Curious About Snoring

PODCAST 180: CURIOUS ABOUT SNORING

RELEASE DATE: MARCH 13TH, 2022

D:  HELLO, AND WELCOME BACK TO THE CURIOUS KID PODCAST.  WE GET LOTS OF MAIL FROM OUR AMAZING LISTENERS, AND WE READ EVERY SINGLE THING YOU SEND US.  EVERY E-MAIL, EVERY MESSAGE ON FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, AND TWITTER, AND EVERY REVIEW.  THANKS TO EVERYONE THAT HAS TAKEN A COUPLE OF MINUTES TO SAY “HI”.  IT REALLY MAKES US FEEL SPECIAL AND GIVES US LOTS OF MOTIVATION TO KEEP MAKING MORE EPISODES.  WE HAVE THE BEST PODCAST LISTENERS IN THE WORLD.  ONE OF OUR AWESOME LISTENERS HAD A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS SHE WANTED TO SHARE WITH US ON FACEBOOK.

O:  MAILBAG!

D:  MAILBAG!

“I HAVE TWO QUESTIONS.  WHY DO PEOPLE SNORE?  ALSO, DOES FOOD FILL YOU UP IF YOU DON’T LIKE IT?”

FROM NORA OF HIGHLAND VILLAGE, TEXAS.

O:  THANKS FOR THE FACEBOOK MESSAGE, NORA.  WE ARE GETTING CURIOUS ABOUT SNORING FOR YOU TODAY.

D:  AND BEFORE WE LEARN MORE ABOUT WHY WE SNORE, LET’S ANSWER YOUR SECOND QUESTION.  YOU WANTED TO KNOW IF FOOD WILL FILL YOU UP EVEN IF YOU DON’T LIKE IT.

O:  ALL FOODS WILL FILL YOU UP EVENTUALLY, BUT SOME FOODS ARE MORE FILLING THAN OTHERS.  

D:  THERE WAS EVEN A STUDY DONE IN 1995 TO TRY AND DETERMINE WHICH FOODS ARE FILLING AND WHICH ARE NOT.  FILLING FOODS ARE GENERALLY FOODS THAT ARE HIGH IN FIBER AND HIGH IN PROTEIN.      

O:  IN THE STUDY, EACH FOOD WAS GIVEN A NUMBER THAT REFLECTS HOW FILLING IT IS.  THE HIGHER THE NUMBER, THE MORE FILLING IT IS.  THE LOWER THE NUMBER, THE LESS FILLING IT IS.

D:  AND, AS A FRAME OF REFERENCE, WHITE BREAD IS GIVEN THE NUMBER 100.

O:  OF ALL OF THE BAKERY PRODUCTS TESTED, CROISSANTS WERE THE LEAST FILLING, WITH A SCORE OF 47.  I LIKE CROISSANTS.  THEY’RE YUMMY.   

D:  CRACKERS, ON THE OTHER HAND, RECEIVED A SCORE OF 127, MAKING THEM PRETTY FILLING.

O:  THE MOST FILLING SNACK IN THE STUDY WAS POPCORN WITH A SCORE OF 154.  

D:  IF YOU THINK THAT’S A HIGH SCORE, CHECK THIS OUT.  OATMEAL GETS A SCORE OF 209 MAKING IT A VERY FILLING FOOD.  

O:  THE MOST FILLING FOOD STUDIED WAS BOILED POTATOES, WHICH SCORED A 323.  

D:  AND ALL OF THE FRUITS TESTED HAD A SCORE ABOVE 100.  BANANAS SCORED 118, GRAPES 162, APPLES 197, AND ORANGES 202.  NOT ONLY ARE FRUITS FILLING, BUT THEY ARE SUPER HEALTHY.  

O:  NOW THAT WE’VE LEARNED A BIT ABOUT FILLING FOODS, LET’S LEARN ABOUT SNORING.  I FEEL LIKE YOU MUST KNOW A LOT ABOUT SNORING, DADDY.

D:  I FEEL LIKE I’M GOING TO REGRET ASKING THIS, BUT WHY WOULD YOU THINK THAT I WOULD KNOW A LOT ABOUT SNORING?

O:  BECAUSE MOMMY TELLS ME YOU SNORE A LOT AND YOU SNORE LOUDLY. 

D:  IN THE LAST EPISODE, YOU TOLD ALL OUR WONDERFUL LISTENERS THAT I DON’T HAVE LOTS OF HAIR, AND NOW YOU’RE SHARING WITH THEM THAT I SNORE.  THANKS, PAL.  WHAT’S THE QUESTION OF THE WEEK?

O:  WE ACTUALLY HAVE A DOUBLE QUESTION THIS WEEK.  THE QUESTIONS OF THE WEEK ARE, IS SNORING MORE COMMON IN MEN OR WOMEN, AND IS SNORING MORE COMMON IN KIDS OR GROWN UPS?

D:  WHILE YOU’RE THINKING ABOUT THE ANSWERS, LET’S LEARN WHAT SNORING IS.

