snoring - the causes of

The purpose of this guide is simply to provide an answer to that most fundamental of snoring demands: how to end snoring once and for all!

And as you’ll see in just a few pages, the answer often does not lie in expensive and risky surgeries. In fact, in some cases (and we’ll talk about this later on in the guide), surgery can be counter-productive and expose the snorer to other health risks! Fortunately, however, there exist several proven non-surgical anti-snoring devices, techniques, and tips that have worked wonders.

These non-surgical solutions have literally saved lives; and just as valuably, they’ve profoundly improved the quality of life for millions of people who found themselves at their wits end when it came to snoring; both their own, or in that of a loved one (who was becoming less and less loveable as the snoring continued!).

Before we look at these non-surgical methods of ending snoring once and for all, it’s helpful to understand just what snoring is on a biologic level. We’ll look at what causes snoring, and what creates those Z’s (which we now know are not as happy and enjoyable as we remember them from our childhood drawings).

Once we’ve looked at the causes of snoring, we’ll take a deeper look at why snoring is a problem. Obviously, we already know that it’s a problem; but it’s well worth the time to understand just how devastating untreated snoring can be; both for the snorer, and indeed, for the non-snorer. You’ll likely be amazed – if not a little disturbed – by the dizzying array of problems that are quite clearly traced back to snoring; problems that manifest on both the physical and emotional levels.

After that, we’ll be in a position to take a look at remedies for snoring; and our first focus here will be on surgical procedures. Why? Because it’s important for us to understand, scientifically, why surgical procedures to end snoring are dangerous and often counterproductive.

This is very important information that everyone should know, because it paves the way for the final section of this guide: non-surgical, safe, and proven methods of ending snoring once and for all.

So remember, if you have kids and see them draw or paint happy pictures of sleeping people with Z’s rising from their peacefully dreaming bodies, you might want to think twice before sticking those keepsakes to the fridge, or framing them and putting them on your desk at work.

Once you’ve finished this guide, you’ll likely never be able to look at seemingly innocent, safe snoring in the same way!

So…Just What the Heck is Snoring, Anyway?
Technically, snoring is defined as any resonant noise from the respiratory tract that emerges during sleep.

Biologically, snoring refers to a vibration in the airway connecting the nose and the mouth; a vibration that can emerge through the mouth, the nose, or (as some non-snorers are painfully aware), it can emerge through both!

As you can sense, the more narrow the airway, generally speaking, the more intense the vibration; and ultimately, the louder the snore.

You may also be wondering why snoring only seems to emerge at night; after all, people literally use their airway every moment of their life; so why is snoring a nocturnal dilemma?

The answer to this is found in looking at the tissues within the airway. This tissue is very soft, and at night becomes relaxed; it’s similar to how some muscles, like biceps, become relaxed at night since the body does not require them.

As the throat (and its subsequent tissue) relaxes during sleep, the wind tunnel/airway becomes narrower and hence, snoring occurs.

Why Do Some People Snore Louder than Others?
This, too, is the reason why some people snore louder than others; and why the actual tone and pitch of one snorer may be rather different than another.

The actual snoring sound that emerges is dependant upon the force of wind that is being pushed through the (narrowed) airway. As you can envision, the more potent the force of wind (i.e. the faster the speed of the wind), the louder the snoring.

This is also why even babies can snore; but it’s often not considered snoring in the conventional sense, because an infant’s force of wind through their wind tunnel is so mild, that it can easily be ignored (though this can lead to complications; infant snoring can often be a symptom for a breathing and/or respiration problem, including allergy).

However, while snoring affects people of both genders and of all ages, it typically does afflict more men than women. There are a few reasons for this.

Snoring Tends to Favor Men
Overall, men’s necks tend to be larger than women’s necks; and thus there may be more fleshy tissue in there just waiting to combine with air flow and cause snoring.

Another reason is that women produce the hormone called Progesterone, which is considered by some medical experts to be an aid in reducing or preventing snoring. In fact, there are some anti-snoring treatments that involve Progesterone therapy for snoring men.

Factors that Increase and/or Lead to Snoring
There are several health and lifestyle factors that contribute to snoring; and this is true for both men and women, since snoring is a condition that does affect both genders (though surveys suggest that men snorers outnumber women snorers by a ratio of 2:1).

Some of the major health and lifestyle factors that can contribute to snoring include:
<    Allergies, which can clog the airway and trachea
<    Allergy medications, which can dry the nasal cavities
<    Cold and Flu, which can similarly clog the airway (this is why some people experience snoring only when they’re suffering a cold or flu)
<    Thickened tissues in the nasal passages, which can sometimes result from some surgeries unrelated to snoring
<    Overuse of nasal sprays which irritate the nasal passageway
<    Enlarged adenoids and/or tonsils
<    Goiter (swelling of the an ineffective thyroid gland in the neck)
<    A disproportionately large tongue that blocks airflow
<    Ineffective regulation and neural control of mucus membranes
<    Obesity and excess weight (leading to an enlarged neck and excess soft tissue in the trachea)*
<    Excess gut/belly (relatively decreasing the size of the lungs)*
<    Drinking alcohol**, which:
o    sedates the throat muscles and causes them to collapse
o    dilates blood vessels which swells up throat tissue
<    Cigarette smoking, which inflames the upper airway
<    The normal aging process, which can simply lead to a loss of muscle tone in the neck and thus snoring

* Since relatively more men tend to experience an excess gut, this is one reason why more men tend to experience snoring than women.
** Any medication (prescribed, over the counter, or illicit) that leads to excessive relaxation can lead to snoring.

So while we’ve looked at what snoring is, and what (rather common) factors and variables lead to/increase snoring, there still remains a very important element to focus upon: just how devastating is snoring? We answer this rather ominous question in part two of this book, below.