What does snoring do for you? Nothing good, it seems. Various medical bodies have released studies detailing the marital disadvantages and social embarrassment of snoring. These are 2 of the main effects of snoring; others include irritability, drowsiness during the day and sadly, a decreased libido.



The Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh recently released a study showing how snoring causes a serious and irrational deterioration of marital relations. Hardly surprising. What is shocking however, is that the usual stereotype of the wife waking up annoyed because of the husband's uncontrollable 'log sawing' only happens 60% of the time. The other 40% of snoring fallouts has the wife as the culprit. The problem with snoring in a relationship is that when a partner awakes frustrated in the middle of the night, he or she will not be in a rational state of mind to be objective about the situation and conclude: 'My spouse doesn't intentionally want to disrupt my sleep, and therefore I shouldn't get angry over this.' When one party is in desperate need of sleep, but can't get it, a potent catalyst for strained marital relations is formed. In retrospect, one cannot help but to wonder whether both partners being snorers will solve the problem. Imagine, both partners sleeping soundly and snoring loudly, in perfect union.

Holidaying will also never be the same again, for loud snorers. A supposedly relaxing vacation with a couple of friends can be ruined when a loud snorer disrupts the sleep of his or her friends. Many snorers thus choose to sleep in a different room from their friends to avoid any embarrassment or strained relations. This separation, however, takes the charm out of a happy vacation.

A simple visit to the local pharmacy will reveal a myriad of measures to curb this problem. From dental sprays, creams, pills to the more expensive treatments such as dental appliances, Continuous Positive Away Pressure (CPAP) machines to surgery, almost all of these aim to perform one ostensibly easy task: to clear the breathing passage of blockages during sleep. However, it is common knowledge in the industry that almost every form of snoring is different, and that each of the aforementioned remedies pertains only to a small percentage of snorers. As such, one would literally have to purchase and try out each and every snoring aid available, then keep his/her fingers crossed in the hope that one of them could turn out to be the elusive miracle cure. However, this is a dalliance that many can ill afford.

A recent wave of creative solutions have also presented themselves to snorers. The British Medical Journal has espoused the value of playing the didgeridoo, the famed Australian musical pipe in helping to cure snoring problems. Playing the didgeridoo, according to the Journal, helps to increase muscle usage of the throat, which results in it being able to hold itself open during sleep. Voila, blockage cleared. Another aptly named program, the Stop Snoring Program has received worldwide acclaim since it started in 1999. This program from Iceland helps to build up muscular strength in the throat which in turn clears up breathing airways. It is veritably a new way of taking on the problem.

Nobody thus far has found any medical benefits of snoring. Thus, suffice to say, the detriments of snoring far outweigh the benefits. Curing it should be imperative in the search for good sleep and happy relations.