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Snoring has ruined many a night’s sleep and many a relationship. Trying to sleep next to a snoring partner is, well, a pain. Once the engine starts, there’s little you can do to combat it other than shoving, earplugs, or the patience of a saint.
When it comes to snoring, many of us reluctantly put up with it, viewing it as nothing more than an embarrassment or nuisance, but a growing body of research suggests that this is neglecting an important and common health issue.
Snoring not only disrupts sleep, it can be a warning sign of future troubles, and it appears to have serious effects on the snorer’s cardiovascular system. Despite the many treatments available, there is little evidence to show which are effective. But as sleep researchers increasingly wake up to the hidden dangers of snoring, there is hope that this nightmare may soon end.
Snoring is very common, but it’s hard to know exactly how common it is. Many snorers are completely unaware that they are snoring. “When you ask someone, ‘Are you snoring?’ they say, ‘I don’t know, I’m sleeping,'” says Danny Eckert, director of sleep health at the Flinders Health and Medical Research Institute in Adelaide, Australia. “Your bed partner might tell you, but many people don’t have bed partners.” But in Eckert’s experience, snoring is widespread. …
