Chiropractor Chandler AZ

Acupuncture And Snoring

Nearly everyone snores now and then, but for some people it can be a chronic problem. Lifestyle changes such as losing weight and sleeping on your side can help stop snoring. Acupuncture is another alternative that can help reduce snoring at night.

Symptoms of Snoring

Snoring is often associated with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Not everyone develops OSA, but if snoring is accompanied by any of the following symptoms, it may be time to consider consulting a physician:

• Breathing pauses during sleep
• Excessive daytime sleepiness
• Morning headaches
• Sore throat upon awakening
• Restless sleep
• Gasping or choking at night
• High blood pressure
• Chest pain at night

Snoring can cause problems in sleep patterns. Breathing problems can disrupt sleep patterns, intake of oxygen, REM or deep sleep. Nose strips can help clear the nasal passages.

Causes of Snoring

Snoring can be caused by several factors: allergies, your weight, obstructing the nasal passages, and more. Typically, men are more likely to develop snoring than women.

When you begin to doze off and progress from a light sleep to a deep sleep, the muscles in the roof of your mouth, tongue, and throat relax. The tissues in your throat can relax enough that they partially block your airway and vibrate. The narrower your airway, the more forceful the airflow becomes. This increases tissue vibration and causes you to snore louder.

There are several things that can affect the airway and cause your snoring:

• Mouth anatomy. Having a low, thick soft palate can narrow your airway. Individuals who are overweight may have extra tissues in the back of their throats which may narrow their airways.
• Alcohol consumption. Too much alcohol before bedtime may cause snoring because it relaxes the throat muscles and decreases your natural defense against airway obstruction.
• Nasal problems. Nasal congestion or a deviated septum may cause snoring.
• Sleep deprivation. Getting less sleep can lead to further throat relaxation.
• Sleep position. Snoring is loudest and most frequent when sleeping on the back.

How is Snoring Diagnosed?

Your physician will review your signs, symptoms, and medical history. He or she will also perform a physical exam.

An imaging test may be used to check the structure of your airway for problems such as a deviated septum. Depending on the severity of your snoring, however, your physician may suggest a sleep study. During a sleep study, you stay overnight at a sleep center to undergo an in-depth analysis of your breathing. You are connected to several sensors and observed overnight.

Home Treatments for Snoring

To treat your snoring, your physician will first suggest lifestyle changes:

• Losing weight. Individuals who are overweight may have extra tissue in the throat that contribute to snoring. Losing weight can help.
• Avoid alcohol. Limiting alcohol consumption helps decrease the chances of snoring,
• Treating nasal congestion. Having allergies can limit the amount of airflow through your nose. This forces you to breathe through your mouth, which increases the changes of snoring.
• Get enough sleep. Adults should get at least seven hours of sleep per night.
• Avoid sleeping on your back. Lying on your back allows your tongue to fall backward into your throat, which obstructs airflow.

If these suggestions don't work, your physician may suggest medical treatments.

Medical Treatments for Snoring

For snoring accompanied by OSA, your physician may suggest oral appliances, a CPAP machine or upper airway surgery.

Oral appliances are essentially mouthguards worn at night that help advance the position of your jaw, tongue, and soft palate to keep your air passage open. You'll work with your dentist to create the dental mouthpiece and your sleep specialist to make sure the oral appliance is working as intended.

Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) involves wearing a mask over your nose and mouth while you sleep. It directs air from a small pump to your airways to keep it open during sleep.

A more serious medical treatment for snoring is upper airway surgery. There are several procedures that are used to open the upper airway and prevent narrowing during sleep. The effectiveness of these surgeries varies and the response can be challenging to predict.

Click Here to Receive a $40 Certificate for your 1st Acupuncture Treatment and Evaluation.

Acupuncture and Snoring

Acupuncture is used in treating symptoms of allergies such as itchy eyes and throat, headaches, runny nose, sneezing, and congestion. According to Traditional Chinese Medicine, these symptoms mean that energy or Qi is not flowing smoothly inside the body. Therefore, the channels need to be opened to restore the flow of energy inside the body.

Traditional Chinese Medicine often views allergies as related to wind, since symptoms come and go quickly, cause congestion, and make the person likely to avoid windy conditions. This Wind is often related with a Protective Qi deficiency. The closest resemblance to Protective Qi in western medicine is a strong immune system. People with protective qi deficiency catch colds easily and allergy symptoms are worse in the spring and fall, seasons which are generally windy.

Acupuncture is excellent in treating symptoms of allergies. Many allergy symptoms are located above the neck (headaches, itchy eyes, runny nose). This means the energy is not flowing smoothly from the head to the rest of the body and vice versa. All the yang meridians flow from the hands to the head and from the head to the feet.

Acupuncture can open the channels in the neck and shoulders and allow the energy to flow smoothly. Needles can be placed directly on the areas of pain (such as the head) to treat symptoms more locally as well.

Acupuncture looks at the whole body when treating someone with allergies. Often those with chronic allergies show signs of spleen or kidney deficiency as well as lung signs. The goal of treatment is to develop a plan which addresses the acute symptoms and provide relief as well as addressing the underlying imbalance with the immune system.

Conclusion

Learn more about Acupuncture in our Chandler AZ Clinic. Alpha Chiropractic and Physical Therapy provides treatment for many patients in Chandler, Gilbert, Mesa, Tempe, Phoenix, and Maricopa. Most patients have never seen a clinic that combines treatments from different providers into improving your pain. Chiropractic Adjustments are enhanced with physical therapy exercises and stretches.

Therapy and treatments for many types of conditions can be improved with a combination of acupuncture, chiropractic, physical therapy. Learn more about our unique Chandler Chiropractic Clinic.

Click Here to Receive a $40 Certificate for your 1st Acupuncture Treatment and Evaluation.