Sawing wood? People snore when the airways in the nose and throat get too small, so the air rushing in and out as they inhale and exhale gets funneled through a narrower passageway.

 The noise is mainly from the vibration of loose tissue, often the soft palate, the slender piece of tissue in the back of the throat.

Some people are snorers because they have too much throat and nasal tissue. Others have floppy tissue that’s more likely to vibrate. The tongue can get in the way of smooth breathing. And being overweight is a cause: Extra fat tissue in the neck and throat sometimes presses in on airways.

If you snore with your mouth closed, then it’s probably a problem with your tongue. If you snore with your mouth open, then it’s more likely to be related to tissues in the throat.

There are some simple things you can try to dial down the decibels.

Switch to your side. When you sleep on your back, your tongue and other soft tissues in the back of the throat tend to slide back, creating a narrower airway.

Skip Happy Hours. Alcohol is a muscle relaxant, and it may be affecting the muscles around your airways. Sleeping pills sometimes have the same effect.

Check if you have an allergy. Trying to breathe through a stuffed-up nose can create a small vacuum that pulls the walls of the upper airway in. If you’re stuffed up a lot, you might have allergies that could be prevented or treated.

Wear a mouth guard. Dental “appliances” that look like the protective devices worn by athletes can reposition the jaw and the tongue.

When to see a Doctor

If none of the above measure have produced results, try surgery. Doctors can laser away excess tissue, shrink it with instruments that deliver high-frequency radio waves, or insert slender plastic implants into the soft palate to stiffen up the tissue.

Making a Big Noise

The causes of snoring and sleep apnea overlap. But when someone has sleep apnea, the airway gets blocked completely – or very nearly so. All the little interruptions in breathing can lead to a lack of oxygen that puts a strain on the heart.  That’s why people with sleep apnea have a higher-than-normal risk for heart attack and heart failure.