Snoring Remedy Review

Introduction to Snoring Remedies

There's no way to pin the numbers down for sure, but reliable studies estimate that up to 40 percent of all men and 25 percent of all women in the U.S. snore on a regular basis. With such a huge population of snorers, it's no surprise that there are over 300 over-the-counter stop-snoring remedies on the market, ranging from the reasonable (such as throat sprays and nose clips) to the dubious (such as homeopathic preparations and new-age magnets). In addition, clinically diagnosed snoring associated with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) can be controlled with a variety of (fairly expensive) medical appliances and techniques, ranging from Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) ventilators to surgery on the soft tissues of the palate.

The sheer number of snoring "cures" is only part of the reason why it's so hard to find reliable reviews. The fact is, all the reliable, professional review sources we found -- including the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, WebMD, Consumer Reports and the Australian consumer magazine Choice -- conclude resoundingly that the vast majority of non-surgical stop-snoring products simply do not work. We also found references to small-scale scientific studies (reported by BBC News, ABC News and The Independent UK) that come to the same verdict. As for a hands-on review, we found a useful review at Slate, whose writer tried a handful of over-the-counter stop-snoring products with about the results you'd expect.

The retail sites Amazon.com and Drugstore.com sell a huge number of stop-snoring products (Amazon.com alone has over 200 products in that category), many of which have attracted user reviews both good and bad. However, because snoring (and snoring relief) is such a subjective matter, we didn't put much weight on these reviews, preferring to go with the opinions of medical professionals and consumer organizations.

Based on our reading of the medical literature, it appears that the proliferation of cheap, over-the-counter snoring remedies is directly related to people's unwillingness to follow the advice of their doctors. If you visit any reputable MD and complain of a mild snoring problem, he or she will suggest any or all of the following three lifestyle changes: losing weight, stopping smoking and not indulging in alcohol close to bedtime. None of these are instant stop-snoring solutions, of course, and they require intense commitment over extended periods of time -- which is why a market for over-the-counter (OTC) snoring aids continues to flourish.