It could be difficult to know everything about your spouse-to-be, but you don’t want to wait until the wedding night before you find out that your sweetie-pie-cup-cake snores like a guttural toad. Don’t let your honeymoon become a snorefest. This may sound like an exaggeration, but trust me, it can be worse. Spouses, siblings, friends and roommates have suffered in silence due to the nightmare of snoring.
We all need some hours of refreshing sleep after a busy day. Even if the roommate is not complaining because (s)he is an olóorun ìyà (deep sleeper), the snorer should at least, be worried about the possibility of obstructive sleep apnea which can have devastating effects on one’s health and functioning. Poor sleep quality, daytime somnolence, inability to concentrate on tasks and generalised body weakness are some of the other symptoms of sleep apnea.
There is no one-off miracle cure for snoring, but the good news is that it can be managed in 5 easy ways.
1. LIFESTYLE MODIFICATION. This inludes weight loss (if overweight or obese), alcohol and smoking cessation, healthy diet, adequate hydration and regular exercises.
2. CORRECT SLEEPING POSTURES. Avoid sleeping on your back because the back of the tongue, chin and other soft tissues tend to fall backwards in this position, thereby blocking the airway. Rather, sleep on your side, preferably the right side.
3. OVER-THE-COUNTER MAD’s. Mandibular advancement devices (MADs) are devices that have been designed to help people who snore, by opening up and widening the airway, to stop any undue vibrations during sleep. You can buy from pharmacies or online stores.
4. ALLERGY CONTROL. People who have nasal and sinus allergies are more likely to snore. They are advised to keep the allergies under control by avoiding triggers and taking anti-allergy pills or sprays. Those with long-standing infections of the nose and sinuses should also get themselves treated.
5. SURGERY. Snoring could be as a result of enlargement of some tissues along the airway, called adenoids. This can be removed surgically (adenoidectomy) by qualified ENT surgeons.
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