What Causes Snoring in Children and Babies?

Although snoring in children is usually a temporary condition, serious causes such as sleep apnea may also lie under it. So, what is done to a snoring child, how is snoring treated? Details are in our article!

What is snoring?

Snoring is the sound of a child’s breathing partially blocked by enlarged adenoids or tonsils.

What causes snoring in children and babies?

It’s normal to wonder if babies snore when it comes to your little one. Swelling of lymphatic tissue fragments in the nose-throat airway can cause temporary snoring in children. Although snoring usually reaches its peak between the ages of 3 and 6, it occurs much earlier. So why do babies snore , let’s take a look.

• adenoid enlargement,
• Tonsil,
• Sleep apnea,
• common cold ,
• Persistent allergies
• nasal bone curvature,
• overweight,
• Continuous exposure to cigarette smoke (passive smoking),
• Asthma is among the causes of snoring.

Snoring in infants and adults need to be handled in different ways. Apart from adults, adenoid enlargement and tonsil problems in children can cause snoring.

The possibility of these disorders being acute or chronic should be considered. If adenoid and tonsil problems in babies become chronic, it can cause other diseases such as sinusitis or various ear disorders.

If there is snoring caused by sleep apnea, you should definitely consider it as a serious condition that should not be neglected.

Which doctor should I go to for snoring problem in children?

You can take your snoring baby to the ENT department. Here, it becomes clear which problem is caused by the situation.

How to detect the cause of snoring in children?

While trying to determine the underlying cause of snoring in children, first of all, some things are learned by questioning the family. Then, in order to examine the area extending from the nose to the nasal cavity and to observe the air flow in the area, monitoring is performed with endoscopes, which are of fine pediatric structure, customized for children.

What to do with a snoring child?

You can closely monitor your child’s sleep, especially at night. A snoring child sleeps with his mouth open because his nose is blocked. In children who sleep with their mouths open for a long time, the respiratory rhythm changes after a while and difficulty in breathing begins.

If your child’s breathing is interrupted for 4 or 5 seconds with snoring, bruising on his lips and growth retardation, you should definitely see an ENT specialist. Conditions with large adenoids and tonsils can cause sleep apnea in children. Before going to the doctor, video recording of your child’s sleep can be helpful in terms of diagnosis.

What is good for snoring in children?

• You can give honey as an herbal solution to a snoring child. However, for this, your child must be over 1 year old. Thanks to the anti-inflammatory property of honey, the swelling in the throat area, which causes the blockage of the air channels, is reduced. The throat is softened and the vibrations that cause snoring are prevented. 1 teaspoon of honey mixed with 1 glass of warm water is good for your little one before sleep at night.
• Sleeping on the back can increase the snoring problem in children. Let us tell you how to put a snoring baby to bed . If you lay your child on the right side, you can reduce the snoring problem a little bit.
• Sound like snoring in babies can also be caused by dry air. Therefore, make sure that the room maintains the humidity balance.

In which situations is snoring dangerous in children?

• If your child is constantly waking up at night and urinating frequently
• If there is a problem of incontinence,
• If he is constantly moving during sleep,
• If you are short of breath while sleeping,
• If there is a lack of attention due to a sleep disorder and his lessons are getting worse,
• Has speech impairment and has difficulty swallowing
• If it has an allergic structure, if it has frequent infections,
• If his growth is slow compared to his peers, it means that the adenoids and tonsils are now doing more harm than good to the child.

How to treat snoring in children?

Mild snoring in children is usually temporary. Therefore, not every snoring complaint requires surgical intervention. First in the treatment of snoring;

• The size of the tonsils and adenoids of the child,
• Whether you have frequent adenoid and tonsil infections,
• It is tried to distinguish whether the problem is caused by allergies.

If the cause of snoring is due to nasal congestion, other related systems may be affected. Upper respiratory tract infection or ear problems, some problems that affect the growth and development of the child can be seen. In such cases, the treatment of snoring is done in a way that eliminates both problems.

If snoring in children is seen together with apnea, it must be treated. Because, although it is very rare, there is a possibility that the stopped breathing will not come back. For this reason, sleep apnea in infants cannot be neglected.