Originally published January 12 2006
Doctor discusses what new studies have discovered about snoring
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Dr. Marla Shapiro reports on the causes and effects of snoring, both in children and adults, and reviews research presented at the 15th annual congress of the European Respiratory Society.
Interestingly, it is not only women asking what they can do to get their male partners to stop snoring, but men asking how to silence their female bedmates.
In September, at the 15th annual congress of the European Respiratory Society, it was reported that as many as 10 per cent of children snore on a regular basis.
The back of your mouth and throat houses the soft palate (the muscles in the roof of the mouth); the uvula (that odd structure hanging down at the back of the throat) and the tongue.
If the tissues at the back of your mouth relax too much, they can lead to a partial blocking of your airway.
These include drugs used to treat anxiety, such as benzodiazepines; sleeping pills; cold medications; and antihistamines, such as those in allergy pills.
Snoring children, for example, are more likely to have recurrent ear infections and to require a tonsillectomy.
One of the most important medical conditions in adults is sleep apnea, which can be serious.
This causes decreased oxygen and a rise in carbon dioxide in your blood, which has an impact on your breathing cycle and causes you to wake up suddenly as the airway is forced open.
The doctor will give you a complete physical exam and ask questions about your lifestyle.
Several surgical procedures are possible, ranging from tightening loose tissues in the throat and palate, to shrinking an enlarged uvula, to correcting chronic obstructions in the mouth or nose, or fixing a deviated nasal septum.
But in many cases, snoring requires no medical intervention other than following a healthy diet, treating allergies, and cutting out things known to make snoring worse -- smoking, alcohol, and medications that aggravate.
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