How to Stop Snoring
Learn how to stop snoring with proven methods. Covers sleep position changes, throat exercises, nasal remedies, anti-snoring devices, and when to see a doctor about sleep apnea.
Somewhere around 37 percent of adults snore, with men nearly twice as likely as women. If you share a bed with one of them, you already knew that. If you are one of them, you might not even know until someone tells you, records you, or banishes you to the couch.
Snoring happens when the soft tissue in your throat relaxes during sleep and partially blocks your airway. Air squeezes through the narrowed opening, vibrating the tissue like a loose sail in the wind. The louder the snoring, the more the airway is obstructed.
Most snoring responds to straightforward changes you can make at home. Sleep position, nasal congestion, alcohol timing, throat muscle tone, and body weight are the big five factors, and you have meaningful control over all of them. This guide walks through each one, from the easiest fixes to the ones that take more time, plus the warning signs that your snoring might be something more serious.
A willingness to change your sleep position (and maybe a tennis ball) Saline nasal rinse or neti pot Nasal strips or internal nasal dilators (optional) A humidifier if you live in a dry climate (optional) A mandibular advancement device if other methods do not work (optional)
Switch to sleeping on your side
Sleeping on your back is the single biggest positional trigger for snoring. When you lie face up, gravity pulls your tongue, soft palate, and the fatty tissue at the back of your throat downward, narrowing your airway. The narrower the airway, the faster the air has to move through it, and the faster air vibrates the surrounding tissue. That vibration is the snore. Roll onto your side. Either side works. If you keep drifting onto your back during the night, try the tennis ball trick. Tape or sew a tennis ball into the back of an old t-shirt and wear it to bed. It is uncomfortable enough to keep you off your back without waking you up completely. You can also buy wedge pillows or positional sleep belts designed for exactly this purpose, but the tennis ball costs nothing and works surprisingly well. A body pillow is another option. Hugging a full-length pillow keeps your body angled on its side and makes back-sleeping feel awkward. Give any positional change at least two weeks before judging whether it helps, because your body needs time to adjust its default sleep posture.
Good to know: Elevating the head of your bed by about four inches can also help. Prop the bed frame legs on blocks or use a foam wedge under your mattress. This keeps your airway more open without requiring you to stay on your side all night.
Cut alcohol and sedatives before bed
Alcohol relaxes the muscles in your throat more than normal sleep does. That extra relaxation lets the soft tissue collapse further into your airway, which makes snoring louder and more frequent. The effect is strongest when you drink within three to four hours of going to sleep. This does not mean you can never drink. It means the nightcap is the problem. If you have a glass of wine at dinner at 7 pm and go to bed at 11, the alcohol has mostly cleared your system and the impact on snoring is minimal. If you have a drink at 10 and fall asleep at 10:45, your throat muscles are at their most relaxed exactly when you start sleeping. Sedatives and some antihistamines have the same effect. Medications like diazepam, zolpidem, and diphenhydramine all relax the muscles in your upper airway. If you take any of these regularly and snore, talk to your doctor about alternatives. Do not stop prescribed medication on your own.
Clear your nasal passages
When your nose is partially blocked, you breathe through your mouth. Mouth breathing pulls air through the throat at higher velocity, which increases vibration and snoring. Fixing nasal congestion can reduce or eliminate snoring entirely if your nose is the bottleneck. Start with a saline rinse. A neti pot or squeeze bottle with saline solution flushes mucus and allergens out of your nasal passages. Use it before bed. Distilled or previously boiled water only, never tap water, to avoid infection risk. If allergies are the cause, keep your bedroom as dust-free as possible. Wash pillowcases weekly, vacuum regularly, and consider an air purifier with a HEPA filter. Dust mites and pet dander are the most common bedroom allergens, and they accumulate in pillows and mattresses over time. External nasal strips like Breathe Right strips physically pull the nostrils open from the outside. Internal nasal dilators sit inside the nostril and hold it open from within. Both are inexpensive and available at any pharmacy. They are not a permanent fix, but they work well enough for congestion-related snoring to be worth trying. A humidifier can also help if you live in a dry climate or heat your home in winter. Dry air irritates the membranes in your nose and throat, causing swelling that narrows your airway.
Heads up: Do not use decongestant nasal sprays (like oxymetazoline) for more than three consecutive days. They cause rebound congestion that makes the problem worse. Saline sprays have no such limit.