O:  SNORING IS A NOISY BREATHING THAT CAN HAPPEN WHEN YOU SLEEP.  

D:  IT IS CAUSED BY AIR THAT VIBRATES, OR RATTLES, WHEN IT FLOWS BY TISSUES IN THE BACK OF THE THROAT BY THE AIRWAY.  

O:  WHY DON’T PEOPLE SNORE WHEN THEY ARE AWAKE?

D:  IT’S BECAUSE SLEEP RELAXES THE MUSCLES IN THE ROOF OF YOUR MOUTH.  YOUR THROAT AND TONGUE ALSO RELAX.  WHEN THE TISSUES IN YOUR THROAT RELAX, THEY CAN SOMETIMES BLOCK PART OF YOUR AIRWAY.  WHEN THEY DO THAT, THE TISSUES VIBRATE AS AIR COMES THROUGH.  

O:  THE MORE YOUR AIRWAY IS BLOCKED, THE MORE THE TISSUES VIBRATE, WHICH LEADS TO LOUDER SNORING.  

D:  SNORING CAN BE CAUSED BY LOTS OF THINGS, INCLUDING PROBLEMS WITH THE MOUTH AND NOSE.  WITH THE MOUTH, ONE THING THAT CAN LEAD TO SNORING IS IF YOUR UVULA VIBRATES.

O:  THE UVULA IS A PIECE OF TISSUE HANGING FROM ABOVE THE THROAT.  YOU CAN USUALLY SEE IT EASILY IF YOU LOOK INTO SOMEONE’S MOUTH.  IF SOMEONE HAS A UVULA THAT’S LARGE OR LONG, SNORING IS MORE LIKELY.  

D:  WITH THE NOSE, SOMETHING THAT FREQUENTLY LEADS TO SNORING IS A DEVIATED NASAL SEPTUM.  THE NASAL SEPTUM IS THE PART OF THE NOSE THAT SEPARATES THE LEFT AND RIGHT NOSTRIL.  IF THE NASAL SEPTUM IS DEVIATED, OR CROOKED, THAT CAN RESULT IN SNORING.

O:  NASAL CONGESTION CAN ALSO MAKE YOU SNORE.  I KNOW I’VE HAD THAT PROBLEM BEFORE.  IN FACT, MY NOSE IS CONGESTED RIGHT NOW.  MY PARENTS HAVE TOLD ME THAT I SNORE MORE WHEN MY NOSE IS STUFFED.

D:  BELIEVE IT OR NOT, YOUR SLEEP POSITION CAN ALSO LEAD TO SNORING.  PEOPLE WHO SLEEP ON THEIR BACKS ARE MORE LIKELY TO SNORE THAN PEOPLE WHO SLEEP ON THEIR SIDES.  THAT’S BECAUSE THE EFFECT OF GRAVITY ON THE THROAT NARROWS THE AIRWAY WHEN YOU ARE LAYING ON YOUR BACK.  

O:  IF YOU SLEEP ON YOUR BACK, YOU ARE ALSO MORE LIKELY TO SNORE IF YOU DON’T REST YOUR HEAD ON TOP OF PILLOWS WHEN YOU SLEEP.  IF YOU CAN RAISE YOUR HEAD BY SLEEPING ON A PILLOW OR TWO, IT MAY HELP DECREASE SNORING.  

D:  BEING OVERWEIGHT CAN ALSO CONTRIBUTE TO SNORING.  MANY DOCTORS WILL RECOMMEND WEIGHT LOSS FIRST IN SOMEONE WITH SNORING COMPLAINTS THAT IS OVERWEIGHT.

O:  SNORING ON ITS OWN IS HARMLESS, BUT IT CAN LEAD TO OTHER PROBLEMS.

D:  SNORING MAY DECREASE THE QUALITY OF YOUR SLEEP, OR THOSE PEOPLE SLEEPING AROUND YOU.  NOT GETTING ENOUGH SLEEP CAN MAKE YOU TIRED THROUGHOUT THE DAY.  PEOPLE WHO HAVE CHRONIC SNORING, OR SNORE A LOT, OFTEN COMPLAIN THAT THEY GET REALLY TIRED DURING THE DAY.  THAT’S PROBABLY BECAUSE THEY DON’T SLEEP WELL AT NIGHT.  BEING TIRED DURING THE DAY CAN MAKE YOU LESS ALERT AT SCHOOL OR WORK, AND CAN EVEN BE DANGEROUS IF YOU ARE DOING SOMETHING THAT REQUIRES YOU TO BE VERY AWAKE AND ALERT, LIKE RIDING A BIKE OR DRIVING.  

O:  SNORING IS HEREDITARY, WHICH MEANS THAT YOU ARE MORE LIKELY TO SNORE IF YOUR PARENTS SNORE.  

