Are you curious about knowing the difference between snoring and sleep apnea? Many people are suffering from both of them, while snoring is considered a harmless annoyance that occurs when air flows through relaxed tissues in the throat. However, sleep apnea is not considered a simple problem because it causes many serious health issues. The main thing that happens in sleep apnea is that your breath stops for a short time, mostly at night when you sleep.
Are you confused about Snoring vs Sleep Apnea? Those people who have snoring problems don’t take it seriously. But if they have breathing interruptions while sleeping or feel tired during the day, these are signs of sleep apnea. This problem is not just about stopping breathing for a short time, it also leads to some serious issues like high blood pressure and the risk of heart disease.
It is important to learn about the difference between both because snoring is not a big matter, but sleep apnea is not good for health conditions. Let's make a comparison of Snoring and Sleep Apnea so you can understand everything you want to know about these.
What is Snoring?
Snoring is basically a rhythmic rumbling sound that occurs when air flows get blocked in the throat, which leads to vibration in surrounding tissues that create noise. People with snoring issues do not take it seriously, but for others, it is annoying and causes disturbance.
Causes of Snoring
Several factors can cause snoring, including:
- Nasal congestion: When the airways are blocked because of colds, allergies, or sinus infections.
- Sleeping position: People who sleep on their backs are more likely to snore.
- Excess weight: Extra tissue in the neck can put pressure on the airway.
- Alcohol or sedatives: These relax muscles in the throat, making snoring more likely.
- Age: With age, throat muscles become weak, which leads to snoring.
Types of Snoring
There are different types of snoring, depending on the underlying cause:
- Nasal snoring: Caused by a blocked nose or congestion.
- Throat snoring: This happens when the muscles in the throat relax too much.
- Tongue snoring: Snoring occurs when your tongue falls back into your throat. Mostly in people who sleep on their backs.
- Mouth snoring: Many times, people breathe from the mouth instead of their nose because their nasal passages get blocked due to flu.
What is Sleep Apnea?
This is a serious health condition that stops the breathing process for a short time, and people awake from sleep to manage it. Sleep apnea is caused because airways get blocked or, in many cases, the brain does not send signals that control breathing. When you dont take it seriously, it leads to various serious health problems. It causes high blood pressure and sometimes fatigue.
Types of Sleep Apnea
There are three main types of sleep apnea:
- Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA): OSA is the common type in which muscles in the throat relax a lot and block the air.
- Central Sleep Apnea (CSA): Brains become unconscious and do not send signals that manage the breath and stop the breath temporarily.
- Mixed Sleep Apnea: This is a complex sleep apnea. This is known as a combination of both obstructive and central sleep apnea.
Symptoms of Sleep Apnea
Common symptoms of sleep apnea include:
- Loud snoring, often followed by gasping or choking
- Waking up with a dry mouth or sore throat
- Feeling tired during the day, even after a full night’s sleep
- Pauses in breathing noticed by a sleep partner
- Difficulty concentrating or memory problems
- Morning headaches
Difference Between Snoring and Sleep Apnea
If we talk about snoring and sleep apnea, then it is not wrong to say that both can affect breathing. Snoring is common and occurs in many people. But sleep apnea stops breathing, and it's because of relaxing throat tissues and airways. This happens because the throat muscles get relaxed.
To better understand the differences between snoring and sleep apnea, let's take a look at this table:
|
Feature |
Snoring |
Sleep Apnea |
|
Definition |
Noisy sound |
Breathing stops |
|
Severity |
Mild |
Serious |
|
Breathing |
Continuous |
Interrupted |
|
Symptoms |
Loud noise |
Gasping, sleepiness, headaches |
|
Causes |
Relaxed throat, position, weight |
Blocked airway, brain signals |
|
Treatment |
Lifestyle, nasal strips |
CPAP, oral appliances, surgery |
|
Health |
Minimal |
Heart disease, stroke, diabetes |
|
Others |
Annoying |
Dangerous |
|
Diagnosis |
Exam, sleep study |
Sleep study |
|
Risk factors |
Age, obesity, alcohol, smoking |
Age, obesity, tonsils, family history |
Signs You May Have Sleep Apnea
It's important to know about both problems. Here are the points that show you have sleep issues.
- When the snoring sound is loud and interrupts your sleeping, it means you have sleep.
- When you wake up quickly and feel like you are choking on breath, you will have a chance of having sleep apnea.
- Feeling extremely tired or drowsy during the day, even after a full night’s sleep, can suggest sleep apnea.
- Frequent headaches upon waking can be linked to poor oxygen flow during the night.
- Having struggled to focus on the symptoms will help you to reduce sleep apnea.
- If you have poor sleep quality, there’s an increase in the chance of having anxiety.
- Waking up with a dry mouth or sore throat can indicate mouth breathing, often seen in sleep apnea.
- Getting up multiple times to urinate during the night can be a sign of sleep disturbances.
FAQs
What causes snoring?
The main reason for snoring is that when airways get blocked, air flows through these muscles of the throat. There are many factors like nasal congestion, sleep position, weight gain, and alcohol consumption that also cause snoring.
Is snoring harmful?
Many people think that snoring is harmless and creates an annoying sound for others. It can lead to fatigue if your sleep gets disrupted by you.
Can children have sleep apnea?
Of course, babies also experience sleep apnea while related to the tonsils. Symptoms include loud snoring, restless sleep or health conditions.