Lose weight if you carry extra around your neck
Not everyone who snores is overweight, and not everyone who is overweight snores. But if you started snoring after gaining weight, or if your snoring got worse as your weight went up, the connection is probably real. Excess weight around the neck and throat compresses the airway from the outside. A neck circumference above 17 inches in men or 16 inches in women is a well-established risk factor for both snoring and obstructive sleep apnea. According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, losing just 10 percent of body weight can produce a 26 percent decrease in apnea-hypopnea index scores, the primary measure of sleep-disordered breathing severity. You do not need to reach an ideal weight to see results. Even modest weight loss reduces the fatty tissue pressing on your airway. The improvement is often proportional to the amount lost. This step is the hardest and the slowest, but it is also the most likely to produce a lasting fix. Positional changes, nasal strips, and throat exercises manage snoring. Weight loss, when relevant, can actually resolve it.
Strengthen your throat with oropharyngeal exercises
Your tongue, soft palate, and throat walls are muscles. Like any muscles, they can be strengthened. Stronger airway muscles are less likely to collapse during sleep, which means less vibration and less snoring. A randomized trial published in the journal CHEST found that patients who performed oropharyngeal exercises reduced their snoring events per hour from 99.5 to 48.2 and cut the total power of snoring nearly in half. A systematic review and meta-analysis across nine studies later confirmed the pattern, finding a 51 percent reduction in snoring intensity measured by visual analog scale. Here are four exercises. The whole set takes about ten minutes. First, push the tip of your tongue against the roof of your mouth and slide it backward 20 times. This strengthens the tongue base, which is usually the tissue that falls backward during sleep. Second, press your entire tongue flat against the roof of your mouth and hold for 10 seconds. Repeat five times. This targets the same muscles from a different angle. Third, say the vowel sounds (A, E, I, O, U) out loud, exaggerating each one, for three minutes. This activates the muscles in your soft palate and throat walls. Fourth, with your mouth open, contract the muscle at the back of your throat repeatedly for 30 seconds. You can see the uvula lifting up and down if you watch in a mirror. This directly strengthens the soft palate. Do these two to three times a day. Results typically show up after six to eight weeks of consistent practice.
Good to know: Playing the didgeridoo has been shown in a published study to reduce snoring and daytime sleepiness by strengthening the upper airway. If tongue slides sound boring, pick up an instrument instead.
Try a mandibular advancement device
A mandibular advancement device (MAD) is a mouthpiece you wear while sleeping. It holds your lower jaw slightly forward, which pulls the base of your tongue forward and opens up the airway behind it. They look like a sports mouth guard and are sometimes called snoring mouthpieces or oral appliances. A systematic review in Sleep Medicine Reviews found that MADs are effective for treating both primary snoring and mild to moderate obstructive sleep apnea, reducing apnea events by an average of 13.6 per hour compared to no treatment. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine jointly recommend oral appliances for patients who snore or have mild to moderate sleep apnea, with custom, adjustable devices preferred over generic ones. Over-the-counter boil-and-bite versions are available at pharmacies for around $30 to $50. They are a reasonable starting point. Custom-fitted devices from a dentist cost more (typically $500 to $2,000) but fit better, last longer, and cause fewer side effects. The most common side effects are jaw soreness, excessive saliva, and mild tooth discomfort during the first week or two. These almost always fade with regular use. If jaw pain persists beyond two weeks, stop using the device and consult a dentist. MADs are not appropriate for everyone. If you have significant jaw joint (TMJ) problems, loose teeth, or severe dental issues, talk to a dentist before trying one.
Establish better sleep habits
Poor sleep hygiene makes snoring worse through two mechanisms. First, when you are sleep-deprived, your body falls into deeper stages of sleep faster, which causes greater muscle relaxation in the throat. Second, irregular sleep schedules throw off your sleep architecture, increasing the time you spend in the positions and stages most likely to produce snoring. Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day, including weekends. Your body regulates muscle tone during sleep on a circadian rhythm, and consistency keeps that rhythm stable. Aim for seven to nine hours of sleep per night. The Mayo Clinic specifically lists inadequate sleep as a contributing factor to snoring. When you are chronically under-slept, you accumulate a sleep debt that makes your muscles relax more aggressively when you finally do get a full night. Avoid heavy meals within two to three hours of bedtime. A full stomach pushes your diaphragm upward, which reduces lung capacity and forces air through a smaller space. This is especially relevant if you also have acid reflux, which can cause throat swelling that narrows the airway further. Keep your bedroom cool, dark, and quiet. A comfortable environment reduces tossing and turning, which means you spend less time transitioning between sleep stages, a period when snoring is most likely to start.
