What's the best way to stop snoring? | Guru Magazine: experience ...

What?s the best way to stop snoring?
Asked by Steve Dewar

If you asked my fianc?e this question, she?d probably say ?Smother him with a pillow.? (She?s nice like that.) More seriously, though, the answer really depends on the factors contributing to the snoring in the first place. The chance of snoring can be increased if you?re overweight, if you smoke, or if you drink ? so if you?re overweight, smoke, or drink and have issues with snoring, then addressing these aspects of your lifestyle may help.

But that?s not always the answer. I?m not overweight, I don?t smoke, and I don?t drink (well, not to excess). Yet, as my fianc?e will attest, the sound of stampeding wildebeest in full migration has no match for my snoring. (Yes, it?s quite loud.) So, I?ve taken a different approach: I wear a specially-made device in my mouth at night (under advice from my dentist), which pulls my lower jaw forward.

This makes a difference because as you sleep, your airways narrow, causing soft tissue in your mouth and neck (like your soft palate and your tonsils) to vibrate. By bringing the jaw forward, the device stops the airways from narrowing so much ? and so reduces the vibrations that cause snoring.

It seems to work. I?ve been wearing the device for a year or so, and the use of earplugs in our household has certainly dropped in that time (as has the use of the spare room when the snoring just gets too much). On the downside, I look, and sound, a bit like Hannibal Lecter in full restraint mode with the device is in place ? but it?s a price worth paying for a decent night?s sleep for all the residents of our abode.

Answered by Jon Crowe (Molecular Guru)

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