Why do people snore?

According to the National Sleep Foundation, three in 10 men and nearly 2 in 10 women do snore regularly and they suffer from some extent of obstructive sleep that is called sleep apnea. Snoring can be troublesome because it may be a hidden medical problem that needs to be treated and can cause terrible disturbance to the rest of the household. Below are given some reasons that why a person might snore:

1. Allergy: It is the most common reason that why a majority of people snore. Many people are allergic to different allergies and these allergies cause swelling in the upper airway of nose that leads to congestion and snoring happens.

2. Weight Gain: Gaining extra weight means depositing of fat tissues and these tissues around neck may swell which create wind resistance in the airway.

3. Smoking: It triggers the tissues in the throat that leads to inflammation which can cause snoring.

4. Binge eating: Some people eat like there is no tomorrow and when you indulge yourself in overeating it causes sleep problems and you end up snoring.

5. Aging: When our bodies get old we have less moisture hold in our tissues that causes snoring.

Generally, people snore because the air inside can’t move freely through their nose and throat when asleep. Their upper airway gets partially closed. Higher severity of this problem also leads to sleep apnea – a serious sleep disorder where breathing stops and starts repeatedly during sleep.

(In fact, snoring and sleep apnea are closely related with 1 in 3 men and 1 in 5 women who snore habitually suffer from this sleep disorder!)

(Courtesy: NetDoctor)

Now the reasons why there’s an obstruction in the flow of airor why the upper airway gets partially closed are plenty. And these reasons vary from individuals to individuals.

• The common and most evident reason why people snore is the size and width of their tonsils, tongue and the fat around their neck.

Those who have large tongue, tonsils and excess weight around their neck find their passageway gets narrowed when sleeping. So, when they breathe, it vibrates their throat, which creates the snoring noise that you hear.

(Courtesy: Isha Foundation)

• The narrowed air passage can also be the result of various other reasons, including how the person is built in the first place.

For instance, comparatively, men have narrower passageways than women, so they are more likely to snore. Similarly, even among men, the overall built of their throatvaries to certain degrees – some have relaxed air passages, others don’t. So the latter snores more.

(Courtesy: Henry Ford)