Snoring
What causes snoring in adults and in children. When it is dangerous and what really helps. Without miracle promises from adverts.
Why people snore
Snoring occurs when the airways and soft tissues in the throat – the soft palate, uvula or base of the tongue – narrow during sleep and start to vibrate as you breathe in. Contributing factors include:
- blocked nose – a cold, swollen mucous membrane, nasal polyps, deviated septum
- enlarged tonsils
- being overweight
- alcohol and sleeping pills in the evening
- sleeping on your back
- smoking
When to see a doctor
Snoring can be a sign of obstructive sleep apnoea – repeated pauses in breathing during sleep that put strain on the heart and blood vessels.
Come for an examination if your partner tells you that you "stop breathing" in your sleep, or you wake up gasping for air. The same applies if you are very tired during the day or risk falling asleep at work or while driving, you have a headache in the morning, a dry mouth and poor concentration, or you are struggling to treat high blood pressure.
For a child – see Snoring in children below.
What not to believe
Sprays, drops, tablets, bracelets and other "miracle" anti-snoring products from adverts have no reliable effect proven in high-quality studies.
Save your money. If the snoring comes from a blocked nose, treating its cause will help – and the doctor will prescribe it.
What really helps
- Treating a blocked nose – allergic and chronic rhinitis, polyps or swollen mucous membranes. That is our job.
- Surgery – see below.
- Losing weight – even a smaller weight loss often reduces snoring.
- No alcohol or sleeping pills in the evening – they relax the muscles in the throat and make snoring worse.
- Sleeping on your side – for many people it significantly reduces snoring, a raised head position also helps.
- Mandibular advancement splint – made by a dentist, it has a well-documented effect for simple snoring.
- Positive pressure device (CPAP) – the standard treatment for moderate and severe sleep apnoea.
Surgery? Not for everyone
Surgery on the soft palate and uvula improves snoring at first in most patients, but the effect fades over time. After five years a marked improvement remains in roughly half of those operated on. Expert reviews also point out that there are few high-quality long-term studies.
Surgery therefore only makes sense for selected patients after a thorough examination – and never as the first step. We will be happy to advise you whether it would help you.
When your partner snores
Custom-made earplugs for sleeping will help. They reduce snoring by about 24 dB, fit precisely and are comfortable even when sleeping on your side. We take the ear impression for you right here.
Please book the impression in advance by phone.
Snoring in children
In children, the most common cause of snoring is enlarged adenoids (adenoid vegetation), or possibly enlarged tonsils. The child then snores at night, breathes through the mouth and sleeps restlessly, and during the day is often tired and concentrates less well. Unlike in adults, a change of lifestyle usually does not help – the cause needs to be found and treated.
Enlarged adenoids also block the opening of the tubes to the middle ear, so they are often accompanied by ear infections and hearing loss. We examine the child gently with an endoscopic camera and suggest further steps based on the findings.