Remember the good old happy days of our childhood when we giggled at the sight of a snoring person?
Bless our innocence but snoring is a serious health warning condition certainly not to be ignored or laughed off.
The relation between your weight and snoring is intermingling. An obese person is more likely to snore when compared to a thin person.
So, how does weight gain cause snoring? How to stop snoring naturally? How much weight do I need to lose to stop snoring?
Is snoring dangerous? These are some questions which we will deal with in this blog in detail.
To begin with, let’s first try to find how does weight gain cause snoring?
Gaining a few extra pounds can make you look attractive but can have complications too!
How Does Weight Gain Cause Snoring?
Our weight depends upon our eating habits and the amount of fat we burn through exercise.
Fat distribution in our body is also a key factor responsible for making us snore. Sometimes an overweight person does not snore while a thin man snores.
It is because of the fat distribution that varies from person to person.
If the fat gets accumulated near the neck and throat region or around the midriff and chest it is more likely to cause snoring.
Fat distribution is the major reason behind a snoring person.
Let’s see how fat accumulation cause snoring.
#1. Fat Near The Throat Region
It is common for a person with fat near the throat when lying down to get some sleep snores often.
It is because of the extra layer of the fat present around the throat region blocking the upper way air passage.
#2. Midriff Fat
The fat present around the midrib area and chest squeezes the lungs.
In order to prevent from collapsing, the lungs make some adjustments to the tongue and throat in order to get sufficient oxygen and such adjustments can cause snoring.
#3. Fat Distribution
The fat distribution is so important that it is the main reason why a man snores more likely than a woman.
To elaborate, women generally get fat around their waist, hips, and thighs while men are more likely to gain weight on the chest, neck, and abdomen areas.
So, does weight gain cause snoring?
Undoubtedly Yes!
Adding to it, if you are trying to lose weight, snoring alone has the ability to interrupt your weight loss process.
Here’s how.
How Snoring Affects Weight Loss?
Snoring may affect your weight loss plans disastrously. It may cause some symptoms in the body that can be a major hindrance to your weight loss program.
Let us analyze how snoring affects weight loss
#1. Snoring Burns Fewer Calories At Night
Studies have proved that sound sleep can help you burn 50-60 calories at night even in your sleep mainly in the REM (Rapid Eye Movement Sleep).
Snoring causes disruptive sleep which results in fewer hours of deep sleep and more light sleep.
Hence, the body due to lack of proper sleep is unable to burn enough calories.
#2. Induces Hunger
Disrupted sleep affects two hormones in the body.
Leptin and Ghrelin are two hormones related to weight regulations.
When you sleep, fewer Ghrelin hormones are released in excess quantity thus making us feel hungry when we wake up the next morning.
#3. Lazy Day Moments
It is quite natural to feel lazy all day after disruptive sleep. It increases your reaction time.
The love for the couch seems endless.
It keeps you less motivated and affects your performance in the gym.
#4. Craving For Sugar And Fatty Foods
Since you feel lazy because of sleep disruption, your body needs the burst of energy and glucose to make up the need for your body to be active.
So you might feel the need of grabbing cookies or a box of chocolate every now and then.
Thus, we see that snoring can be a real problem when it comes to losing weight.
On the contrary, snoring can cause alteration in lifestyles that can add some weight to your body rather than losing it.
We can undoubtedly conclude that weight gain does cause snoring.
Now, when we understood the science behind snoring, let’s discuss some health issues caused by snoring.
Health Risks Of Snoring
Although snoring appears to be harmless to many, it silently impacts our health in many ways.
Some of the health risks of snoring are as follows:
#1. Snoring Can Lead To Stroke
Yes, you read that right. Snoring could be the result of narrowing of arteries in the neck due to fat deposits called plaque. The narrowing of arteries can cause a stroke.
The louder and longer you snore the greater is the risk of getting a stroke.
#2. Headache
People who snore reportedly have disrupted sleep. As a result, they complain about feeling lethargic and experience headaches in the morning.
Additionally, snoring causes breathing to stop more often leading to a lack of oxygen which in turn increases the level of CO2 in the blood. This affects the nervous system and causes headaches.
#3. Weight Gain
Well, it may be surprising to some that snoring caused by weight gain can further make you gain weight.
It is actually simple to understand.
Snoring makes you sleep disruptively as a result when you wake you in the morning you feel low on your energy. This lazy feeling of yours will stop you from doing activities that could reduce weight.
