Saturday 24 November 2012

Anti-Snoring Devices Come In All Different Shapes And Sizes These Days

If you have ever looked online for some anti-snoring devices, you may well have been surprised by some of the products you came across. This is because these anti-snoring devices come in many different shapes and sizes, and to be honest, some of them look absolutely ridiculous.

For example, if you take a look at the video below, you will see a device that looks more like a flying saucer or a ceiling fan than an anti-snoring product.



Similarly if you take a look at some of the head straps that you can wear in bed to prevent snoring, many of them look like the kind of thing you would wear whilst playing rugby in order to prevent getting injured.

However despite the fact that some of these anti-snoring devices look very strange, and may cause a certain amount of embarrassment when they are worn in bed, the fact is that some of these products do actually work in a lot of cases.

For instance the product I mentioned first, ie the one that looked like a flying saucer, is actually a mouthpiece that slides onto the tongue and sits between your upper and lower teeth. The role of this mouthpiece is to minimize tongue movement, which often goes a long way to reducing snoring altogether.

The head straps can also work well, although some products are obviously more effective than others.

In addition to some bizarre-shaped anti-snoring devices, there are also some more ordinary-looking products available, such as nasal strips for example. These can be attached to the nose, and are far less conspicuous.

Whichever product you buy in order to try to reduce or eliminate your snoring, it is worth remembering that there are many different causes of snoring. As a result of this, there are no products on the market that can boast a 100% success rate.

Therefore you should exercise caution before spending too much money on an anti-snoring device, and if you do end up spending quite a bit of money, you may want to ensure that it comes with a money-back guarantee in case it doesn't work.


Saturday 10 November 2012

Frequent Snoring In Children Can Cause Diabetes According To New Research


A lot of people think that snoring is only really a problem for adults, however whilst it is definitely more common amongst adults, and men in particular, you may well find that your children snore quite a lot as well.

Compared to some health problems that they may have, this may not seem like a major issue. Nevertheless doctors have recently been warning parents that frequent snoring could potentially affect their children's long-term health and wellbeing.


This is because of the effect that snoring is said to have on a child's metabolism, which in turn could lead on to diabetes and other health disorders.

Dr Sally Davidson Ward, who led a study which did some research into this very subject just recently, warned about the dangers of frequent snoring amongst children, and had this to say with regards to how snoring can affect a child's overall health:

"When you have arousals from sleep it activates what we call the fight-or-flight reflex and that turns on your sympathetic nervous system. Through that repetitive activation, we believe that impacts glucose metabolism and insulin sensitivity. And that can lead to weight gain, even diabetes."

"Your sleep is disrupted, that may change your metabolism so you can become more obese. It's definitely a vicious cycle that needs interruption. Insulin is the hormone we use to put sugar in the cells so we can use it as a fuel. So if cells become insensitive to that, the blood sugar can rise, and you can develop diabetes."

So I guess the point is that even though you may find it endearing if your child snores quite often when she is sound asleep in bed, it may be worth discussing this issue with your doctor if snoring seems to be a persistent problem.

Just the indication of a possible breathing disorder is bad enough, but the fact that scientists have found that it can lead to diabetes and can sometimes cause other health problems is reason enough to see your family doctor and get a proper diagnosis of the cause of your child's snoring.

Parents of these children who have some kind of snoring problem themselves may also want to think about getting their own problem looked at as well. This is because snoring can lead to health problems in adults as well, particularly if their breathing and sleeping is regularly interrupted during the night because of their snoring.


Friday 9 November 2012

Why Snoring Is Not A Condition That Should Be Ignored


Snoring is not widely considered to be a serious condition, and in fact it is often joked about amongst couples because women will often joke about their husband's snoring to their friends.

However although it is true that many people, particularly men, have a tendency to snore every single night, it is not necessarily something that should be ignored.

This is because snoring can be a sign of a condition called Obstructive Sleep Apnea (spelt apnoea in the UK), where the air passages become blocked during the night, and subsequently it becomes very hard to breathe.

This often leads to a night of interrupted sleep, and subsequently many people feel sluggish during the day and have noticeably lower energy levels as a result.

This alone is bad enough, but snorers who suffer from sleep apnea may actually stop breathing temporarily whilst they are asleep, which is particularly worrying, and is reason enough to visit a doctor or a health practitioner who may be able to help you treat this problem.

Another reason why snoring shouldn't be ignored is because it can potentially damage a relationship.

Although many women don't mind if their partner snores occasionally, like when they sleep on their back or after a heavy drinking session, for example, it can become a real issue if their partner snores every night, and it is loud enough to disrupt their sleep.

I have heard of couples who sleep in separate bedrooms because one of them snores loud enough to keep the other person awake at night, and it is actually surprisingly common amongst older couples where the likelihood of one or both of them snoring is a lot higher.

In some cases even this desperate measure isn't enough because if the walls of the adjoining bedrooms are relatively thin, and the snoring is extremely loud, then the snoring can obviously still be heard.

So I guess the point is that if you or your partner snores, it is worth trying to find a solution that can help to reduce this snoring because both of you deserve to get a good nights sleep in order to feel fully refreshed in the daytime.