Deafening, draining and potentially deadly: are we facing a snoring epidemic?

When Matt Hillier was in his 20s a friend told him she was shocked by the snoring coming from his tent. He delayed seeking help until he woke one night with a racing heartbeat; a recording and further tests revealed moderate sleep apnoea. His condition was classed as supine, meaning it happens when he sleeps on his back, and he now suspects a genetic anatomical component after discovering several relatives snore.

Experts say a snoring epidemic has emerged over the past decade, with the British Snoring & Sleep Apnoea Association estimating around 15 million snorers in the UK. Chronic snoring can erode sleep quality, causing fatigue, low mood and poor concentration, and has been linked with high blood pressure and cardiovascular problems.

Obstructive sleep apnoea, which affects an estimated eight million adults in the UK, causes breathing to stop during sleep and raises the risk of diabetes, stroke, heart disease, sudden death and road accidents, and emerging research has begun to link untreated apnoea with dementia.

UK