How to stop snoring and have a peaceful night

If you long for the peace and tranquillity described in the famous opening of "The Night Before Christmas", story... we can help. If you live with a snorer or snore regularly and it is causing havoc at home, our dental team offers some incredible treatment options.

What is snoring?

Snoring is a very common issue. Although it does not tend to be a major health problem, it can cause upset, especially if it prevents partners or housemates from getting a good night’s sleep and greatly diminishes your overall quality of life. Snoring can be a sign of other issues, and it can also have a far greater effect on your quality of sleep than you might have imagined, which in turn can affect your performance and behaviour the next day.

Snoring occurs when the vibration of the soft tissue at the back of the throat makes a noise. Most commonly, snoring is a temporary issue, which tends to surface when you have been drinking alcohol, you lie on your back, or you are "full of cold". However, for some people, snoring is a constant, and it can have a negative impact on day-to-day life. If you are struggling with snoring, we can help to restore peace.

Anyone who snores regularly should have a medical appointment to discuss the issue and try to get to the cause of the problem. It should be taken more seriously than just being a bit of unwanted noise at night. A trip to your GP or sleep doctor might be a sensible first option for a diagnosis, but there can also be help at hand via your dental surgery if you are aware that you suffer from sleep apnoea.

?Why snoring could be a sign of a greater problem

Snoring can be a sign of obstructive sleep apnoea, where the tissues in the neck “collapse” during sleep, which automatically leads to the sufferer waking up with a start and often a loud snore.

Sleep apnoea is when your breathing stops and starts while you sleep. The most common type is called obstructive sleep apnoea.

Several of these incidents can occur every night, yet the person suffering from sleep apnoea is often not aware of anything other than waking up feeling devoid of energy and more than just a little tired.

?The symptoms include snoring, excessive tiredness the next day and other characteristics that go with long-term fatigue – irritability, anxiety or depression and forgetfulness among them.

Without treatment, sleep apnoea can lead to :

• High blood pressure
• A higher chance of having a stroke
• Type 2 diabetes
• Heart disease
• Depression or mood changes
• A higher chance of having a serious accident caused by tiredness, such as a car accident
• Difficulty concentrating at work or school

?Treatments

Depending on the severity of sleep apnoea, a CPAP (Continuous Positive Airway Pressure) machine is often recommended. These use a specialised device to increase the air pressure inside your airway while inhaling.

Pushing pressurised air down your windpipe keeps it open so you can breathe. These devices push air through a hose that attaches to a special mask you wear on your face while you sleep. Masks can cover your nose, mouth or both, and there are many different types and styles to choose from. However, they can be uncomfortable to wear, noisy and dry the mouth out.

?Oral devices

Obstructive sleep apnoea happens when soft tissue in your head or neck, especially around your mouth and jaw, press downward on your windpipe. Special mouthpiece devices can help hold your jaw and tongue in a position that keeps pressure off your windpipe. Dentists and sleep medicine specialists often work together to make these for people who need them.

At Harley Street Dental Studio, we have many years of experience in seeing patients who snore, and we have treatment options available.

?Seeing your GP or a sleep doctor would be the first step to diagnosing sleep apnoea, but treatment could well be through a dentist. We would make a specialist mandibular advancement device.

This is a bespoke mouth guard that fits comfortably over your teeth but holds the lower jaw and tongue forward, preventing the temporary collapse of tissue that leads to sudden waking. Mandibular Advancement Devices are one of the most effective methods for treating OSA and snoring.?

Other reasons to see a dentist when you suffer from snoring

Even if snoring is not a sign of sleep apnoea, there are still side effects of snoring that a dentist can help with. Since snoring has a person sleeping with their mouth open, this can lead to dry mouth due to the lack of saliva, which in turn leads to bad breath.

It has also been linked to other issues, such as burning mouth syndrome and even gum disease. It is only by having regular check-ups that early signs of any gum issues can be spotted. This is important in making sure the relatively minor?gingivitis does not progress into the far more problematic periodontitis – full-blown gum disease that leads to the loss of bone.

Snoring can also lead to teeth grinding – it is estimated nearly one in four people with obstructive sleep apnoea grind their teeth at night.

This again might mean that sleeping wearing a specialist mouth guard is recommended to avoid damage to the teeth.

Snoring can also have other knock-on effects. Even if you do not suffer from sleep apnoea, snoring is still likely to lead to a bad night’s sleep, which can lead to stress – stress then being linked to a whole range of conditions ranging from heart disease to gum disease.

Other advisable practices can help you tackle snoring – all without resorting to pouring cold water on your partner to wake them up and stop the noise…!

Turning off all electronic screens an hour or so before bed helps the brain relax, and so too does avoiding caffeinated drinks late in the day, along with excess alcohol and foods that are fatty or spicy. Getting some exercise during the day is beneficial, and so is venturing outside to get natural sunlight – even if office-bound for the day, it is important to get fresh air.

If snoring is threatening to ruin the peace and tranquillity in your household, please call us today on 020 7636 5981 or check out our website at https://www.harleystreetdentalstudio.com/anti-snoring/