How To Stop Snoring

1. Maximise your sleep!

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It is recommended that adults should aim to get between 7 to 9 hours of sleep every night.  And it's important if you want to try and stop your snoring because sleep deprivation is said to increase snoring.  The reason for this is when you're sleep deprived, your throat muscles relax, making it more likely to have an obstruction of your airway.

2. Make lifestyle changes

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There are many things that you can do to help to reduce your snoring, and amongst the many available devices and medical procedures, a simple lifestyle change might just do the trick.  It could be your sleep routine, exercise habits or food intake, but making a few small changes could work wonders.

3. Quit smoking

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Now quitting smoking has many benefits for your health and is vital if you don't want to increase your risk of cancer.  But another benefit quitting smoking has is reducing your snoring.  Make sure you get plenty of support when you decide to quit smoking.

4. Limit sedatives

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Sedatives can send you into a deep sleep.  And sleeping deeply can cause the muscles in your throat to relax.  So it has often been recommended that people limit or even stop their use of sedatives before bed to avoid heavy snoring.  It is important that you talk to a health professional to find out about alternative options.

5. Drink less alcohol

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Drinking too much alcohol, or drinking alcohol before bed can have a sedative effect.  This means that, like sedatives, alcohol relaxes your throat muscles, causing your snoring to become much worse.  So to combat snoring, try to avoid drinking over the recommended amounts and avoid drinking before going to sleep.

6. Maintain a healthy weight

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If you're considered overweight, it might be a good idea to make some lifestyle changes so you can maintain a healthy weight for you.  This is because if you are overweight, you're actually more likely to have problems with snoring.  It might be helpful to consider contacting a nutritionist for some support.

7. Eat healthily

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Eating healthily is an important lifestyle change that you can make to help to reduce your snoring.  A healthy diet will help to improve your overall health and is said to promote better sleep.  Make sure you eat plenty of nutrient-rich foods and keep an eye on your portion sizes.

8. Exercise regularly

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Food isn't the only thing you need to consider when making effective lifestyle changes.  It's also really important to make sure you are moving your body enough.  Regular exercise can, again, promote better sleep, meaning that snoring might be reduced.  And you'll feel great!

9. Use nose strips

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If lifestyle changes are proving to be ineffective for your snoring, there are over-the-counter products available for you to try.  Nasal strips can be placed on the bridge of your nose.  What this does is it increases the space within your nasal passage to let air move through more freely, hopefully reducing your snoring.

10. Treat nasal congestion

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Problems with snoring might only occur when you're feeling a little sick.  If you have a stuffy nose and blocked sinuses, it's likely that you'll snore because your nasal passage is obstructed.  So be sure to treat your nasal congestion as soon as you can.

11. Apply vapor rub

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Everyone's got vapor rub in the back of their medicine cabinet.  And if you haven't, chances are an older relative will have one in there from before the war... Its familiar menthol scent usually works wonders to cure a stuffy nose or irritating cough!

12. Consider an adjustable bed

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One thing that might help would be to consider investing in a new bed.  And make sure you get one that's adjustable.  This is because an adjustable bed can support you while you sleep in different positions, particularly by raising your head whilst you sleep.

13. Raise the head of the bed

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Elevating your head whilst you sleep, even if it's only a few inches, can help to combat your snoring woes by freeing up your airways.  And if you're not ready to splash out on a whole new bed, there are other products you can use, like a bed riser or some firm pillows.

14. Sleep on more pillows

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Now there are many types of pillows that you can buy so it's important to do your research.  Make sure your head pillows are nice and firm and consider using more to elevate your head a little.  You can also buy longer pillows that you can put by your body to support your sleeping position.

15. Use a snore pillow

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Some brands offer tried and tested pillows called 'anti-snore'

pillows.  But they don't claim to cure your snoring completely but they do claim to have proven results in reducing snoring.  And the way they do this is to keep your head in a good position to improve your breathing while you sleep.

