What Causes Snoring in Women – and How to Stop It

Your biology plays a significant role in your tendency to snore. Hormonal changes that occur throughout your life can directly impact your airways, making the causes of snoring in women uniquely complex.

Carrying a child brings a wave of incredible changes to your body, and one you might not expect is the onset of snoring. Here’s why it happens:

• Hormonal swells: During pregnancy, your levels of estrogen and progesterone soar. These hormones can cause the mucous membranes in your nasal passages to swell, creating congestion and narrowing the path for air.
• Increased blood volume: Your body produces significantly more blood to support your growing baby, which can also contribute to the swelling of tiny blood vessels in your nose.
• Positional challenges: As your belly grows, finding a comfortable sleeping position becomes a nightly puzzle. You might find yourself in positions that inadvertently put pressure on your airway, leading to snoring.

Some studies suggest snoring during pregnancy can be linked to reduced oxygen levels, highlighting the importance of mentioning it to your doctor during prenatal checkups.

The transition into menopause marks another major hormonal shift in your life, and it’s a primary reason why many women start snoring for the first time or notice their snoring getting worse.

• Loss of muscle tone: Estrogen and progesterone help maintain muscle tone throughout your body, including the soft tissues in your throat. As these hormone levels decline during menopause, your airway can become floppier and more likely to partially collapse when you sleep.
• Sleep disruption: Menopause is often accompanied by other sleep-stealing symptoms like hot flashes and insomnia. These disruptions can interfere with your sleep patterns and exacerbate snoring problems.
• Increased risk of OSA: Post-menopausal women have a significantly higher risk of developing Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), a serious sleep disorder where breathing repeatedly stops and starts. This makes it crucial to pay attention to new or worsening snoring during this life stage.

Beyond hormones, several other factors can contribute to why you might be snoring. Recognizing these potential causes of snoring in women can empower you to make targeted lifestyle changes.

Carrying extra weight, particularly around your neck and throat, can physically compress your airway. This added pressure narrows the passage, making it harder for air to flow freely and creating the vibrations that we hear as snoring. A high BMI is one of the strongest predictors of snoring and OSA in women.

Even before menopause, your monthly menstrual cycle can be a factor. The hormonal fluctuations you experience can cause fluid retention and slight inflammation of your airway tissues, leading to temporary or cyclical snoring.

If you suffer from allergies, you know the misery of a stuffy nose. This chronic nasal congestion forces you to breathe through your mouth and can inflame your airways, making snoring almost inevitable. Indoor allergens like dust mites, pet dander, and mold can be a persistent source of this problem.

A glass of wine to unwind might seem relaxing, but alcohol is a potent muscle relaxant.  Alcohol consumption  causes your throat muscles to become too relaxed, allowing them to collapse into your airway. Due to differences in metabolism, women can sometimes feel the effects of alcohol more profoundly, increasing the risk.

Your  sleeping position  has a direct impact on your airway. When you sleep on your back, gravity works against you, pulling your tongue and soft palate backward and narrowing your airway. Simply switching to your side can dramatically reduce how often and how loudly you snore.

This is one of the most serious causes of snoring in women. OSA is often missed in women because the symptoms can be atypical. Instead of the loud, gasping snores common in men, you might experience more subtle signs like chronic fatigue, morning headaches, mood swings, or depression.

As you get older, you naturally lose muscle tone all over your body, and your throat is no exception. This age-related decrease in tissue firmness makes your airway more susceptible to vibration and collapse, which is why snoring rates in women tend to increase significantly after the age of 50.

One of the biggest challenges in addressing female snoring is getting a proper diagnosis. Too often, the symptoms are attributed to other conditions. You might tell your doctor you’re exhausted, and the conversation may turn to chronic fatigue, anxiety, or depression before snoring is ever considered.

Because women may report their snoring as being lighter or less frequent than men's, their concerns can sometimes be unintentionally minimized. A  2021 sleep clinic study  revealed a startling trend: women with diagnosed OSA often reported only mild snoring or no snoring at all. 

Instead, their primary complaints were daytime fatigue, headaches, and emotional distress. This highlights a critical gender bias in how sleep disorders are perceived and diagnosed. Raising awareness is the first step toward better health outcomes and ensuring you get the right treatment.

Dismissing snoring as a minor annoyance is a mistake. The reality is, persistent snoring can have a significant and damaging impact on your physical and mental well-being. The various causes of snoring in women can lead to consequences that ripple through every part of your life.

When snoring is a symptom of Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), your body is put under immense stress every night. This significantly increases your risk for serious cardiovascular conditions. The  American Heart Association  warns that chronic, untreated snoring linked to OSA can lead to:

• High blood pressure  (hypertension)
• Type 2 diabetes
• Stroke
• Heart disease

Women with unmanaged snoring-related disorders are twice as likely to experience heart complications as those who either don't snore or have their condition treated.

