What Can I Do For Myself To Prevent Or Cure Snoring?

If you want to stop snoring, you may be able to help yourself with a few simple home cures. Snoring that isn't related to sleep apnea responds well to home remedies. Finding a solution to your snoring problem can result in an improved quality of life for you and your loved ones.

Try some of the behavioral, mechanical, and medicinal tips below to prevent or alleviate your snoring.

1. Lose weight . Many snorers are overweight. Losing weight will reduce the fatty tissue in your airway. Eating less and improving your fitness level can significantly improve your ability to breathe freely when you sleep.
   
2. Sleep on your side . Snoring is exacerbated when you sleep flat on your back because the flesh of the throat relaxes and can block the airway. Sleeping on your side can help to alleviate this problem. Special pillows can prevent sleeping on your back. Or you can try the tennis ball trick: sleep with a tennis ball or another similar object in a pocket sewn into the back of your pajama top. (A sock serves as a handy pocket for the tennis ball.) The tennis ball is uncomfortable if you lie on your back, and you will respond by turning on your side during sleep. Changing your sleep position may stop snoring if you are a mild snorer, but severe snorers usually snore in any position.
   
3. Sleep without a pillow . Pillows can block your airway by bending your neck.
   
4. Elevate the head of your bed four inches . Elevation of the head of your bed may make breathing easier and encourage your tongue and jaw to move forward. Elevating the entire head of the bed is better than using a pillow, which can crimp the neck and contribute to snoring.
   
5. Eliminate smoking and exposure to secondhand smoke . Smoking relaxes muscles and also creates nasal and lung congestion. Smoking thus contributes to snoring. Stopping smoking can help with the noise and intensity of your snoring. Exposure to secondhand smoke can cause the same snoring problems as smoking does.
   
6. Avoid eating food or drinking alcohol before bed . These both relax your muscles and therefore increase the likelihood of snoring.
   
7. Avoid high-fat dairy milk products or soy milk products before sleeping . Non-skim milk products and soy milk products, because of their thickness, can keep mucus from draining properly. The result is mucus retained in the throat, which can lead to snoring.
   
8. Avoid antihistamines for allergies or stuffiness. They relax the throat muscles, which can cause snoring.
   
9. Try nasal decongestants to clear your nose passages . Nasal decongestants can help people who can breathe through their noses while sleeping. Nose breathing circumvents the snoring sound from breathing through a blocked throat.
   
10. Avoid sleeping pills or other sedatives . You may take sleeping pills or tranquilizers to help you sleep, but sedatives also relax your neck muscles, which contributes to snoring.
    
11. Learn to play the didgeridoo . Swiss medical scientists, publishing in the British Medical Journal, found that regular playing of the didgeridoo (an Australian wind instrument) improved snoring, sleep apnea, and daytime sleepiness, and reduced sleep disturbances to bedroom partners. The reason for this improvement may be that training to play the didgeridoo decreased the collapsibility of the upper airways.
    

In addition to the above remedies to treat your snoring, several products have been developed to prevent snoring, such as nasal strips and sprays. Approach all such products with caution, as many have not been proven to significantly affect snoring. However, some of these remedies may prevent moderate snoring.