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.

• Age, too, plays a crucial role here. You would notice that as one age, they start to snore more and louder even. That’s because, with age, their passageway gets narrower and the muscles in their throat that’s supposed to hold the posture start weakening.

There are several other reasons why people snore. If you lay flat on your back, the top flesh inside your throat would weigh down. This would partially block the air passage. If you have eaten/drank something that relaxes your throat muscle (like alcohol or some medicine), it can get your airways partially closed as well, leading to snoring.

(Courtesy: Henry Ford)

At times, the reason why people snore could be much serious. Moreover, habitually snoring with intensity progressively increasing can give rise to other serious problems like, including sleep apnea.

So, if you snore – or if you know someone who snores – it’s important to get them checked by a doctor. Even though snoring doesn’t seem like a big deal and that often it’s a ***** of a joke for many, it could stem into something serious. Timely intervention is very important.

Hope this answer helps! :)