The impact on your mental health is just as profound. When you snore heavily, your sleep is constantly interrupted, even if you don't fully wake up. This leads to poor sleep quality, which can manifest as:

• Chronic fatigue and daytime drowsiness
• Difficulty concentrating or "brain fog"
• Memory problems
• Irritability and mood swings

Jeong et al. (2021)  found that frequent snoring in adolescents is significantly associated with increased depressive symptoms and suicidality, even after controlling for other sleep issues. Their analysis also revealed that depressive symptoms mediate the link between snoring and suicidal ideation, emphasising the need for mental health screening in adolescent snorers.

Snoring doesn't just affect you; it affects your partner. Many women report feeling embarrassed or self-conscious about their snoring. It can create tension and stress in a relationship, especially when it forces your partner to retreat to the couch for a quiet night's sleep. 

Wendy M. Troxel, Ph.D ., a senior scientist and author of Sharing the Covers: Every Couple’s Guide to Better Sleep, points out that chronic, loud snoring can take a serious toll on relationships. Survey data supports this, showing that 19% of partners of frequent, loud snorers report relationship strain, compared to just 9% of those whose partners snore lightly or less often.

Trying to function on fragmented sleep is a recipe for reduced productivity. The chronic fatigue from poor sleep quality can compromise your decision-making skills, focus, and overall performance, both at work and at home. 

A systematic review by  Glick et al. (2023)  found that insufficient and disturbed sleep, including disruptions caused by snoring, are linked to increased presenteeism, absenteeism, and workplace accidents, costing employers anywhere from $322 to $1,967 per employee. These findings suggest that sleep disturbances like habitual snoring also carry significant economic implications for businesses.

The good news is that you have the power to make changes that can significantly reduce your snoring. By addressing the root causes of snoring in women, you can take back control of your nights.

• Achieve and maintain a healthy weight: Even losing 10% of your body weight can dramatically reduce the fatty tissue around your throat, opening up your airway and lessening snoring. A balanced diet and regular exercise are your best tools for this.
• Limit alcohol, especially at night: Try to avoid alcohol for at least three to four hours before you go to sleep. This gives your body time to metabolize it so it doesn't overly relax your throat muscles while you rest.
• Get serious about allergy management: If allergies are your trigger, take proactive steps. Use an air purifier in your bedroom, wash your bedding in hot water weekly to kill dust mites, and consider using a saline nasal rinse before bed to clear congestion.
• Change your sleeping position: This is one of the quickest fixes. Train yourself to sleep on your side. You can use pillows to prop yourself up or try a specialized positional therapy device that makes it uncomfortable to roll onto your back.
• Practice good sleep hygiene: Create a relaxing bedtime routine and stick to a consistent sleep schedule, even on weekends. This helps regulate your body's internal clock and promotes deeper, more restorative sleep.

When lifestyle changes aren't enough, you need an effective, reliable solution that can provide immediate relief. While options like nasal strips can help with congestion, and Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) therapy is the gold standard for severe OSA, many women find incredible success with a simple yet powerful tool: an anti-snoring mouthpiece.

While occasional, light snoring can be harmless, you should never dismiss snoring that is chronic, loud, or getting worse over time. Recognizing when your snoring has crossed the line from a simple annoyance to a medical concern is essential for protecting your long-term health. 

The underlying causes of snoring in women can sometimes point to a more serious condition like Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA).  Gottlieb and Punjabi (2020)  report that OSA affects an estimated 17% of women, yet it remains dangerously underdiagnosed in the female population.

You should make an appointment with your doctor if your snoring is accompanied by any of these critical warning signs:

• Choking or gasping for air during sleep.
• Observed pauses in your breathing (often noticed by a partner).
• Waking up with a headache or a feeling of being unrested.
• Extreme daytime fatigue, no matter how many hours you were in bed.
• Difficulty concentrating or unexplained mood changes.

Your doctor may recommend a sleep study, known as  polysomnography , which is the best way to accurately diagnose a sleep disorder. This painless, overnight test monitors your breathing, oxygen levels, and heart rate to provide a clear picture of what's happening while you sleep. 

Taking your snoring seriously is a powerful act of self-care. Remember, chronic snoring is far more than a simple nighttime inconvenience. For women, taking snoring seriously and seeking professional care when warranted protects long-term health, ensures better quality sleep, and supports a more vibrant, productive daily life. 

If you're ready to take the first step toward quieter nights and better health,  contact us at VitalSleep —we’re here to help you find the right solution for your needs.