By Why Snoring Is Dangerous.
Snoring once in a while isn’t usually a serious problem. It’s mostly a nuisance for your bed partner.
When we’re asleep, we tend to lose muscle tone, meaning the tongue flops back and the tissues and muscles in the throat and nose relax making people snore.
As you inhale and exhale, the air passing over and between these relaxed tissues causes them to vibrate, which in turn causes noise. That’s snoring.
Why Snoring Is Dangerous. Photo Courtesy
Snorers are more prone to getting heart diseases or heart attacks. People also run the risk of developing irregular heart rhythm (arrhythmia) due to snoring.
Your intensity of snoring can narrow the arteries in the neck due to fatty deposits, increasing your chances of getting a stroke.
Researchers found that snoring, combined with extended breathing stoppages (also known as obstructive sleep apnea), was associated with a two-fold increase in cardiovascular disease risk.
Why? Snoring and sleep apnea may lead to “intermittent hypoxia,” a medical condition in which the tissues of the body don’t receive enough oxygen. This can lead to arterial damage or blockages, inflammation and unhealthy pressure changes inside the chest.
There’s no easy way to monitor yourself for obstructive sleep apnea. But if someone can keep tabs on your snoring, they should be on the lookout for a “complete lack of breathing” for around 10 seconds or longer.
The treatment for sleep apnea usually initially involves losing weight and sleeping with a breathing device known as a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) ventilator, though there are also some surgical interventions that can be done.
Some other snoring patterns may also be cause for concern. Dr. Comer says “If it sounds like a person often quits breathing or has very shallow breathing for three or four seconds, and then there’s gurgling or choking accompanied by a sort of startled shaking—like the body is trying to wake itself up—I’d have that checked by a doctor,”.
These could all be signs of hypopnea, a sleep-breathing disorder similar to apnea that is also linked to some heart and vascular concerns.
In conclusion, lay off the booze and try to sleep on your side, and both you and your bedmate should rest easier at night.
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