How Snoring Could Be Damaging Your Health

Posted by Michael Donovan on June 3rd, 2019

We can all agree that snoring isn’t only annoying, but has an effect on everyone in the house who can hear it. It’s loud, constant and once you’ve been woken by snoring, it’s hard to ignore it and get back to sleep.

One point that might make you more inclined to do something about your snoring is that it isn’t only annoying, but could be highly damaging to your health. Several health problems can arise from snoring, which includes heart disease, diabetes, neurological problems as well as an increased risk of reduced life expectancy.

In this article, we’ll take a look over all of the ways snoring could be damaging your health, and offering our tips for getting control of your snoring.

Risk Associated With Reduced Sleep Quality

Of course, one of the most prominent health effects of snoring is reduced sleep quality, which comes with its own set of health problems.

Those who routinely suffer from poor sleep are at risk of developing heart problems which are accompanied by an increased risk of stroke, heart attack and high blood pressure — certainly not something you want to ignore.

As we sleep, our body works to refresh and reset itself from the previous day. When sleep quality is reduced, however, it’s unable to do this. As a result, there is intense stress and added pressure placed on the heart, muscles and your mental state. In the long-term, these issues end in heart problems that can dramatically reduce your overall health.

Weight Gain and Obesity

Snoring also affects our body’s ability to metabolise foods during sleep, which comes with the risk of weight gain or obesity. We all know the numerous health risks that come with being overweight, and these are further amplified by poor sleep quality.

A few of the damaging effects on health that obesity can cause include:

• Increased risk of heart attack
• Poor circulation
• Increased chance of type 2 diabetes 
• Fatty liver disease
• Increased likelihood of snoring

One area where weight gain and snoring connect is in the increased risk of sleep apnea.

People who are overweight are more likely to suffer from sleep apnea, which can also be misunderstood as someone snoring. Left unchecked, sleep apnea can cause chronic sleep issues and reduce the lifespan of sufferers.

The good news is that leaps and bounds are being made in the development of CPAP machines which mitigate the effects of snoring, and retailers like cpap.com.au offer affordable, non-intrusive devices that keep airways open and improve sleep and stop snoring in its tracks.

Mental Health Problems

For those who snore, there’s an increased chance that your quality of sleep is poor every single night. Without a refreshing night’s sleep, you’ll be less likely to handle stress, deal with emotions or reduce your risk of depression through exercise and socialising.

In the long term, there is an increased chance of developing mental health and neurological disorders such as depression, anxiety and chronic stress. All of which take a significant toll on one’s day to day life and can cause health issues such as high blood pressure, stomach ulcers and poor diet.

Chronic Fatigue and Poor Judgment

In line with mental health problems, chronic snoring can also cause both poor judgment and fatigue because of its ability to ruin sleep quality. Both of these issues reduce a person’s ability to judge their work quality, actions and also increase the risk of accidents in traffic.

A few risks associated with fatigue can include:

• Dizziness
• Unhealthy lifestyle choices
• Rash decision making
• Increased chance of car accidents
• The development of chronic stress

Again, fatigue and constant tiredness can result in poor control of emotions and may eventually lead to depression.

Reduced Blood Oxygen Levels

Remembering that snoring is mostly a sign of the body desperately trying to breathe, there’s the risk of reduced blood oxygen levels in people who snore. If ignored, the long term effects of low blood oxygen level include pulmonary hypertension, which can drastically increase your chances of a heart attack and stroke.

Pulmonary hypertension might also reduce a person’s ability to do strenuous activity or exercise, having a significant impact on their ability to remain fit and healthy at any age, further accelerating ageing and increasing chances of all other age-related diseases.