I’m 78 and I can’t stop snoring. I have type 2 diabetes, a pacemaker and also heart failure. Could it be due to my medication?
Dr Ellie Cannon replies: Snoring is not usually triggered by medication.
The noise occurs when air is unable to easily travel through the windpipe, and is strongly linked to obesity.
However, other causes include nasal congestion, a deviated septum, large tonsils and adenoids. Alcohol and sleeping on the back also increase the risk of snoring.
Sedatives are linked to snoring, so cutting down on alcohol and avoiding sleeping pills, as well as losing weight, will all help combat the condition.
However, heart failure is another likely trigger, as this can lead to a build-up of fluid in the body – as it seeps out of the blood vessels – which can put pressure on the windpipe. And this is much harder to treat.
Trying to sleep on the side rather than the back may help. There are special pillows or wedges that can stop you from turning over in your sleep.
It may also be worth discussing with a dentist about suitable medical devices which can help reduce snoring. These include mouth guards to keep the jaw sturdy and open.
Snoring is not usually triggered by medication. The noise occurs when air is unable to easily travel through the windpipe, and is strongly linked to obesity
A GP can also refer patients with severe snoring for a test known as a sleep study. This involves overnight monitoring to see if the snoring is so extreme that it is stopping the patient from breathing.
This is a condition known as obstructive sleep apnoea and is particularly common in heart failure patients.
Treating it involves a device called a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machine that delivers pressurised air via a mask into the windpipe to keep it open. Not only does this improve breathing but it usually reduces snoring too.
King’s disease is all too common
My friend Dr Hilary Jones, resident GP for ITV’s Good Morning Britain, revealed last week he has been battling the painful arthritis condition gout.
Dr Hilary Jones, resident GP for ITV’s Good Morning Britain, revealed last week he has been battling the painful arthritis condition gout
I know that some people on social media have expressed surprise about his diagnosis. After all, gout – which can leave the toes red and painful – is often known dismissively as the ‘disease of kings’ because it is associated with a fatty and overindulgent diet.
Surely doctors eat far too healthy to get such a condition? Absolutely not.
Gout can affect anyone and it gets more common later in life.
It is also on the rise in the UK, with a 70 per cent increase since the 1990s.
However, we do know that eating too much red meat and seafood, as well as drinking alcohol, all raise the risk of the condition.
Have you recently had gout? How did you treat it? Please write in and let me know.
I’m 76 and I suddenly lost some of my hearing. I can still hear people when they talk to me, but the TV sounds muffled. I thought that it might have been a build-up of wax so I used olive oil, to no avail. My GP says my ears are clear of infection. What could be the cause?
Dr Ellie Cannon replies: Earwax is not the only cause of hearing loss.
Blockages can also occur in the middle part of the ear behind the ear drum. This can occur due to an infection – such as a cold – and is not immediately obvious on inspection.
Sometimes the middle ear can be unblocked using steam inhalation or decongestants as well as special nasal sprays or saline rinses that a pharmacist can prescribe.
However, the problem will usually resolve itself.
For some people, an ear blockage can be caused by an allergy, so it might be worth trying an antihistamine tablet for a week to see if that helps. High street opticians often offer hearing tests, which are used to assess the extent of any hearing loss and can possibly point to an exact cause.
I have had a fungal nail infection on my right foot for six months. I’ve tried expensive nail treatments but they don’t work. What else can I do?
Dr Ellie Cannon replies: Fungal nail infections can be very difficult to treat.
Typically it is the toe nails that are affected, and it causes thick, discoloured or broken nails. It is more common in people with diabetes or poor circulation in the feet, as well as the elderly or people with the inflammatory skin condition psoriasis.
Fungal nail paint is sold by pharmacists but doctors do not consider that it is particularly effective unless the infection is very minor or in its earliest stages. Even then the paint needs to be used for a year, and no other form of varnish should be used during that time.
GPs can prescribe anti-fungal tablets but only after a nail clipping sample has been taken to test for the type of fungus present.
These pills need to be taken for up to six months. However, many people do not fully recover using these alone.
Unfortunately, for some sufferers, the nails will continue to look infected for ever, even after the fungus has gone. But there are steps people can take to increase the chances of fully ridding themselves of a fungus nail infection.
Nails should be kept short and well-filed, and wear cotton, absorbent socks. It is also worth throwing out shoes that may be contaminated.
Millie’s sober, and our book can help you too
I was incredibly pleased earlier this month to see the publication of Bad Drunk – the memoir from Made in Chelsea influencer Millie Mackintosh detailing her life going alcohol-free.
I co-wrote the book with Millie, in order to offer health advice about going sober, as well explaining the dangerous risks of excessive drinking.
Millie was so brave to open up about her struggles with alcohol, and it’s great that the book has received such a warm response since its launch.
Made in Chelsea influencer Millie Mackintosh, whose book detailing her life going alcohol-free was co-written with Dr Ellie Cannon
But what’s brought home the importance of the book to me in the past few weeks are the patients who I’ve seen in my clinic who have told me about the immense benefits – both mental and physical – they’ve experienced going sober.
I think that, often, many people in this country think that alcohol is so embedded in our culture that it would be impossible for them to ever quit booze.
But that’s not the case – it’s often much easier than you think. So, if you are curious about going sober, I humbly recommend you pick up a copy of Bad Drunk.
- Do you have a question for Dr Ellie Cannon? Email DrEllie@mailonsunday.co.uk
- Dr Cannon cannot enter into personal correspondence and her replies should be taken in a general context
