You may have noticed that there appears to be a relationship between being overweight and snoring. As our weight increases, the sound of snoring also tends to increase. Snoring can be exasperated when sedatives such as alcohol are used.
You may be asking yourself “Why is this the case and will I stop snoring if I were to lose weight?”
Will Losing Weight Stop My Snoring?
The most common cause of snoring can be attributed to carrying excessive fat in the neck area. Men with a neck circumference greater than 17″ and women with a circumference greater than 16″ are at higher risk of being a snorer and possibly developing Obstructive Sleep Apnea.
The neck is one of the many areas that we carry extra fat. Unfortunately, this is also the area in which air travels from the nose to your lungs through the airway. With extra fat surrounding the airway, pressure is exerted when we lay down. This pressure can squeeze the airway, causing a restriction. When a restriction occurs, the lining of the airway will vibrate against itself resulting in the sound of snoring.
Does this mean that only overweight people snore? No, although there is an undeniable correlation between the two.
There are actually other reasons why a person who is not overweight may snore, such as a having a nasal obstruction, deviated septum, or simply due to the anatomy of their airway.
Nonetheless, if you are overweight and have developed a snoring problem, simply losing weight might be enough to stop your snoring.
How Can I Tell If Losing Weight Will Help?
So you decided that carrying extra fat may be the cause of your snoring. How can you be certain that losing weight will solve your snoring problem?
While it would be nice to know the answer to this question, it’s actually not possible to know for sure until you give it a try.
It’s entirely possible that weight loss may not remedy your snoring problem. There are however several health benefits that you will gain from loss of weight including:
- Higher quality of sleep
- Less stress on joints
- Lower Blood pressure
- Improved mood
- Lower risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes
- Increased energy
Even if weight loss doesn’t stop your snoring, you will look better and feel better as a result of your efforts.
How Much Weight Do I Need to Lose To See Results?
Are you considering weight loss as a means to stop snoring but don’t know where to set your weight loss goal?
You may be surprised to hear that losing only 10 lbs may be enough to notice a difference in snoring. Some experts suggest using roughly 5% of your body weight as a starting point.
Ultimately, you should aim for a BMI in the normal range which is less than 24.9%. There are several online calculators that can help to determine your BMI.
If you lose a few pounds and notice a reduction in snoring, you may decide to continue on with your weight loss journey until your snoring is eliminated.
What Else Can I Do to Stop Snoring?
You may have decided to combat your snoring with weight loss, but this can take several months. What do you do in the meantime to stop your snoring?
There are several snoring solutions available, some are more effective than others.
The easiest way to reduce snoring is to try sleeping on your side. If you are not able to remain on your side throughout the night, there are several “bumper” style products that can assist or simply fastening a couple tennis balls to the back of a nightshirt will do the trick.
Positional snoring is very common and sleeping on one’s side can relieve pressure that’s placed against the airway by extra fat.
Using a snoring mouthpiece can also effectively stop snoring. These mouthguards are placed inside of the mouth and hold the jaw forward, which helps to prevent airway collapse.
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