Mouth, tongue exercises can curb your noisy 'snores'

Washington: To all the nose noise makers of the night! A new study has found that you can control your snores with help of mouth and tongue exercises.

Though there is no standard treatment is available for primary snoring or snoring associated with a mild form of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), a Brazilian study has found that in patients with primary snoring or mild OSA, oropharyngeal, or mouth and tongue, exercises significantly reduced the frequency of snoring by 36 percent and total power of snoring by 59 percent.

Treatment of primary snoring varies widely and includes avoiding alcohol and sedatives, avoiding lying flat on the back to sleep, weight loss, treatment of nasal problems, palate and upper airway surgeries, and use of dental sleep devices.

Study's author Geraldo Lorenzi-Filho, MD, PhD, said that they tested the effectiveness of oropharyngeal exercises to reduce snoring and the exercises significantly reduced snoring in the study group.

Exercises included:

Pushing the tip of the tongue against the roof of the mouth and sliding the tongue backward.

Sucking the tongue upward against the roof of the mouth, and pressing the entire tongue against the roof of the mouth.

Forcing the back of the tongue against the floor of the mouth while keeping the tip of the tongue in contact with the bottom, front teeth.

And elevating the back of the roof of the mouth and uvula while saying the vowel "A."

The study is published in the Online First section of the journal CHEST.