How Singing Can Stop Snoring
By Theresa Waldron
A bed partner who doesn’t snore would be something to sing about, right? Singing might just be the key – if it’s the snorer doing the singing. The act of singing strengthens throat muscles, keeping them from collapsing into the throat during sleep, where they vibrate and cause the annoying sounds of snoring or block the airways, as in sleep apnea. A series of exercises on a CD called Singing for Snorers could restore nighttime peace.
When Alise Ojay, a singing instructor at the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom, listened to a concerned friend describe his snoring, Ojay wondered if the singing exercises she regularly performed would help strengthen the lax muscles in her friend’s throat. They did. Intrigued, Ojay began working with medical professionals at the University of Exeter in 1999 to conduct a pilot study. The information she gained ultimately led to the development of Ojay’s Singing for Snorers program (about $70). The program consists of three CDs of specific sounds and tunes to work tissues in the soft palate, the tongue and throat, and a 48-page instruction booklet. The exercises should be done once daily, 12 to 18 minutes, for at least three months.
The singing is “simple and repetitive,” using sounds such as “ung-gah.” Following her singing program can end mild-to-moderate snoring and reduce the snoring caused by sleep apnea, according to the results of Ojay’s early trials. The Singing for Snorers program is now being used in a large, controlled clinical trial at the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital in Wonford, England.
The singing exercises tighten throat muscles, but won’t eliminate snoring caused by other factors.
You don’t have to be a good singer to benefit – singing in tune is not required. Ojay warns the sounds are not always melodic, so you will definitely need a sense of humor and either a secret place, like your car, the shower, or an understanding or supportive family, to do the exercises.
Snoring and sleep apnea share some common causes:
• Being overweight
• Consuming alcohol
• Growing older
• Having enlarged tonsils or
adenoids
• Having sinus congestion,
cysts or polyps
