Your snoring is due to obstacles in your airway that vibrate as you try to get enough air into your lungs. It can disrupt your sleep as well as disturb anyone with whom you are sleeping. To make sure you are getting the quality of sleep that you need, here is what you need to know about your snoring and what options you have for treating it.

Snoring Means Your Airway Is Blocked

The muscles and tissues in your airway are relaxed when sleeping. If they are in the way of a normal air flow, they can begin to vibrate. You may breathe harder as you try to get enough air in each breath, which makes the vibration worse, and the snoring sound louder. Some of the causes of the vibration and labored breathing include

• The tissue in the roof of your mouth, the soft palate, is thicker than normal or extends further back into the throat.
• The soft palate and throat tissues are swollen due to an illness or allergic reaction.
• Alcohol use relaxes the soft tissues in the airway even more.
• Nasal cartilage creates a partially obstructed airway.

There are often multiple causes for your snoring. Nasal cartilage blocking part of your airway combined with swollen tissues due to allergies is likely to cause you to breath harder and snore.

Treatment Options for Snoring

Any treatment is focused on clearing the airway so breathing is easier and the tissues don't vibrate. You may need to address more than one cause to stop your snoring permanently.

• Nasal strips - Available at your corner drugstore, these stiff plastic strips adhere to the outside of your nose. They hold your nostrils open to create a larger airway entering the nose. They do nothing to relieve obstacles once the air gets past the nose.
• Oral appliances - Looking like mouth guards worn in sporting activities, these devices hold back the soft palate and other tissues in the mouth that can vibrate as you sleep.
• Anti-histamines - Should you frequently have congestion while you sleep, your doctor can prescribe an anti-histamine that you take before going to bed to reduce tissue swelling along your airway.
• Rhinoplasty - This is a surgical procedure to reshape the cartilage in your nose to remove obstacles and create a clear airway. The misshapened cartilage can be genetic or due to an injury that damaged the cartilage.
• Soft Palate Reconstruction - The tissues in the roof of your mouth that extend back into your throat can be trimmed away to prevent them from vibrating while you're sleeping.

For more information about snoring treatment, talk to a professional like William M. Parell, MD, PSC.