What is Snoring?

Long the material for jokes, snoring is generally accepted as common and annoying in adults but as nothing to worry about.However, snoring is no laughing matter.Frequent, loud snoring isoften a sign of sleep apnea and may increase your risk of developingcardiovascular disease and diabetes, as well as lead to daytimesleepiness and impaired performance.

Snoring is caused by a narrowing or partial blockage of your air-ways at the back of the mouth and upper throat.This obstructionresults in increased air turbulence when breathing in, causing thesoft tissues in your throat to vibrate.The end result is a noisy snorethat can disrupt the sleep of your bed partner.This narrowing ofthe airways is typically caused by the soft palate, tongue, and throatrelaxing while you sleep, but allergies or sinus problems can alsocontribute to a narrowing of the airways, as can being overweightand having extra soft tissue around your upper airways.

The larger the tissues in your soft palate, the more likely you are tosnore while sleeping.Alcohol or sedatives taken shortly before sleepalso promote snoring.These drugs cause greater relaxation of thetissues in your throat and mouth.Surveys reveal that about one-halfof all adults snore, and 50 percent of these adults do so loudly andfrequently.African Americans, Asians, and Hispanics are more like-ly to snore loudly and frequently compared to Caucasians, and snor-ing problems increase with age.

Not everyone who snores has sleep apnea, but people who havesleep apnea typically do snore loudly and frequently.Sleep apnea is a serious sleep disorder, and its hallmark is loud, frequent snoringlinked to intermittent brief pauses in breathing while sleeping. Even if you don’t experience thesebreathing pauses, snoring can still be a problem for you as well as for your bed partner.The increased breathing effort associated withsnoring can impair your sleep quality and lead to many of the samehealth consequences as sleep apnea.

One study found that older adults who did not have sleep apnea,but who snored 6–7 nights a week, were more than twice as likelyto report being excessively sleepy during the day than those whonever snored.The more people snored, the more daytime fatiguethey reported.That sleepiness may help explain why snorers aremore likely to be in car crashes than people who do not snore.Loud snoring can also disrupt the sleep of bed partners and strainmarital relations, especially if snoring causes the spouses to sleep in separate bedrooms.

Snoring also increases the risk of developing diabetes and heart disease.One study found that women who snored regularly weretwice as likely as those who did not snore to develop diabetes, even if they were not overweight—another risk factor for diabetes.Other studies suggest persistent snoring may raise the lifetime risk of developing high blood pressure, heart failure, and stroke.

About one-third of all pregnant women begin snoring for the firsttime during their second trimester.If you are snoring while pregnant,let your doctor know.Snoring in pregnancy can be associated withhigh blood pressure and can have a negative effect on your baby’sgrowth and development.Your doctor will routinely keep a closeeye on your blood pressure throughout your pregnancy and can letyou know if any additional evaluations for the snoring might be use-ful.In most cases, the snoring and any related high blood pressurewill subside shortly after delivery.