Its nearing bedtime and you're feeling tired. However, you feel that tiny sense of dread as your head hits the pillow, and your partner warns you, Try not to snore too loudly, dear. Sound familiar? Don't worry, you're not alone.
Do you avoid going on holiday with friends as you genuinely fear keeping them awake at night with your loud cacophony of snores? Or are you simply suffering from interrupted sleep, often waking up in the middle of night due to your own snoring?
If any of these scenarios seem to mirror your own life, fret not. There are a number of all-natural cures available to help manage or, in some cases, fully chronic snoring.
What is snoring?
Snoring is caused by a blockage in the breathing passages. Blockages could be caused by various factors, including a misaligned jaw, tense muscles, a weakness in the throat, accumulation of fat in and around the throat or an obstruction in the nasal passageway.
When your airways are blocked, the air has trouble getting into your lungs, and as it flows through the narrow tissue, it starts flapping back and forth. This flapping motion causes the snoring sound, like a flag in the wind.
Though research on snoring is often contradictory, it is generally accepted that at least 30% of adults, and possibly up to 50% of people in some demographics snore.
Natural and Drug-Free Cures
There is a plethora of apparent remedies on the market, from creams and sprays, to pills and for more severe cases, even surgery (which many people are reluctant to try for the obvious risks associated with any surgical procedure).
However, there has been a rise in the popularity and acceptance of natural, drug-free cures. These include:
Nasal Clips and Nasal Strips
There are
many varieties of nasal clips - most clip in the septum, or the flesh between the nostrils, and different models work for different individuals. For example, one model utilizes two rare-earth magnets which stimulate blood flow and keep nasal passages clear.
Nasal strips usually consist of bands of plastic embedded in an adhesive strip. If placed properly across the nose, the bands will try to straighten out. This action lifts the sides of the nose and widens the space in the nasal valve, which helps to maintain airflow in the sleeping person.
Breathing Exercises
Breathing exercises can help remove the obstructions in the nasal passage and open up the throat, clearing the airways.
One program, the Stop-Snoring System, is based on a series of simple step-by-step three-minute exercises, targeted at solving the root of each persons snoring problem. This system adopts the different strokes for different folks approach, recognizing that snoring often has two or three causes (e.g. tense jaw and weak muscles in the tongue), and often, it is that combination of factors that renders an individual's snoring incurable.
Exercises include a yawning exercise that completely opens up the throat, and a technique used by professional singers incorporating the innovative use of a soda bottle cap and piece of newspaper!
Unconventional Approaches : The Didgeridoo and You
What does the Australian aboriginal wind instrument have to do with the snorers plight?
Interestingly, a 2005 Swiss study reported in the British Medical Journal found that playing the didgeridoo can help treat snoring, as it increases muscle usage in the throat. The researchers looked at 25 patients who suffered from snoring. Half the group were taught daily to play the didgeridoo. The study found that the partners of those who played the instrument over a four-month trial reported less disturbance from snoring.
So whether it be the nasal clip, didgeridoo or learning simple breathing techniques, make snoring a thing of the past and be on your way to a night of peaceful sleep.
