Snoring

Snoring is a common health problem with significant social dimensions that affects in one way or another half the world’s population. An important sign that we do not sleep well, wake up constantly tired or suffer from headaches, is when our sleep is accompanied by snoring. Statistics show that up to 40% of adults snore, with the problem growing in men where at the age of over 60, the percentage reaches and exceeds 60%!

In particular, snoring is a pathological condition that indicates to the patient that there is some form of obstruction of breathing. In practice, this is the sound produced by the oscillations of the tissues of the airway as a result of this obstruction. The problems occur mainly in the pharynx (soft palate, grape but also the lateral walls of the pharynx). In many cases it can lead to many pathological problems, dangerous to the health of the patient with more serious sleep apnea!

Symptoms

The patient who snores when he wakes up, usually feels dry in his mouth and throat, due to dryness in the grape and pharynx. Children may experience nocturnal enuresis, difficulty concentrating, and even bulimia or developmental disorders.

Even more important are the symptoms in case of sleep apnea. In the short term, the person may suffer from drowsiness, headache throughout the day, ringing in the ears, fatigue and changes in his own mood (depression, irritability). But as we said above, in the long run it can cause hypertension and arrhythmias in the heart while recent research has linked sleep apnea to diabetes and hearing loss.

Causes

It should be noted that anything that makes it difficult to breathe can cause snoring. A simple cold, some seasonal allergies, bronchial asthma and thyroid disorders can be the causes of snoring. The problem can also be anatomical. A small nose or a crooked diaphragm obstructs proper breathing during sleep by causing snoring. In children, the main causes are the tonsils and meatballs, due to the hypertrophy of the adenoids. In rarer cases, there are signs of some metabolic diseases, which contribute to the swelling of the pharynx and respiratory failure. But there are other reasons that are not pathological and are related to our lifestyle: lack of exercise, alcohol, obesity, smoking, and excessive consumption of food before bed can lead to snoring. However, snoring can ring a very loud bell for the patient’s health, as it can be an indication

obstructive sleep apnea. It is a disorder characterized by very loud snoring, leading to cessation of breathing for ten to fifteen seconds and recurring several times during the night. The consequence is the reduced oxygenation of the body (mainly brain and heart), causing long-term serious diseases such as hypertension and heart arrhythmias! Acute cardiovascular or neurological episodes may occur during severe apnea. Especially in the case of apnea, in addition to the aforementioned causes of snoring, there are a number of causes that are blamed: allergic rhinitis, tonsils, crooked nasal septum, long grape, hypertrophic soft palate and the shape of the epiglottis. Most often, but not necessarily, people with heavy snoring and sleep apnea have a significant degree of obesity.

Treatment

There are a number of treatments for snoring, ranging from a wide range of lifestyle adjustments to surgical treatments. For the mildest cases, it is imperative to follow a healthy lifestyle with regular exercise and a healthy diet. In this way, not only the muscles of the body are exercised, but even the muscles of the tongue are indirectly strengthened, while with weight loss, we reduce the deposition of fat in the tissues of the neck as well. It is also a good idea to avoid taking bedtime medicines such as sedatives, antihistamines that relax (as well as alcohol) the muscles and airways and cause snoring. Regarding sleep itself, there are various ways to improve its quality: Raise the bed in the head area by 10-12 cm, in order to facilitate the easier flow of air through the airways of the nose and larynx.

We do not sleep in a room where the environment is dry, using humidifiers.