Hence you keep on adding a few extra pounds every now and then. Also, the sugary cravings to meet the energy requirement make you eat sugary foods hence, weight gain.
#4. Snoring Can Cause Irregular Heartbeat Or Arrhythmia
People with long-term snoring or sleep apnea risk are likely to develop an irregular heart rhythm.
This irregular heartbeat can give rise to serious problems like blood clots, overworked and tired heart leading to stroke.
Considering the health risks of snoring and its dangerous impact on your body, it’s important to analyze the ways to prevent it in order to sleep peacefully and stay healthy.
How To Stop Snoring Immediately?
Scientists and doctors once when become aware of the risk caused by snoring begin to look at different possibilities to ease down snoring symptoms in a patient.
Did they explore many options on how to stop snoring naturally?
They come up with different ways to treat snoring symptoms using various medical equipment and natural means.
Some of the ways to improve snoring habits include using the best anti-snoring devices.
#1. Try Using A Mouthpiece
If the muscle tone of the neck reduces by the neck fat your tongue rolls back and creates obstruction in the airflow.
The mouthpiece stops the tongue from rolling by bringing the jaw forward.
Wearing is a mouthpiece is the most adopted technique to reduce snoring.
#2. CPAP
It is a common treatment for treating sleep apnea. It’s a mechanical device that supplies continuous air into our throats.
It increases the air pressure and prevents the airway to collapse. As a result, helps in preventing snores.
#3. Wedge Pillow
It’s seen that keeping the head in an elevated position helps to ease down the snoring problem, particularly in overweight people.
This pillow is of immense help if bad neck posture is behind your snoring issues.
#4. Positional Therapy
If you have s snoring problem then sleeping on your back is the worst position for you. Always try to sleep sideways as it helps a lot.
These were some scientific ways to tackle your snoring problem.
But it is surprising to know there are many effective natural ways to control snoring.
How To Stop Snoring Naturally?
Lifestyle and eating disorders add a lot to cause snoring problems. With just minor changes in lifestyle, people can get rid of snoring naturally.
#1. Say No To Dairy Products At Night
Dairy products are notoriously responsible for creating mucus in the throat.
Mucus can worsen the snoring as it blocks the air passage.
So having any dairy product just before going to bed is not a wise option.
#2. Use Cardamom At Night
Cardamom has the reputation of creating a soothing effect on the mind and hence helps us sleep better.
Try having half spoon of cardamom in lukewarm water for half an hour before going to bed. Prolonged use of cardamom helps to reduce snoring.
#3. Herbal Tea
Herbal tea especially the one with basil leaves, turmeric, and a pinch of fennel seeds in it is a good remedy for snoring.
Herbal tea can also clear nasal congestion if any thus enabling us to breathe hassle-free.
Apart from herbal tea, you can also try green tea for weight loss.
#4. Take Vitamin C Enriched Food
Citrus fruits like oranges, lemons bell peppers contain a lot of vitamin C which is essential in generating the immune system in the body.
It also helps to reduce sinus problems in the body.
Implying the above-mentioned methods can help you reduce snoring symptoms.
But it has been found that the single factor affecting the snoring problem is weight-related.
Losing weight alone can reduce 60-80% of the snoring problem.
So, you must first try to lose a few extra pounds before seeking the help of medical equipment designed to help you get rid of the snoring problem.
How Much Weight Do I Need To Lose To Stop Snoring?
The studies have proven that by losing 13-15% of body fat the severity of snoring and sleep apnea was reduced to half.
Whereas losing 60% of body fat, sleep apnea episodes were cured in 86% of the people who participated in the study.
It does not matter how much weight you need to lose to stop snoring.
It varies from person to person.
Some need to lose more fat than others.
so, keep working hard till you or your partner feels that your snoring habits have reduced significantly.
Conclusion
The link between snoring and being overweight is now obvious.
Weight gain is not only an invitation to health issues like cancer and diabetes, it could also be the reason behind your snoring issues.
At first, snoring may seem harmless but there underlie some serious health concerns related to it.
If your snoring is because of weight gain, shedding some pounds might help you get relief from snoring and other underlying health issues.
It’s never too late to start.
so get off those lazy shoes and start working out.
If you found this blog useful, feel free to leave your comments below. Also, if you know an obese snorer, don’t forget to share it with them.