Snoring: Causes, Treatments, and When to See a GP

Tom Richards writes about sleep tracking, wearables and sleep technology for SleepReview.

Snoring affects roughly 40% of adult men and 25% of adult women, and it's one of the single biggest reasons people get referred to a sleep clinic. But The key point is: — the snoring itself isn't usually the real concern. What matters is what might be hiding behind it.

Most snoring is harmless. It's annoying for your partner, it can disrupt your sleep quality, and it's not exactly pleasant to live with. But in a significant minority of cases, snoring is the first visible sign of obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) — a condition where your airway repeatedly collapses during sleep, cutting off your breathing. OSA is linked to high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and road traffic accidents. It's not something to ignore.

In this guide, I'll walk you through why we snore, what makes it worse, how to tell the difference between simple snoring and something more serious, and what your options are — from lifestyle changes to the treatments available through the NHS and privately.

Why We Snore

Snoring happens when air can't flow freely through the mouth and nose during sleep. As you breathe in, the soft tissues in your throat vibrate — much like a flag flapping in the wind. The noise you hear is that vibration. The tissues involved include the soft palate (the soft part at the roof of your mouth), the uvula (the dangly bit at the back), the tonsils, the tongue base, and the walls of the throat itself.

During the day, your throat muscles hold these structures in place. But when you fall asleep, muscle tone drops. If the airway is already narrowed for any reason — whether that's anatomy, weight, alcohol, or sleeping position — the reduced muscle tone means those tissues can collapse inward and vibrate more intensely. That's snoring.

The volume and pattern of snoring depends on how much narrowing there is and which tissues are vibrating. Some people produce a gentle rumble; others sound like a chainsaw. The volume isn't necessarily a reliable indicator of severity — some people with dangerous sleep apnoea snore relatively quietly, while some perfectly healthy snorers can be heard from the next room.

Common Causes of Snoring

Understanding why you snore is the first step toward managing it. The causes fall into a few broad categories:

Anatomical Factors

• Nasal congestion or a deviated septum. If your nose is partially blocked — whether from a cold, allergies, or structural issues — you'll breathe through your mouth during sleep, which increases vibration in the throat.
• Enlarged tonsils and adenoids. Particularly common in children, but adults with large tonsils are also more likely to snore.
• A large or thick neck. Excess tissue around the neck narrows the airway. This is one reason why men snore more than women — they tend to carry more weight in the neck area.
• A recessed chin or small jaw. Some people are born with a jaw structure that positions the tongue further back, leaving less room in the airway.
• An elongated uvula or soft palate. More tissue means more vibration.

Lifestyle Factors

• Being overweight or obese. This is the most modifiable risk factor. Fat deposits around the neck and throat compress the airway. Even a 10% reduction in body weight can significantly reduce snoring in many people.
• Alcohol consumption. Alcohol relaxes the muscles of the throat more than usual, which is why snoring often gets worse after drinking. Even a couple of units in the evening can make a noticeable difference.
• Smoking. Smoking irritates and inflames the tissues of the throat and nose, causing swelling that narrows the airway. It also reduces the muscle tone in the throat.
• Sleeping on your back. Gravity pulls the tongue and soft palate backward when you're on your back, narrowing the airway. Switching to side sleeping can make an immediate difference for many people.

Medical Conditions

• Hypothyroidism. An underactive thyroid can cause tissue swelling in the neck and throat.
• Allergies and hay fever. Chronic nasal inflammation narrows the nasal passages.
• Obstructive sleep apnoea. Snoring is a primary symptom — more on this below.
• Medications. Sedatives, muscle relaxants, and some antihistamines can increase throat muscle relaxation during sleep.

Is My Snoring Harmless or Serious?

This is the question I get asked most often, and it's an important one. Most snoring is what we call "primary snoring" — it doesn't significantly disrupt breathing and doesn't carry the same health risks as sleep apnoea. But primary snoring can still affect sleep quality for both the snorer and their partner.

