Quirky ways to quit snoring
From sleeping on a tennis ball to playing an instrument, we test out some of the more unusual ways of breaking the habit
Snoring affects more than 40% of the population, with 15 million of us doing it regularly. And it’s more serious than just being a nighttime pain for partners.
“Severe snoring can lead to obstructive sleep apnea and health complications,” explains Dr Samuel Jones, an anaesthetist from London.
“Losing weight, stopping smoking and reducing alcohol intake are all known to reduce snoring but if all else has failed, there are some more unusual methods you can try.”
We enlisted the help of snorer Joe Barker, 44, a mental health worker from Brighton, who agreed to give them a go.
“My partner Keeley often has to give me a shove in the middle of the night to stop me snoring,” he says.
“My son Ronnie, five, often sleeps in our bed with us and he’ll tell me off for it too. I need to get it sorted for both of their sakes.”
Sleep on a tennis ball
Dr Jones says: The theory is you can keep off your back by taping a tennis ball to the back of your sleepwear.
A large proportion of sleep apnoea cases are thought to be due to positioning. As you lie on your back it narrows the passage for air, which makes you more prone to snoring. Sleeping on your side helps to prevent this by creating a wider pathway.
Joe says: To try this I put an old tennis ball in a sock and tied it to my pyjama bottoms. The first night it came undone and ended up in the bottom of the bed and the second night I remember waking up and chucking it across the room because I was so annoyed at how uncomfortable it was.
It might have stopped me snoring for a while but it was so frustrating I couldn’t keep it up.
■■Snore rating: 0/5
Perform throat exercises
Dr Jones says: The structures in the back of your throat become floppy when asleep as the muscles relax. This floppiness leads to more vibrations and louder snoring.
Doing throat exercises, otherwise known as myofunctional therapy, aims to strengthen these muscles to reduce the level of floppiness and the intensity of snoring. In 2018, research found that
myofunctional therapy reduced the intensity of snoring by around a half. Joe says: I found some throat exercises online and tried them for three nights. Practising in front of the mirror was a laugh as you have to pull some funny faces.
The exercises took around five minutes but I didn’t find they made any difference at all. It’s not a short-term fix and I lacked the commitment needed to persevere on the off chance it eventually improves things.
■■Snore rating: 2/5
Play a wind instrument
Dr Jones says: Wind instruments can put the muscles in the back of your throat and airway through a workout
and over time may help to strengthen them . In fact, a study in Zurich of patients with obstructive sleep apnoea found a significant improvement in patients who had spent four months learning to play the didgeridoo. Joe says: I borrowed a harmonica and I was pretty awful at it, to be honest. The first day everyone found it really funny but after a few days they were begging me to stop. Playing it before bed woke Ronnie up and it didn’t stop me snoring either. Score rating: 1/5
A hot shower before bed Dr Jones says:
Dryness at the back of your throat can cause friction between its parts as air flows through.
This friction may lead to a narrower passage and force air to travel less freely.
The steam produced from a hot shower may help to moisten these structures and keep the passage for air open and smooth.
Joe says: This worked really well. It felt as though it really cleared things out.
I usually like a shower in the morning to wake me up but even so this is something I might get into the habit of doing instead because it really made a difference.
■■Snore rating: 4/5
Saline rinse
Dr Jones says: In addition to dryness, mucous and other irritants may collect in your upper airway and worsen snoring. A saline rinse aims to reduce this inflammation and congestion and may also help in allowing air to flow freely into lungs, reducing the likelihood of snoring.
Joe says: I used Xlear Sinus Care Saline Nasal Spray with Xylitol (£7; Ocado) and really liked it. It made me feel clear, which is good because I get blocked up easily and I felt a lot less congested after it. I was surprised it worked so well and I’m going to carry on using it.
It’s worth it not to get whacked for snoring in the middle of the night. ■■Snore rating: 5/5
Inhale peppermint
Dr Jones says: Essential oils such as peppermint are thought to have anti-inflammatory properties. Applying this to your forehead or nose at night may help to reduce inflammation in the lining of tissues, particularly in your nasal passage. Some small studies have suggested that peppermint oil may reduce the amount of sleep disturbance in patients with obstructive sleep apnoea.
Joe says: I tried inhaling some peppermint oil but it made me feel quite ill and a friend told me not to, as it was too concentrated to do like that.
So instead I put a load of drops of oil into my bath and after inhaling it that way, I barely snored at all at night.
■■Snore rating: 4/5
Sing
Dr Jones says: Singing is a fantastic way of keeping the muscles in your airway toned, creating an open passage to prevent snoring.
I imagine it would take about three or four months before you’d notice any improvement in your snoring though. Joe says: I couldn’t think of songs to sing, so ended up irritating everyone with my renditions of Who Let The Dogs Out?
Ronnie was begging me to be quiet because he couldn’t get to sleep.
I can see why this would work if you did it for a while but I’ve got an awful voice and it would require a long-term commitment. It didn’t improve my snoring quickly enough to motivate me to keep it up.
■■Snore rating: 0/5
Use a nasal dilator
Dr Jones says: These gadgets will dilate the nasal passage and may also clear any debris.
If your nasal passage narrows and flops around, that’s when you snore. This will keep it open and allow the air to travel more freely to the back of your throat, down into your lungs.
Joe says: I tried the Mute nasal dilator (mutesnoring.com) and, at first, it was a bit fiddly to get the hang of. It’s quite easy to put in the wrong way. On the first night of using it I must have yanked it out in my sleep because I found it in my bed the next morning.
However, they are adjustable so I made it smaller and it was much better. It was more comfortable and it did stop my snoring. I’d definitely use this again. ■■Snore rating: 4/5
Rub thyme oil on your feet
Dr Jones says: Another essential oil that has been considered to help reduce inflammation in your breathing tract is thyme oil. This is applied differently to peppermint by rubbing it on feet and wrists, usually with a carrier oil such as jojoba oil to prevent irritation to the skin.
Joe says: I don’t like my feet being touched so this was never going to be the answer for me.
Instead I decided to add it to the bath, like I did with the peppermint oil, and it worked much better. I even preferred it to the peppermint oil.
To get Ronnie to sleep I normally have to lie next to him and pretend to go to sleep too and often I nod off for real. After I’d used the thyme oil he tapped me on the back and said: “Daddy, you’re not snoring.”
■■Snore rating: 5/5
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‘‘ The nasal dilator is fiddly to get the hang of but it did stop me snoring