Home Remedies for Snoring

March 27, 2011— -- Snoring can be a serious health issue, disrupting normal sleeping patterns and disturbing partners as they try to sleep through the noise. Snoring affects more than 90 million adults and their partners. One British survey found that if your spouse snores, by your 50th wedding anniversary you'll have lost about 4 years' worth of sleep.

Besides just feeling tired all the time, people who don't get enough sleep can develop memory and mood problems; they're even at a greater risk of car accidents. Moderate snorers include people who snore every night, but perhaps only when on their backs or only for part of the night. Heavy snorers should see a doctor to make sure they don't have a serious sleeping disorder called sleep apnea.

For light or moderate snorers, here are home remedies that can help you—and your partner—sleep better.

When To Call A Doctor

In general, the louder and more frequent you snore, the more likely it is related to a medical problem such as sleep apnea. If home remedies haven't helped your snoring, or if you have snoring and chronic stuffiness, or snoring and heartburn, see a doctor.

Tennis Ball

If you snore mostly when on your back, put a tennis ball in a shirt pocket cut from an old T-shirt and sew it to the mid-back of your tight pajama top. The discomfort forces you to roll over and sleep on your side, without waking you up. Expert: Jacob Teitelbaum, MD, a board-certified internist and medical director of the Fibromyalgia and Fatigue Centers

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