What causes snoring

Factors that lead to snoring

What is the cause of snoring?

There are several health and lifestyle factors that contribute to snoring; and this is true for both men and women, since snoring is a condition that does affect both genders (though surveys suggest that men who snore outnumber women who snore by a ratio of 2:1).

Factors that lead to snoring

Some of the major health and lifestyle factors that can contribute to snoring include:

  • Allergies, which can clog the airway and trachea resulting in snoring

  • Allergy medications, which can dry the nasal cavities which lead to snoring

  • Cold and Flu, which can similarly clog the airway (this is why some people experience snoring only when they're suffering a cold or flu)

  • Thickened tissues in the nasal passages, which can sometimes result from some surgeries unrelated to snoring.

  • Overuse of nasal sprays which irritate the nasal passageway

  • Enlarged adenoids and/or tonsils

  • Goitre (swelling of the an ineffective thyroid gland in the neck)

  • A disproportionately large tongue that blocks airflow and causes snoring

  • Obesity and excess weight (leading to an enlarged neck and excess soft tissue in the trachea)

  • Excess gut/belly (relatively decreasing the size of the lungs)*

  • Ineffective regulation and neural control of mucus membranes

  • Drinking alcohol, which:

Sedates the throat muscles and causes them to collapse

dilates blood vessels which swells up throat tissue

  • Cigarette smoking, which inflames the upper airway resulting in snoring

  • The normal aging process, which can simply lead to a loss of muscle tone in the neck and thus snoring

Since relatively more men tend to experience an excess gut, this is one reason why more men tend to experience snoring than women.

Any medication (prescribed, over the counter, or illicit) that leads to excessive relaxation can lead to snoring.

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