Everyone snores occasionally. A sometimes embarrassing part of being human. However, if your mate continues to point out that your nighttime noises resemble that of a poorly maintained chainsaw, the issue can advance from an embarrassment to a real concern.
First, let’s take a look at what snoring really is. Snoring is a health problem. The level of health problem depends on its cause. Snoring results when you can’t move air freely through your mouth and nose when you sleep, and the surrounding tissues vibrate as you breathe. The reasons air has problem moving freely can be the result of being overweight, which leads to more fatty tissues and less muscle tone. It can have a hereditary component, with poor nasal passages that are prone to vibrate. As guys, we’re also more prone to snoring because we typically have narrower air passages than women.
Your snoring problem can even come down to something as simple as the position of your tongue while you sleep.
Depending on the seriousness of your snoring problem, and the risks they present to your overall health, your doctor could suggest anything from wearing a Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) machine when you sleep to even surgery, like uvulopalatopharyngoplasty, removing your tonsils or adenoids, or other surgical means of increasing the size of your airway.
If that sounds scary, sleep professionals suggest there may be an easier “” and less scary “” way to tackle the problem. A series of throat exercises can strengthen the muscles surrounding your airway and condition tissues to reduce that snoring vibration.
A warning: You may feel a little silly doing them, but if they save you from going under the knife or the burden of the CPAP machine, it may be well worth it. Doctors suggest:
Give a tongue-lashing
During the day, take a minute to put the tip of your tongue behind your top front teeth, then slowly slide your tongue backwards as far as you can go. When you’ve reached that point, return to the forward position and do it again. Repeat for at least minutes a day to help strengthen the surrounding muscles.
Buy a vowel, Pat
Another exercise involves repeating the vowels out loud for a few minutes several times a day, making sure to focus on enunciation. Again, it helps strengthen your tongue and the surrounding tissues.
Uvula workout
Another exercise requires a mirror (and unless you have very high self-esteem, some privacy). With your mouth open, move your jaw from one side to the other, pausing to hold it for 30 seconds on each side. Then, try flexing the muscle at the back of your throat. You’ll be able to tell if you’re doing it right by watching your uvula, that hanging flap of skin at the back of your mouth, in the mirror. If you’re doing it right, your uvula will move up and down with the contractions.