16. Change your sleeping position

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If you're a back sleeper, gravity works against you and your tongue tends to fall to the back of your throat.  This, in turn, causes an obstruction and makes your snoring worse.  But if you consider changing your position, you might just be able to beat heavy snoring every night!

17. Sleep on your side

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It is recommended that to reduce snoring, you should sleep on your side.  Sleeping on your side ensures that your airways are clear and allows you to breathe better.  So try it and see if changing your position helps you to reduce or even completely stop your snoring.

18. Practice good sleep hygiene

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There are several things you can do to improve your sleep hygiene.  Sleep hygiene involves making sure your sleep environment and daily routines help to promote a good night's sleep.  And you have to be consistent with your new habits to make sure they stick.

19. Practice mouth exercises

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One thing you could try is mouth and throat exercises.  One source recommends certain exercises to help to prevent snoring.  And one example of these exercises is to move your tongue from the front of your mouth, along the bridge of your mouth, and all the way to the back.  This is supposed to help to strengthen your tongue and throat muscles.

20. Use snore relief sprays

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Some anti-snore sprays are slightly different from the usual nasal sprays that you would use to relieve a blocked and congested nose.  They're different because they specifically target the main culprits when it comes to snoring: dehydration and throat vibration.  The idea is that they lubricate the throat to provide temporary relief.

21. See a health professional

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Sometimes, snoring can be a symptom of an underlying condition so it's worth getting checked out by a medical professional to get to the bottom of the cause.  And sometimes, your snoring can be so severe that it is affecting your sleep, your life, and your relationships and you need specific medical treatment to help you.

22. Get tested for allergies

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If you have any allergies that you know of, these could be causing your snoring.  But lots of people live with allergies that they are unaware of so one path to take is to get tested for things you could be allergic to.  Once you know, you will be able to relieve any allergies you may have.

23. Try acupressure rings

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Some people have said to get snoring relief by wearing an acupressure ring on their little finger.  They follow the old medical philosophy of acupressure that shows a link between pressure points having specific effects on the nervous system.  The rings work by applying pressure on specific points on a person's little finger with the view that they'll stop storing and get a better night's sleep.

24. Try a chin strap

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Studies show that you are more likely to snore if you breathe with your mouth open while you sleep.  But if this is how you sleep, how are you supposed to consciously close your mouth and get a good night's rest?  Well, there are products that can help you with this, including a chin strap.

25. Use a nasal dilator

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A nasal dilator is a small device that you place into your nostrils to open up your airways.  The idea is that if you have more room to breathe through your nostrils, snoring will be greatly reduced because there will be limited obstruction.  So these might be worth looking into!

26. Severe cases need specialist equipment

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Sometimes, when snoring is so severe, people who have reached out to their medical professional are diagnosed with sleep apnea.

  This is a condition when a person's breathing stops and starts when they sleep.  People with sleep apnea will be given a special device called a CPAP machine that they'll wear at night to keep their airways open.

27. Avoid sleeping pills

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Like alcohol and other sedatives, sleeping pills also cause obstruction in the back of the throat by relaxing the muscles as a person sleeps.  Because of this, they should be avoided or limited if you are wanting to try to combat snoring problems...

28. Diffuse Eucalyptus

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Another more natural and drug-free way to clear a blocked and stuffy nose is to diffuse eucalyptus oil.  The menthol scent will fill the room and travel to your nostrils, and it is said to relieve any congestion that you might be suffering due to illness or allergies.

29. Surgical intervention might be required

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In severe cases, surgery is sometimes required.  You might require surgical intervention, called septoplasty

, to correct a deviated septum as this would cause obstruction to your airways.  There are also other surgical solutions that would correct issues in the throat, including tiny implants to the soft palate to reduce vibrations.

30. Seek support

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It's safe to say that snoring can have a huge impact on your life.  It can cause sleep deprivation in both you and whoever you sleep near and has the ability to negatively affect your own well-being and your relationships.  But if you are exploring different ways to reduce your snoring, it's important that you seek support.  And this support can be from a medical professional, a partner, a family member, or a friend to name a few.  So don't suffer alone, reach out!