Snoring is a sign of sleep apnea and it can be a big deal for some of us as well. Sleep apnea is not a simple matter and must be treated immediately so we’re here to share our knowledge to help you out.
So, does sleeping elevated help snoring? Yes, sleeping with your head elevated can help the snoring since it will lessen the obstruction in the airways which makes breathing difficult and cause snoring.
We end up snoring since we have to be forced to breathe through our mouths because the air getting in through our nasal passage is obstructed by our sleeping position.
Sleeping with the head elevated can help fix that since the airways will work against gravity as we sleep. When this happens, the air that enters our body may not circulate properly.
However, if we elevate our heads in our sleep, we can help our bodies breathe better than lying down straight and flat.
According to research, sleep apnea and snoring can occur when the muscles in your upper airway relax causing the air to become restricted either through your nose or throat.
By elevating our heads, the restriction is lessened because the muscles are positioned properly.
For example, sleep apnea patients can sleep in a chair that is specifically designed to help conditions such as sleep apnea or use sleep wedge pillows that allow our heads to rest slightly elevated.
By using a chair to sleep, you can also avoid unconsciously slouching down to lie straight down straight on your back again.
We may try to sleep on our sides but once we fall asleep, our position is beyond our control. In fact, lying on our sides is the best position to sleep in with sleep apnea, but we cannot control that as we drift into sleep.
So the least we can do is by making sure our head is elevated when we sleep to lessen the risk of sleep apnea snoring.
However, keep in mind that it’s only a small remedy and may not leave a huge impact on your apnea.
Just in case you’ve already tried sleeping with your head elevated or using a recliner, there may be some reasons why it may not stop the snoring. Read on to learn more about snoring and how to cure it.
What else can help snoring aside from sleeping elevated
So once again, there is still a possibility that what’s effective for others may not be as effective for you. After all, people may have different conditions and causes for their sleep apnea or snoring.
In this case, if sleeping with the head elevated does not help you treat your sleep apnea, there are plenty of other options that you can consider.
The main idea is knowing the cause to get rid of it, but here’s a list that you can try.
- Nasal Strips
- Nasal strips are one of the earliest tools used to treat sleep apnea and its symptoms such as snoring. Nowadays, there are newly developed nasal strips that you can try.
- Oral Appliance
- Oral pieces can help with sleep apnea and snoring, they are custom made to make sure it prevents the obstruction in the airways and counter sleep apnea and snoring.
- CPAP Treatment
- The CPAP or “Continuous Positive Airway Pressure” is a commonly used treatment and proven to be effective for sleep apnea patients and treating snoring.
- Lose weight
- Being overweight or obesity can be a cause of snoring. You can potentially get rid of snoring by getting plenty of exercises and maintaining a healthy, balanced diet.
- Stop or avoid smoking too much.
- Excessive smoking can cause or worsen snoring. Reducing your smoke intake per day will also reduce the risk of snoring. If possible, quit smoking to potentially get rid of snoring.
- Avoid excessive alcohol consumption
- Drinking too much alcohol before sleeping can cause and worsen snoring just like smoking.
- Avoid sedatives before going to sleep
- Certain sedatives can cause snoring. Consult a medical expert to determine what type of sedative may be the cause.
- Maintain a proper sleep routine.
- Sometimes, we end up getting exposed to snoring since we simply don’t sleep at the right time. Try to avoid staying up late and sleep early.
- Don’t overwork yourself all the time.
- Going to sleep exhausted can make us a lot more prone to snoring. It’s important to relax a little bit at first before going to bed to lessen the risk of sleep apnea and snoring.
- Treat chronic allergies
- Some allergies can trigger obstruction in your body’s airways and may cause you to have sleep apnea and cause you to snore. Treat or avoid triggering your allergies to avoid snoring.
How to stop snoring if sleeping elevated doesn’t help it
But what if you don’t want to keep just sleeping with your head elevated? How do you permanently get rid of snoring? Well don’t worry, it is possible to cure sleep apnea and snoring today using surgeries.
- Rapid Maxillary Expansion
- For children with obstructive sleep apnea. This process places an expandable brace on the roof of the mouth that increases the width of the upper jaw (maxilla).
- Over time, parents can adjust the brace using a special key to increase the amount of pressure for the teeth.
- Jaw Advancement Surgery
- For teenagers and adults. This process will surgically break the jaw bones, moved forward and then fixed properly with screws and plates and will change the person’s facial structure or profile.
- It might take months to recover.
- Surgical Airway Advancement
- Similar to the 2nd example. Bones of the upper and lower jaw will be repositioned in a way that will relieve airway obstruction.
The best thing to do is to consult your doctor to determine what is the proper surgery for you.
What causes snoring?
To prevent snoring, it’s important to know what may cause it in the first place. There are plenty of reasons why a person may snore but mainly, it’s when the person is experiencing difficulty in breathing.
When the body is unable to breathe properly, the surrounding tissues may vibrate which causes the sound called snoring.
This can happen because of chronic conditions or natural anatomy formation. It can be because of a narrow throat or such which can be fixed through surgeries.
If not, there are also other reasons why a person will snore. Check out this list to see if it may be applicable to your situation.
- Being overweight
- Body fat can get in the way of the body’s ability to stretch its airways open making it harder to breathe which will cause snoring.
- Airway obstruction
- Anything that can obstruct the airways will make breathing difficult and cause the tissues to vibrate and cause snoring.
- Sleeping position
- Sleeping on your back may cause the tongue to fall back and the muscles to relax which can block the airways.
- Drinking liquor
- Drinking excessive liquor especially before going to sleep will relax the muscles and create difficulty in breathing
- Smoking cigarettes
- Similar to drinking liquor
- Taking medications
- Certain medications can make the body relax as well
- Sleeping exhausted
- Sometimes, going to bed overworked or completely exhausted can cause snoring since the body is too tired to help your breathing stay normal.
- Anatomical build
- Your physical attributes can obstruct your airways and some of this can be hereditary.
- Age
- As we age, our throat will become narrower which is beyond our control. However, proper sleep routine and a healthy, balanced diet can prevent snoring or sleep apnea.
Related Questions
- Is it normal for children to snore?
Yes, it’s normal for children to snore especially if they go to sleep exhausted. However, if the child is snoring constantly and loudly, you might have to check for other signs of sleep apnea.
Observe if the child experiences a pause in breathing and have an irregular heartbeat. Snoring may be common even for children, but constant snoring might be an alarming sign.
- Do nasal strips help snoring?
Yes, nasal strips actually work very well in reducing snoring and lessening the severity of sleep apnea attacks if the cause of sleep apnea is due to nasal obstruction.
If your snoring or sleep apnea is caused by a nasal problem, then the snoring strips will definitely work since it helps open airways in order to make the patient breathe properly.
- Do oral appliances help snoring?
Yes, oral appliances are actually effective for preventing snoring and treating sleep apnea. It is used as a substitute to CPAP or sleep apnea oral surgeries.
Oral appliances are even referred to as “anti-snore” devices since they can provide fast relief after one night of usage.
Oral appliances are custom made and molded after the shape of the patient’s mouth and teeth. It works by moving the jaws forward which opens the upper airway, allowing the body to breathe better.
Usually, these oral appliances are suggested for patients that are overweight. Losing weight together with using oral appliances will prevent snoring for them and it will definitely work.
