Many people tend to snore when they sleep, making it difficult for people around them to catch any shut eye. Although it may seem harmless, snoring – a hoarse sound that occurs when respiration is partially blocked in the throat – if it is chronic, it is considered a health problem; one that needs to be thoroughly analyzed to understand the root causes.
Agreed Dr. Ravi Shekhar Jha, director and head, pulmonology, Fortis Hospital, Faridabad, and said that the front part of the oral cavity cannot cause snoring, but the back part, especially the oropharynx – if its diameter is smaller or if there is any obstruction – the air that goes in , runs into an obstacle. “This obstruction will produce sounds called snoring. These types of sounds are more intense if the patient has any nasal obstruction or nasal blockage because we tend to breathe through our mouth in these situations,” he said.
Among other things, snoring can also be a symptom Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), a condition in which the upper airway becomes blocked during sleep, causing apnea or respiratory arrest. Since there is a loss of muscle tone during sleepcausing the airway muscles to become flaccid and the tongue to fall back. This leads to narrowing of the upper airway during sleep in everyone, but can cause severe narrowing in obese people, explained Dr. Vikas Mittal, a pulmonologist.
But, like many things, there are certain exercises that claim to help alleviate snoring problems, one of which was shared on Instagram by Dr. Sebastien Lomas, biochemist and biological dentist. No, it’s not complicated, instead it’s just an easy-to-do exercise involving an oral cavity.
Sharing an exercise, an expert said it will help you stop snoring. Check out his post below.
How to do it?
*Keep your tongue on the roof of your mouth. Suck it and click it.
How many times should you do this?
*30 of them per day.
How does this tongue clicking exercise help?
The louder the click, the better the tongue hold, he said.
Does clicking your tongue help you avoid snoring? (Source: Getty Images/Thinkstock)
Dr Jeenam Shah, Chest Physician and Consultant Pulmonologist, Bhatia Hospital Mumbai said that the focus should be on treating this condition to reduce snoring. “It can be seen that snoring occurs due to excessive weight which leads to a narrowing of the trachea,” he said, quickly adding that “such exercises have not been proven to stop snoring.”
I agree, said Dr Amitabh Malik, HOD-ENT Paras Hospitals Gurugram indianexpress.com that there are no throat or oral exercises that will help you reduce snoring.
So what can help avoid snoring?
Dr Vivek Verma, Senior Consultant, Department of Pulmonology, Max Super Specialty Hospital, Dehradun mentioned that toned muscles, especially neck muscles (due to exercise) and a healthy diet “can have a beneficial outcome in sleep apnea“.
Agreed Dr. Malik and said that certain lifestyle adjustments need to be made to manage snoring, such as losing weight, avoiding drinking before bed, treating nasal congestion, preventing sleep deprivation and avoiding sleeping on your back.
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