizes there’s something wrong.

Signs that you might have OSA include:

• Waking up snorting or choking
• Continual, loud snoring
• Falling asleep during the day
• Poor memory
• Chronic fatigue
• Morning headaches
• Irritability

You may need to complete a home sleep study, stay at a sleep center overnight, or both to confirm your sleep apnea diagnosis.

What can I do about my snoring?

Ways to reduce snoring include:

• Losing weight
• Sleeping on your side
• Raising your bed’s head
• Wearing nasal strips
• Treating nasal congestion
• Reducing alcohol consumption
• Avoiding sedative medications
• Quitting smoking

If you have OSA, you might need to wear a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) device that keeps your airway open at night using pressurized air. Other sleep apnea treatments include mandibular advancement devices designed to fit in your mouth, an Inspire® implant, and oral surgery.

Call Quiet Dental PC for help with snoring or to schedule a sleep apnea evaluation. You can also book an appointment online today.