While Dr Levi’s Sleep Clinic offers a range of sophisticated treatments to help patients control their snoring, there are certainly a few do-it-yourself exercises which patients can try at home to treat mild snoring and sleep apnoea. In fact, research has shown that snoring may even be treated by singing!
Alise Ojay, a British choir director, claims that a series of routine vocalisations, performed 20 minutes a day over the course of less than a month, can significantly reduce snoring. Her approach is based on the premise that firming up these muscles allows air to pass in and out with less obstruction.
“It is especially important for snorers, and critically important for those suffering from sleep apnoea, to keep their breathing apparatus healthy: they will already be suffering from reduced oxygen intake and need a fit diaphragm to keep on drawing in the air despite experiencing an obstruction.” – Alise Ojay, creator, Singing for Snorers
With the help of Edzard Ernst, a professor of complementary medicine at the University of Exeter, Ojay designed and conducted a test study involving 20 subjects following a 3-month-long daily regimen of vocal exercises. The results of the study revealed that snoring was significantly reduced, especially in subjects who performed the exercises accurately and consistently. This study provides support for the idea that singing can improve snoring by toning the muscles in the throat. If you’d like to tone your throat muscles without singing, here are two throat exercises to try for an at-home anti-snoring workout.
Chin Press
- Place your finger under your chin.
- Apply a little pressure while pressing the fingers on the throat muscles.
- Keep your head erect so that the pressure is felt at the throat and not on the neck.
- Hold the throat for about 3 minutes before releasing.
- Repeat 5 to 8 times.
Throat Crunches
- Lie down on a bed in a prone position, with your head falling off the edge.
- Lift your head, balancing on your neck, and try to touch your chin to your chest
- Repeat 10 to 15 times a day.
If you want a cure for your snoring, make an appointment for a consultation ($60) with Dr Levi today. He will create a professional, customised solution which will have you sleeping soundlessly.
Call The Sleep and Snore Centre today on 9283 1900 or find out more about the treatments we provide.