Before we jump into understanding the gender distinction in snoring, let’s first get to know what snoring means.
The snoring process is set to happen when air is unable to flow freely through the airway passage when you breathe in and out. When this airway is narrowed or partially blocked, breathing allows the tissues of the upper air passage to vibrate, resulting in the noise you hear when someone snores.
Breathing sounds while sleeping, such as whistling, rattles, and wheezing, are proper signals that your air passages are partially blocked. In most cases, snoring may disturb your sleep and your partner. However, even if snoring isn’t something that annoys you, it could indicate a severe health problem that we will discuss further in this article.
Snoring is associated with many uncomfortable conditions, such as a high risk of accidents, concentration issues, and daytime sleepiness. You could also have chronic snoring, which would require professional medical assistance.
Therefore, in this article, we will cover the possibility of whether women snore or not, some scientific ways to avoid snoring, and what changes can be made in your daily life that will help you ease your snoring dilemma.
Overview
Snoring happens when the air flows through the throat when one breathes in sleep. This, in turn, causes the relaxed tissues to vibrate that make these weird noises.
In some rare cases, snoring is not a symptom to ignore. If you find yourself snoring out of the blue or just snoring while sleeping in general, you might have one of the following issues at hand to deal with:
- OSA – stands for Obstructive Sleep Apnea.
- Blocked air passages.
- Obesity and other weight problems.
- Lack of sleep or complete sleep deprivation.
If you don’t have any of the above causes mentioned and are still having trouble snoring, it may be caused simply by drinking too much alcohol right before bedtime or sleeping in the wrong position – most likely on your back.
Females Snoring vs Men Snoring
There has been quite some stereotype about the statement that men snore more than women. Thus, if you are one of those curious cats that want to know how much that statement is true, then yes. Men do snore more than women in general.
Medically stating, men tend to have narrower air passageways than women – making them vulnerable to snoring and causing those unpleasant noises at night.
One should understand that the narrower the air passageways are, the harder it becomes to breathe since the oxygen flow is disturbed from functioning correctly.
Since smoking and drinking alcohol in excessive amounts causes snoring, men are most likely to fall victim to it because, statistically speaking, men do these more than women.
Nonetheless, in general, smoking is not something that affects women or men. However, there are some reasons and causes for why women might have it.
Causes of Snoring in Women
There are a few factors that cause women to snore when they sleep. Listed below are some of why women are victims of snoring:
Gaining Weight
This might come as a surprise, but weight gain in women does cause snoring. Snoring and weight gain are closely knitted conditions.
The excess weight leads to the build-up of fat around the neck. The excess fat is responsible for narrowing down the air passageway, causing halts in the airflow. This, in turn, causes the loud and annoying noise we know of as snoring.
Being Pregnant
If you happen to be pregnant and snore, it’s okay. As it turns out, snoring while pregnant is a common occurrence.
Some women snore during pregnancy because the blood vessels expand in the nasal cavity and the extra weight that comes with it.
Exhaustion
When one is tired and hits the bed, our muscles are in a relaxed mood. This state causes the snoring issue a little worse than usual.
The larynx is set to become relaxed once tired; hence the weird noises known as snoring come in a strange pattern.
Ways to Prevent Snoring
Nobody wants their snoring to cause distress and problems for others, especially their partners. Hence, to end your annoying snoring, below are some of the ways that will aid you.
1. Proper Sleeping Conditions
While sleeping, your positions do matter a lot. For example, lying on your back makes the tip of your tongue collapse to the back wall of your throat, causing a vibrating type of noise.
To avoid this, one can sleep on their side or their back. You can also go for anti-snoring pillows to stop your air passageways from blocking. It would help if you also looked out for dust mites accumulated in one’s pillows, which can cause various allergies.
You can also go for a full body pillow that will prove an easy fix.
2. Maintaining Weight
Excess weight around the neck can potentially squeeze the internal area of the throat. Therefore, the weight applies pressure on the air passageways when one lies down, causing the snoring.
Losing that weight will tone your neck, slim the fat and eventually reduce the snoring or finish it overall.
3. Stay Away from Alcohol
Try not to consume a few hours before you go to sleep. Alcohol can relax the muscles of your throat and can induce snoring. Aside from causing snoring, alcohol can mess with your REM sleeping, making it shorter than usual.
REM sleep is significant for memory formation and dreaming during this stage.
4. Maintain a Proper Sleep Cycle
Bad sleep habits, also known as bad sleep hygiene, can trigger snoring. Therefore, one must maintain a proper sleep cycle.
Following are the things you can keep in mind in order to maintain a proper sleep cycle:
- Comfortable bed.
- Cool and darkroom.
- Keep track of your sleeping hours.
- Use good quality curtains to keep the light out when sleeping.
- Keep your electronic devices at an excellent distance to have a sound sleep.
Conclusion
Snoring is undoubtedly an annoying occurrence, and nothing is worse than the fact that your loved ones or your partner find it stressful.
Gone are the days when snoring was solely associated with men. It is something that can happen to anyone and can affect females as well. Snoring can possibly result in a lack of sleep and increased agitation.
If you have made essential lifestyle changes and yet don’t see a difference in your snoring habits, it would be better to reach for medical assistance. The reason why it won’t go away even if you’re addressing it directly could be because of an underlying medical issue.
Lastly, if you are constantly snoring and there’s nothing you can do about it, reach out for professional medical help and discuss your problems related to snoring.
Recent Comments