D:  THANKFULLY, IF YOU SNORE OR KNOW SOMEONE WHO DOES, THERE ARE LOTS OF THINGS THAT CAN BE DONE TO HELP.  THE TREATMENT DEPENDS ON WHAT YOU THINK MIGHT BE CAUSING THE SNORING.  IN OTHER WORDS, LOSING WEIGHT CAN HELP IF YOU ARE OVERWEIGHT, SLEEPING ON YOUR SIDE COULD HELP IF YOU SLEEP ON YOUR BACK, AND ADDING A PILLOW CAN ALSO FIX THE PROBLEM.  THERE ARE DEVICES AND MEDICINES AVAILABLE THAT CAN HELP AS WELL.  THERE ARE MOUTHPIECES THAT ARE EFFECTIVE IN SOME PEOPLE AND A NASAL DECONGESTANT CAN HELP IF CONGESTION MIGHT BE CAUSING YOUR SNORING.  IF THE SNORING IS SEVERE, SURGERY MIGHT EVEN BE AN OPTION IN SITUATIONS WHERE A DEVIATED SEPTUM OR A LARGE UVULA MIGHT BE THE PROBLEM.  A DOCTOR CAN HELP MAKE THE RIGHT DECISIONS TO HELP SOLVE A SNORING PROBLEM.  

ALRIGHT OLIVIA, LET’S ANSWER THE QUESTION OF THE WEEK.  IS SNORING MORE COMMON IN MEN OR WOMEN AND IS SNORING MORE COMMON IN KIDS OR GROWN UPS?

O:  SNORING IS MORE COMMON IN MEN THAN WOMEN.  57% OF MEN SNORE AND 40% OF WOMEN SNORE.  SNORING IS ALSO MORE COMMON IN GROWN UPS THAN IN KIDS.  REGULAR SNORING IS ACTUALLY PRETTY RARE IN KIDS AND GETS MORE AND MORE LIKELY AS YOU GET OLDER.

D:  WOW, WE LEARNED A LOT OF INTERESTING THINGS ABOUT SNORING TODAY.  SNORING DEFINITELY ISN’T BORING.  WELL, THAT’S A WRAP FOR THIS WEEK’S EPISODE.

O:  180 - SNORING.

D:  GREAT JOB OLIVIA, AND GREAT JOB NORA FOR THE SLEEPLESS EPISODE TOPIC SUGGESTION.  BEFORE WE SAY GOODBYE FOR THE WEEK, WE HAVE SOME AMAZING PEOPLE TO THANK.

O:  THANK YOU TO USERNAME UNIQUENAME44 FOR THE SUPER DUPER 5 STAR REVIEW.

D:  IT SAYS “AMAZING AND RELIABLE ENTERTAINMENT AND INFORMATION!  WE FOUND CURIOUS KID PODCAST WHEN WE STARTED PANDEMIC-HOMESCHOOLING LAST YEAR AND HAVE BEEN DEVOTED LISTENERS EVER SINCE.  WHAT STARTED AS A GOOD SOURCE FOR COMPLEMENTING HOMESCHOOL LESSONS BECAUSE IT SEEMED LIKE THERE WAS AN EPISODE FOR EVERYTHING, QUICKLY TURNED INTO A FAN-FAVORITE FOR CAR RIDES, LAUNDRY FOLDING, AND JUST ABOUT ANYTIME TOO.  WE CAN HARDLY WAIT FOR THE NEW EPISODES EVERY SUNDAY AND WILL LISTEN AS LONG AS THE SHOW EXISTS!  WE WERE ALSO IMPRESSED WITH THE FAIRNESS WITH WHICH THE HOSTS HANDLED A MORE SENSITIVE TOPIC, LIKE THE HISTORY OF THANKSGIVING, AND TRULY APPRECIATE THE HONESTY AND PERSPECTIVE.  THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL OF THE EFFORT, JACOB AND OLIVIA!  THANK YOU FROM LUNA, SOLANA, GLORIA, AND THEIR MOMMY NATALIE.”

O:  THAT WAS SUCH A HEARTWARMING REVIEW.  

D:  IT WAS SO THOUGHTFUL.  IT REALLY MOVED US WHEN WE READ IT.  THANK YOU SO MUCH.  

O:  WE ALSO WANT TO THANK OUR NEWEST PATREON SUPPORTERS, KERRIGAN AND MADISON M.

D:  A BIG THANKS TO KERRIGAN AND MADISON FOR HELPING TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST.  LIKE ALL OF OUR SUPPORTERS, THEY NOW HAVE A BEHIND THE SCENES LOOK AT WHAT’S GOING ON WITH THE PODCAST AND THEY KNOW WHAT WE ARE GETTING CURIOUS ABOUT MONTHS FROM NOW.  JOIN US NEXT WEEK WHEN WE GET CURIOUS ABOUT THE UNIVERSE FOR LISTENERS IN THE UNITED STATES, SCOTLAND, AND NEW ZEALAND WITH THE HELP OF A VERY SPECIAL GUEST.  AS ALWAYS, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR LISTENING AND GETTING CURIOUS WITH US.