Sleep: The secret to sleeping well and waking refreshed

Snoring partners

Many people find snoring amusing, but its long-term effects can be damaging to both the person who snores and their partner. Snoring (covered in more detail on pages 134-6) has been reported to disturb at least 20 per cent of the adult population and has led to numerous social problems ranging from marital disharmony to murder.

watch out!

The disadvantage of not seeking help for your snoring problem is that you may be suffering from a more serious sleep breathing disorder: Obstructive Sleep Apnoea (OSA – see page 132).

A survey using a throat microphone found that 81 per cent of men snored for more than 10 per cent of the night and 22 per cent snored for more than 50 per cent of the night. Other studies have found that women exposed to loud snoring have a higher rate of health complaints, including (not surprisingly) hearing loss!

Although snoring is less prevalent among women, research shows that between 10 and 20 per cent suffer habitual problems and that the incidence increases after the menopause (see page 55).

Snoring is associated with being male. This may be because the anatomy of men and women is different, while the distribution of body fat also predisposes men to snoring. It has also been suggested that women perceive and report snoring more than men. Although there is no universal cure for snoring (possibly because it has so many different anatomical causes), limiting alcohol intake and losing weight may help – research shows there is a clear link between obesity and snoring.