Up until recently, snoring seemed to be just a nuisance – one that you had to simply put up with for the lack of alternatives. Snorers or the people who shared bedrooms with them have not perceived snoring as anything more than that.
“However, with growing awareness and various studies regarding snoring and its effects on the body, it became clear that this disturbance is not just a simple habit. It can also be a symptom of serious health conditions,” says Dr Garry Cussell of Specialist Clinics of Australia.
With the new understanding of snoring, it’s important to realise that the real reason behind what causes it should be diagnosed. “This way the problem can be targeted directly,” says Dr Cussell. “Otherwise, all the snoring aids are just a huge waste of money.”
Types of snoring aids
Although a wide range of snoring aids have been available in the market for some time now, most of them are either ineffective or uncomfortable… or both.
- Theravent. This anti-snoring device is an adhesive strip that is put on the nostrils just before going to sleep. Theravent uses a patented MicroValve technology to resolve your snoring problem by the means of the power of your own breathing.
- Nasal strips. The most common snoring aid, which is designed to solve snoring by targeting nasal congestion. Although these strips can bring some snoring relief, they target only a small part of the problem as most snoring originates in the throat.
- Anti-snoring mouthpieces (also called retainers) help open up the airways. They bring the jaw forward while you sleep and aim to relieve snoring in this way. Their downside is the fact that they may lead to excessive salivation and alteration of the alignment of teeth. Also, patients tend to complain that it’s a very uncomfortable device.
- Anti-snoring pillows. These pillows are designed to support the neck in a specific position in order to keep the throat airways open but the are uncomfortable and do not bring the desired effects.
- Snore sprays. A snore spray is supposed to reduce the lining of the nostrils and thus reduce the intensity of snoring. This anti-snoring device is a little controversial as it receives a lot of complaints that it simply doesn’t work.
- Snoring chin straps. This is a strap designed to fasten around your face. It keeps your mouth close while you sleep, forcing you to breath through your nose. These straps are usually used in conjunction with nasal CPAP to reduce mouth venting. Although this way of reducing snoring is quite effective, a serious side effect that is that it is simply uncomfortable.
- Stop Snoring device. It works by giving the user a small electric shock via a pad worn on the wrist. It’s supposed to get you to move your body position without waking up, which is not exactly true as people who have tested the device were complaining that they woke up about 20 times a night.
Is there an anti-snoring treatment that actually works? Meet SleepTight
As you can see, there’s been a lot of effort and research put into solving the snoring problem. The devices available in pharmacies target various areas of the bod, however most of them are highly ineffective or at most they’re uncomfortable and annoying.
For this reason, researchers looked deeper into the problem and designed laser treatments, such as SleepTight, which work by tightening the lax tissue in your throat. Patients struggling with snoring have been treated at Specialist Clinics of Australia with SleepTight for many years now and the result of the treatment are spectacular.
“This is mainly due to the fact that snoring is a more complicated condition that it has previously been thought,” says Dr Cussell. In order to get proper advice on how to deal with your snoring problem, you should talk to a doctor that specialises in this field.