Snoring: Cause And Effect

When we sleep, we pass through different cycles of slumber, from a light sleep to a deep sleep. The muscles in the soft palate (the roof of your mouth), tongue and throat relax as we fall into a deeper sleep, which may cause them to vibrate and prevent air from comfortably traveling through the airway. Snoring can be a habitual problem or an occasional one and is usually reported to the snorer by his or her sleeping partner. Snoring gets louder because the tissue vibration intensifies as the airway is constricted.

About 45% of sleeping adults are snorers and 25% of these noisemakers are thought to be habitual. Snoring tends to worsen with age.

Snoring occurs for a number of reasons. A person with a long or oversized uvula (the hanging tissue in the back of the throat) can experience snoring. Overweight persons, people who consume too much alcohol before sleeping (causing the throat to relax too much due to the sedative nature of alcohol), people with nasal congestion (allergies or deviated septum), smokers (smoking causes nasal and lung congestion and relaxes the throat muscles), enlarged adenoids or tonsils (add additional vibration to the tissues in the throat while sleeping) or the heredity of a narrow throat are all factors that can contribute to snoring. Additional causes can be traced to being male, sleeping on your back, being older (middle-aged or seniors), being out of shape, taking medications such as sleeping pills or antihistamines, having a cold or asthma and sleeping on overly soft pillows.

Snoring is generally not a major problem although can be disruptive to the sleep of the snorer or the snorer’s sleeping partner. A snorer can feel overly tired the following day although they have gotten a good night’s sleep. Snoring is always caused by a narrowing of the air passage and in cases such as the snorer having a cold or sleeping on their back, the chance of snoring is increased. If a person’s snoring is severe, this will cause them to experience sleep deprivation (also for the snorer’s bedmate!). Sleep deprivation has a myriad of effects on the body including: a weakened immune system, negative mood or crankiness, a decrease in productivity, low energy, lack of decision-making capabilities, poor emotional and mental health and slow reaction time. Snoring also has the effect of reducing oxygen flow to the brain which, in turn, can contribute to high blood pressure, hypertension, premature death, type II diabetes, stroke and heart disease.

Heavy snoring can cause relationship problems as the snorer often awakes their sleeping partner unknowingly over twenty times an hour! This leads to lack of quality sleep that leads to irritability, distractedness and a general malaise. When this type of snoring occurs, many sleepers opt to sleep in separate rooms or one gets banished to the couch which does not improve relations of the sexual or communicative nature and leads to lack of intimacy and puts a strain on the relationship. If this occurs, see your doctor.

Sleep apnea is a case where snoring is indicative of a larger problem. Sleep apnea causes the throat to close and obstruct intake of oxygen and increases carbon dioxide in the breathing system. The loud snoring you would hear, followed by 10 seconds or more of silence which results in the sleeper waking up briefly, gasping or snorting for air, then falling back to sleep. This is not only extremely disruptive for the snorer and the snorer’s bedmate but is also dangerous. This condition is serious and a person experience these symptoms should consult a doctor immediately for treatment.

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