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My Child Is Snoring-- Causes and Top 10 Natural Remedies Related Links: Cat Snoring-Causes and Remedies Links Page-Snoring Directories,Treatment Resources,Tutorial Videos Dogs with Diabetes-What They Should Eat Snoring Poses a Danger to Your Overall Health Snoring Linked to Stroke "My Husband Died of A Stroke"--a personal story Poor Sleep Makes You Gain Weight Do Humidifiers Help You Sleep?-The Debate Rages On October 24, 2011 By Louise Carr, Associate Editor and Featured Columnist My Child Is Snoring - Causes and Top 10 Remedies Your child’s little bedtime noises may sound cute or funny but there is a serious side to kiddy snoring. The majority of children who snore – and according to research from the University of Louisville and Pediatric Sleep Center at Kosair Children's Hospital habitual snoring affects around 11-12 percent of all children between the ages of 1 through 9 – are healthy with no medical problem more serious than the common cold. But in other children, snoring can be associated with significant sleep disruption, behavioral issues and daytime sleepiness. Snoring can be a minor issue or a long-term cause for concern. Sometimes the snoring passes from cute to crazy-making when it happens every night and it’s so loud you can hear it through the bedroom door. Should you worry when your child snores? What are the causes of a child snoring? What can you do to stop your child snoring? What Causes Snoring in Children? Snoring is a sound that indicates resistance in the upper airway. When we sleep the airway collapses a little and air forced through a narrower space vibrates and makes a noise. When children snore it can be the result of a few things. Your child may be born with a small jaw or narrow airway that makes their breathing noisy. Your child’s tonsils or adenoids may be enlarged, causing airway resistance and snoring. Or your child may suffer from a medical condition like sleep disordered breathing or sleep apnea. Snoring May be a Sign of Sleep Disordered Breathing or Sleep Apnea Sleep disordered breathing is a set of sleep disorders characterized by abnormal breathing or poor quality breathing during sleep. Snoring is one sign of sleep disordered breathing. Sleep disordered breathing can cause many problems for children, from daytime sleepiness to nightmares to problem behavior. A 2003 study from Boston University School of Medicine reported that sleep disordered breathing is common in five-year-old children and is associated with an increased risk of daytime sleepiness and problem behavior such as hyperactivity, inattention, and aggressiveness. A 1998 study from the Tulane University Comprehensive Sleep Disorders Center, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans showed that sleep disordered breathing can adversely affect learning performance. Sleep apnea is a form of sleep disordered breathing affecting both children and adults and it can cause snoring. According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, obstructive sleep apnea affects around two percent of otherwise healthy children. Sleep apnea occurs when the back of the throat collapses during sleep and blocks the airway. Sleepers stop breathing momentarily and wake up briefly, many times during the night. Your child usually won’t notice the periods of waking as they are so short, but they severely affect quality of sleep. According to a 2002 report from the American Academy of Pediatrics, parents should pay close attention to children who snore loudly as obstructive sleep apnea can lead to growth, heart and pulmonary problems if left untreated. How Can You Tell If Your Child Snores Because of Sleep Apnea? Your child may be a normal snorer with no associated sleep problems. In this case, they should be healthy and well, with no signs of excessive daytime sleepiness and normal sleeping patterns. Snoring as a result of sleep apnea can be very loud and you may notice your child gasping for breath in her sleep, or pausing in her breathing. In addition, your child may have behavioral problems, they may be overweight or underweight, and they may have high blood pressure. You may need to go to a specialist sleep center if you suspect your child has sleep apnea. Which Children Snore More? Any child can suffer from snoring. Sleep disordered breathing and sleep apnea can affect children of all races and ages, at all times of the year. But some experts have identified certain groups of children who are more likely to snore. According to 2011 research from State University of New York Downstate Medical Center, snoring is more commonly associated with children of black race and children who were born prematurely. Snoring can also affect adolescents – a 2006 study from Research Triangle Institute International in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, found more than 20 percent of adolescents snored at least a few nights every month and six percent of teenagers snored every night. Snoring was discovered to be twice as likely in African American teenagers as Caucasian teenagers. Many different factors can cause your child to snore. Some are related to sleep disorders and some to other issues. We looked through the available medical evidence to give you the causes of, and remedies for, kiddy snoring. 1. Allergies May Be To Blame for Child Snoring Research from Penn State University in 2010 suggests snoring may fluctuate according to the season. In summer and fall the prevalence of snoring in elementary-school children increases by up to 37.2 percent to peak in September, then decreases. Experts suggest that seasonal allergies leading to nasal problems like chronic sinusitis and rhinitis may be partly to blame for this seasonal snoring. If your child suffers from allergies the lining of their nose will swell, leading to difficulties breathing both during the day and at night, when the difficulties translate into snoring. 2. Wearing an Oral Appliance Helps Improve Child Snoring According to 2012 research from the University of São Paulo Medical School, Brazil kids who snore because of enlarged tonsils or adenoids benefit from wearing an oral appliance for six months. The oral appliance helps improve breathing and stop snoring. The study looked at 40 children who were on the waiting list for tonsil surgery and were aged between 6 and 9 years. 3. Removal of Tonsils and Adenoids Appears to Improve Snoring If the addition of an oral appliance to your child’s nighttime routine doesn’t stop the snoring due to large tonsils, they may benefit from tonsil surgery. A 2007 study from the University of Kansas School of Medicine, Kansas City reports that children who suffer from sleep disordered breathing experience better sleep, less snoring and improved behavior following surgery to remove their tonsils and adenoids (adenotonsillectomy). The 71 children in the Kansas study demonstrated fewer sleep problems and behavioral difficulties six months after surgery than before. A 2009 article published in the journal Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery also reported children and toddlers suffered fewer symptoms of sleep disordered breathing, including snoring, after the surgical removal of their tonsils and adenoids. And a 2002 study from State University of New York Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn also backs up the evidence that children with sleep disordered breathing suffer behavioral and emotional difficulties that improve after surgery. 4. Waist Size and Obesity Linked to Snoring in Children However, it appears that having large tonsils and adenoids is not the only cause of sleep disordered breathing in children. It seems that when it comes to snoring, obesity is a strong risk factor. With the increasing number of children who are overweight or obese in the United States, the prevalence of snoring is also increasing. If your child is overweight, the fat in their neck puts even more pressure on the tissues in the throat, which contract and cause snoring. A 2009 study by Penn State University College of Medicine, Hershey found waist circumference and body mass index are consistent, independent risk factors for sleep disordered breathing, and snoring, in children and that removing the tonsils may not be the most effective remedy. A 2007 research project from the Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center, Richmond also revealed that obesity causes yet more health problems for kids – obesity causes snoring as a result of sleep disordered breathing. Forty- six percent of the children scheduled for sleep disordered breathing surgery were overweight, compared with 33 percent of the control group. 5. Can I Use Aromatherapy to Stop My Child Snoring? Continue reading page 1 page 2 Related Links Snoring Increases Stroke Risk by 67% "My Husband Died of Stroke--a personal story" The Problem of Shallow Sleep Can't Sleep-Here's Help Stroke News Lose 10lbs -A Simple Plan for The Rest of Us My Heart Attack Other Links and Resources: Links Page -Directories, Treatment Resources and Online VideoTutorials |
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copyright all rights reserved 2007-2013
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