Snoring and Pregnancy

Snoring during pregnancy is fairly common, Almost a quarter of healthy pregnant women were reportedly snoring frequently based on a survey, while many others said they snored occasionally. However, just 4 per cent of comparably healthy, non-pregnant women of the same age admitted to snoring on a regular basis.



Increased hormone levels, particularly estrogen, can cause tissue to become more puffy and swollen. Tissues that line the nasal passages and throat are no exception and this can lead to nasal congestion and even a runny nose. This swelling and congestion is probably worsened by the increase in circulating blood volume during gestation. Another well-documented risk factor for snoring is weight gain, but this is, of course, characteristic of any normal pregnancy.



Snoring can be a sign of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). So while gestational snoring maybe just that, it could also be a symptom of this far more serious condition. Furthermore, heavy snoring and obstructive sleep apnea during pregnancy have been linked to gestational hypertension (high blood pressure during pregnancy) and pre eclampsia (a condition characterized by high blood pressure, protein in the urine and swelling of the ankles, hands or face), both potentially dangerous conditions.



Pregnant women concerned about their snoring should seek qualified medical advice to determine whether further investigations are necessary. For the vast majority of women, snoring is no more than a temporary nuisance that will most likely disappear once the baby arrives.

Snoring Museum

The Schnarch Museum in Alfeld, a small town in Lower Saxony, Germany, is utterly devoted to snoring (schnarch is German for snoring) and the various methods used to combat snoring throughout history. Physician and researcher Dr Joseph Alexander Wirth collected a range of snoring remedies and kept them in his basement. The collector later decided to share them with the public by opening the Museum of Snoring. Now the museum boasts some 400 snoring remedies and devices.

Examples include an “ear suppository” which is placed into the ear to prevent the snorer turning onto his side. There is a display case showing prosthetic devices for the oral cavity, which are designed to pull the jaw forward by force. There are nasal pins designed to stretch the nostrils, thereby allowing the snorer more oxygen. There is also a 100 year old “anti-snoring mask” with leather straps that wrapped around the chin so that the mouth remained closed. One of the more barbaric therapies is a device that delivers electric shocks when you snore. On a lighter note, there is a whole collection of stories and caricatures devoted to snoring, as well as various dolls and fabric animals that snore when squeezed.

Snoring Experience

.I was thinking about how the Army tolerates soldiers that snore. Most people comment on how they dealt with those that snore, or how it didn’t bother them when they were so sleep deprived. One sailor spoke of having to sleep with noisy jets taking off above him, so people snoring was the least of his worries. Others spoke of being in combat situations where you are too alert to even sleep, let alone snore.

While this certainly made for interesting reading, I was thinking more about the impact of snoring on covert operations that rely on stealth. During the American War of Independence, a cannonball was sewn to the inner side of the snoring soldiers' uniforms. This stopped them turning over onto their backs and disturbing fellow soldiers. More recently, the Chinese army have announced an all out ban on chronic snoring. Also among the new recruitment guidelines, introduced to "affirm the military's high standards", will be a ban on tattoos and drugs. Urine tests to detect traces of drugs will be introduced, acknowledging that the people's vanguard is no longer as immune as it was once thought to be to the hedonistic influences that afflict youth elsewhere. Weeding out the chronic snorers will surely be a laborious process, as many don’t even realise they snore.

Snoring Experience

My doctor told me it was imperative that I lose weight as this was causing my obstructive sleep apnea. My weight had been an ongoing problem for years and I think the doctor was resorting to scare tactics. Later that week, I received a CPAP machine from the sleep clinic. Someone came out to show me how to set it up and after a few nights of perseverance, I felt better. I was having more restful nights and felt more energetic during the day. I consider myself lucky that I did not have health complications due to my ignorance about this very serious condition.....

Snoring Experience

My husband's snoring sounded like a motorbike. It started out as a mild problem as I could get him to turn on his side if I gently kicked him! However, as time went on his snoring seemed to get louder and louder.

Eventually it got to the point that we could no longer sleep together. I remember trying to get our newborn off to sleep one night. Every time we were almost there my husband kept nodding off and began the snoring immediately. I got quite angry and he left the room. I felt really bad as he had been working shifts and was sleep deprived. He couldn’t keep his eyes open and when he drifted off he had me shouting at him. He felt obliged to leave the room, as he was the one snoring. This was a classic case of snoring straining people’s relationships.

Our family doctor referred us to a head and neck surgeon for a palatectomy - a surgical procedure to the roof of the mouth and uvula. The surgery worked. The snoring stopped and we were able to enjoy some restful nights, at least for a while. Now, with every breath he growls even louder than when he used to snore! It drives me mad and makes me want to scream. Marital harmony is now achieved with the use of quality earplugs and a lot of tolerance. I love my husband dearly, but if I could change one thing it would be the wretched snoring

Snoring Celebrities

Winston Churchill was known to be loud snorer. His rotund figure coupled with those fat ‘trademark’ cigars and a fair amount of alcohol certainly made him a good candidate. Despite these unhealthy habits Churchill still lived to be ninety.

The somewhat overweight Theodore ‘Teddy’ Roosevelt reached truly anti social volumes with his snoring. In January 1919 he died in his sleep aged just sixty. Doctors attributed his death to several possible causes including coronary embolism and inflammatory rheumatism. But his weight and his snoring were considered significant factors.

President Franklin Delano Roosevelt suffered high blood pressure (hypertension) and sleep apnea. He enjoyed a smoke in the day and would snore at night.


Queen Victoria became vastly overweight as she aged. At one stage she needed a 46 inch (about 117cm) waist size for garments. She was also known to snore.


Courtney Cox claims that her husband David Arquette snores terribly.


Rosanne Barr’s snoring can drive her husband Ben Thomas to sleep in the other room.


Celebrity Snoring - Limo


'Tinsel town’ insiders claim that Elizabeth Taylor makes an awful noise with her snoring.


Scottish comedian Billy Connolly uses CPAP for his obstructive sleep apnea and talks (jokes) openly about his snoring.

Why do people snore?

Vibrations of soft tissues located at the back of our throats cause the noisy, annoying sounds of snoring that sometimes prevent non-snorers from getting their ZZZZs.

The palate, uvula and tonsils are the tissue structures that flap against each other when someone has too much tissue at the back of their mouth or when an obstruction is blocking the air passageway to the back of the throat.

People with snoring problems tend to have one of the following conditions:

* Poor muscle tone in the tongue and throat
* Excessive bulkiness of throat tissue
* Long soft palate and/or uvula tissue in the back of the mouth
* Obstructed nasal airways

Snoring can be a serious medical problem because it disturbs sleeping patterns and deprives the snorer of necessary rest.
Did you know?

* 20% of the population experiences snoring problems.
* Males and obese people have more problems with snoring.
* Snoring tends to be louder when a person sleeps on their back.
* There are more than 300 devices registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to help cure snoring.