Know when to see a doctor
Snoring by itself is not a medical emergency. But snoring can be a symptom of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), a condition where your airway fully closes during sleep, cutting off breathing for 10 seconds or more at a time. OSA is linked to high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes. A meta-analysis of 16 studies covering nearly 146,000 participants found that snoring is associated with a 46 percent increased risk of stroke. It is not something to ignore. See a doctor if your snoring is accompanied by any of the following. Gasping or choking sounds during sleep. Pauses in breathing that your partner has witnessed. Excessive daytime sleepiness despite getting enough hours of sleep. Morning headaches. Difficulty concentrating during the day. Waking up with a very dry mouth or sore throat every morning. The only way to diagnose sleep apnea is through a sleep study, either at a sleep lab or using a home sleep test device your doctor can prescribe. If OSA is confirmed, the most effective treatment is a CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure) machine, which delivers a gentle stream of air through a mask to keep your airway open. It is not glamorous, but it works. Do not let snoring become background noise you just live with. If the steps in this guide do not reduce your snoring within four to six weeks, or if you have any of the warning signs above, make an appointment. The evaluation is straightforward and the treatments are well established.
Heads up: Roughly 30 to 50 percent of habitual snorers have some degree of obstructive sleep apnea. If your partner tells you that you stop breathing during the night, that is not a quirk. That is a medical symptom. Get a sleep study.
Snoring is one of those problems that people joke about but rarely take seriously, even though it wrecks sleep quality for both the snorer and anyone within earshot. The fixes in this guide are listed roughly in order of how easy they are to try. Start with sleep position and alcohol timing, because those cost nothing and can make an immediate difference. Add nasal care and throat exercises if position alone is not enough. Consider a mandibular advancement device if you have tried everything else. Give each change at least two to three weeks before deciding whether it works. Snoring patterns fluctuate night to night, so one quiet night does not mean you are fixed, and one loud night does not mean the approach failed. Track it over time. Many phone apps can record and score your snoring while you sleep, which takes the guesswork out of figuring out what is helping. And if nothing in this guide makes a dent, or if your snoring comes with gasping, choking, or crushing daytime fatigue, see a doctor. A sleep study is painless, often done at home, and sleep apnea is very treatable once diagnosed. There is no reason to keep sawing logs if you do not have to.
Questions we get asked about this
Answers from experience, not a textbook.
Snoring happens when air flows past relaxed tissue in your throat, causing the tissue to vibrate as you breathe. Several factors contribute. The anatomy of your mouth and sinuses, nasal congestion, alcohol consumption, sleep position, body weight, and age all play a role. As you age, your throat naturally narrows and muscle tone decreases, which is why snoring tends to get worse over time.
It depends on the cause. Snoring caused by weight gain can often be resolved permanently through weight loss. Snoring caused by nasal obstruction or structural issues may be fixed with surgery. Snoring caused by sleep position or alcohol is manageable but requires ongoing attention. For most people, snoring is controlled rather than cured, similar to managing blood pressure or cholesterol.
They work for snoring caused by nasal congestion or narrow nasal passages, but not for snoring that originates in the throat. If you breathe clearly through your nose during the day and still snore at night, nasal strips probably will not help. If your nose feels stuffy at bedtime, they are worth trying. They are cheap, have no side effects, and you will know within a few nights whether they make a difference.
You cannot diagnose sleep apnea on your own. The key warning signs are pauses in breathing during sleep (usually noticed by a partner), gasping or choking sounds, excessive daytime sleepiness, and morning headaches. A sleep study is the only reliable way to confirm or rule out sleep apnea. Many doctors now offer home sleep test devices that are less expensive and more convenient than an in-lab study.
It can help significantly. Mouth breathing directs airflow through the throat at higher velocity, increasing vibration. Chin straps and mouth taping are two approaches people use to encourage nasal breathing during sleep. Mouth taping involves placing a small strip of medical tape vertically over the lips. It is gaining popularity but should only be tried if you can breathe clearly through your nose. If you have nasal congestion, taping your mouth closed creates a dangerous situation.
Snoring becomes a health concern when it disrupts your sleep quality or is associated with symptoms of obstructive sleep apnea. Loud snoring that can be heard through closed doors, snoring accompanied by gasping or breathing pauses, and snoring that leaves you tired despite sleeping enough hours are all reasons to see a doctor. Even without sleep apnea, a 2024 study in npj Digital Medicine that tracked over 12,000 people for six months found that regular snoring is associated with a 1.9-fold increase in uncontrolled hypertension, independent of sleep apnea.
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