Could heavy snoring be life threatening?

Professor Yves Kamami, a leading global expert in snoring has spoken out about how if left untreated, snoring heavily can lead to snorers suffering from a stroke:

“Ninety per cent of snorers are 'simple snorers'. However, if you don't treat the snorers after a few years, it starts to become sleep apnoea syndrome. The patient stops breathing during the night – there is an obstruction at the back of the throat and nose.

“Because of the obstruction, there is a lack of oxygen going to the brain. So the patient is suffering from apoxia [oxygen deficiency in the blood]. This can lead to strokes and other major things.”

Men are most likely to suffer from sleep apnoea syndrome, but anyone can get it, even children. Common characteristics of people with sleep apnoea syndrome are being overweight, have large tonsils, a large tongue, a small jaw bone or a large neck (a circumference of 17 inches or above for men, 16 inches for women).

If you’re a heavy snorer and often wake up tired despite having slept through the night, you could have sleep apnoea syndrome. Kamami describes exactly what it is: “The patient stops breathing during the night due to an obstruction at the back of the throat and the nose. Because of the obstruction there is a lack of oxygen in the brain. Someone who has sleep apnoea or snoring does not have a restful night's sleep. They may suffer tiredness in the morning. With each passing year an ever greater number of ailments are linked to apnoea.

“Glaucoma of the eyes is caused by sleep apnoea. We have diabetes caused by sleep apnoea. Year after year we are seeing that sleep apnoea syndrome is causing many more diseases.”

Yikes! If you think you could be suffering from this, you should probably get it seen to ASAP!