Here are the red flags that suggest your snoring might be something more than simple noise:

• Pauses in breathing during sleep. If your partner notices periods where you stop breathing, then gasp or choke — that's the hallmark of sleep apnoea.
• Excessive daytime sleepiness. Feeling overwhelmingly tired during the day despite spending enough time in bed, especially if you're falling asleep during meetings, while watching TV, or worse, while driving.
• Morning headaches. Caused by drops in oxygen levels during the night.
• Waking up gasping or choking. A sign that your brain is briefly arousing you to restart breathing.
• Difficulty concentrating or memory problems. Poor sleep quality from repeated breathing disruptions affects cognitive function.
• High blood pressure. OSA is a recognised cause of resistant hypertension — blood pressure that doesn't respond well to medication.
• Restless sleep. Frequent tossing and turning, or waking up repeatedly through the night.
• Nocturia. Waking frequently to urinate, caused by hormonal responses to oxygen drops.

If any of these apply to you, please don't just buy a nasal strip and hope for the best. Talk to your GP.

Obstructive Sleep Apnoea: What You Need to Know

Obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) affects an estimated 1.5 million adults in the UK, though many cases remain undiagnosed. It occurs when the muscles at the back of the throat fail to keep the airway open during sleep, causing repeated episodes of partial or complete airway obstruction.

During an apnoea event — which can last from 10 seconds to over a minute — your oxygen levels drop, your blood pressure rises, and your brain triggers a brief arousal (which you may not remember) to restore breathing. In severe OSA, this can happen 30 or more times per hour throughout the night. The cumulative effect is devastating: fragmented sleep, chronic oxygen deprivation, and a cascade of cardiovascular and metabolic consequences.

The Epworth Sleepiness Scale is a simple questionnaire your GP or sleep clinic will use to assess your daytime sleepiness. It's not a diagnostic tool on its own, but it helps gauge the functional impact of your snoring. If you're scoring above 10 on the Epworth, it warrants investigation.

Diagnosis of OSA requires a sleep study — either in a hospital sleep lab (polysomnography) or, increasingly, with a home sleep study kit. The NHS waiting times for sleep studies vary by region. In my trust, we've managed to get the wait down to around 6–8 weeks, but in some areas it can be three to six months. If your symptoms are severe, push for urgency.

Lifestyle Changes That Reduce Snoring

Before reaching for a device or medication, there are changes you can make that often produce meaningful improvement. People who commit to these modifications see the biggest gains:

• Lose weight if you're overweight. This is the single most effective intervention for snoring related to body weight. Research shows that losing as little as 5–10% of body weight can reduce the apnoea-hypopnoea index (AHI — a measure of sleep apnoea severity) by 25–50%. For someone weighing 15 stones (95 kg), that's just over a stone to a stone and a half. Not easy, but very achievable with support.
• Reduce alcohol intake, especially before bed. Stop drinking at least three to four hours before sleep. Avoid binge drinking. Even moderate regular consumption worsens snoring.
• Stop smoking. Easier said than done, I know. But the NHS offers free support through local Stop Smoking services, and medications like varenicline (Champix) are available on prescription.
• Sleep on your side. If you're a back sleeper, try the tennis ball technique — tape or sew a tennis ball into the back of your pyjama top. It's crude but effective at preventing you from rolling onto your back. There are also commercially available positional sleep aids. Elevating the head of your bed by 10–15 cm can also help.
• Treat nasal congestion. If you have hay fever or chronic rhinitis, proper treatment with antihistamines or steroid nasal sprays can open up the nasal passages. Nasal dilator strips (like Breathe Right) can also help in some cases, though evidence is mixed.
• Maintain a regular sleep schedule. Going to bed and waking at consistent times helps regulate muscle tone in the throat, as the body's sleep architecture becomes more predictable.
• Stay hydrated. Dehydration can make the secretions in the nose and throat stickier, increasing vibration.

Medical Treatments and Devices

Medical Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional for personalised guidance on sleep and health issues.