While snoring may not always mean you have a medical problem, constant snoring can become annoying if you live with other people. Due to snoring being such a common problem among adults, dozens of different tips and ways to help prevent snoring exist. Keep reading to learn about five tips to help prevent your snoring including sleep apnea treatment options.
Changing Your Sleeping Position
The first way to prevent snoring is by changing your sleep position, which can be easier said than done. No one enjoys changing how they sleep, especially if they have been sleeping the same way for years. However, sleeping on your back does make snoring worse, so if you are a chronic snorer, consider switching to sleeping on your side or stomach.
Sleeping on your side or stomach helps to keep the nasal passages open, which helps prevent snoring. If snoring still occurs, you may suffer from sleep apnea, requiring a doctor’s appointment.
Use Nasal Strips to Open Nasal Passages
Opening your nasal passages is a great idea, but it can also help prevent snoring. Using nasal strips is one of the most common ways this is accomplished. Before you go to bed, you would place a strip on your nose to help keep your nasal passages open, allowing air to move and out without causing you to snore.
Keeping Hydrated
When you get dehydrated, your nasal secretions become stickier, which can cause snoring, so stay hydrated before going to sleep. By drinking enough fluids each day, which can be difficult in today’s world, you can help keep your nasal passages functioning properly and provide them with the liquids they need.
Getting Treated for Sleep Apnea
If you do everything you can at home to prevent your snoring, and you find yourself still suffering from it, there is a chance you could have sleep apnea. Sleep apnea causes you to wake multiple times each hour, sometimes as many as 25, without you remembering it has happened.
Your doctor will have you go under either a sleep study or an at-home test, and then you will send in the results to find out if you suffer from sleep apnea. Several options are available to treat it if you suffer from this ailment.
While it used to be the only option was to wear a bulky CPAP unit, mouthpieces are now available, which can significantly reduce the symptoms of sleep apnea. Check with your dentist or doctor to learn whether that option is available.
Improve Sleep Hygiene
Finally, you can prevent snoring by improving your sleep hygiene. Practicing poor sleep habits, also known as poor sleep hygiene, can cause snoring as your body’s muscles become “floppier.” Some examples of poor sleep hygiene are working long hours, having irregular bedtimes, using screens before sleeping, and drinking alcohol or caffeine before bed.
Snoring can be annoying for you and anyone you live with, but by following the above tips, you can prevent it. If you want to treat your sleep apnea and enjoy better sleep, contact our Savannah, GA, office to schedule an appointment or call (912) 354-1366. Our team of experts is just a call away from helping you improve your quality of life.
