Snorex for snoring: is it so effective?

When a person suffers from ronchopathy, that is, snores during sleep, then the vibration of tissues in the throat that occurs when air passes through can be reduced by such means as the Snoreks anti-snoring spray.

There are many medications that claim to make breathing easier at night, for example by affecting the muscles in the airways. Because no medication has been proven to help reduce snoring during sleep, medications cannot currently be used as part of the primary treatment for obstructive sleep apnea. However, these medications can be used to treat certain conditions that may cause snoring during sleep or worsen existing apnea. [ 1 ], [ 2 ]

Indications Snorex for snoring

Indications for use of this product are snoring, release form - solution in a bottle (with nozzles for instillation and spraying).

Products similar to Snoreks are not considered medicinal products and are most often sold not in pharmacies, but online. In any case, this is how Snoreks and all its analogues are purchased, including SnoreX sprays (with mint, lemon, fennel, clove, lavender, eucalyptus and thyme oils); Sonex (with essential oils of mint, eucalyptus, cinnamon and echinacea extract) and Silenor, which is identical in composition; Stop Hrap Nano (with essential oils of peppermint, lemon and sage); Slipex (containing mint oil, wintergreen, menthol and eucalyptol); Restox and Minusnor sprays.

Please note that there is an intraoral prosthesis under the same name, SnorEx, that causes forward displacement of the tongue and is used to treat obstructive sleep apnea syndrome. However, some studies have shown low effectiveness of the SnorEx prosthesis, so the prosthesis should not be prescribed without referral to a sleep lab. [ 3 ], [ 4 ], [ 5 ]

Read also – Treating snoring with sprays.

Release form

In fact, the pharmacokinetics of most herbal products, including biologically active complexes, are absent from their descriptions, as they have been poorly studied. It is only indicated that Snoreks – in the form of a two-phase concentrated colloidal solution (finely dispersed) – is “completely absorbed”, that is, penetration into tissues, the gastrointestinal tract and entry into the bloodstream is meant.

Pharmacodynamics

Since Snoreks spray is not a medicine, but a complex of biologically active substances (plant and non-plant), the mechanism of their action is descriptive: they help eliminate inflammation of the nasopharynx and larynx, reduce nasal discharge and improve nasal breathing, increase the tone of the soft palate muscles, and calm the nerves.

Distributors of this product focused the potential consumer's attention on three components of Snoreks, however, its composition contains up to fifty ingredients in the form of extracts and bioconcentrates. But in the description that is being replicated, the main action is associated with propolis, calendula and sage.

Propolis, which has many valuable pharmacological properties, is used to treat tonsillitis and stomatitis, as it has an antimicrobial and antifungal effect. Propolis is also an antioxidant and local immunomodulator (due to the activation of macrophages by the flavonoids hesperidin and quercetin contained in it) and an antioxidant (due to a complex of phenolic compounds, in particular, caffeic acid), stimulates tissue metabolism and regeneration (by enhancing proliferative processes). Propolis has an astringent effect and strengthens the walls of blood vessels. [ 6 ]

Propolis contains phenolic compounds, esters, flavonoids, terpenes, beta-steroids, aromatic aldehydes and alcohols, twelve different flavonoids namely pinocembrin, acacetin, chrysin, rutin, luteolin, kaempferol, apigenin, myricetin, catechin, naringenin, galangin and quercetin; two phenolic acids, caffeic acid and cinnamic acid; and one stilbene derivative named resveratrol. Propolis also contains important vitamins such as vitamins B1, B2, B6, C and E and beneficial minerals such as magnesium (Mg), calcium (Ca), potassium (K), sodium (Na), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), manganese (Mn) and iron (Fe). Several enzymes such as succinic dehydrogenase, glucose-6-phosphatase, adenosine triphosphatase and acid phosphatase.[ 7 ], [ 8 ]

Calendula officinalis is also known for its antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties [ 9 ], [ 10 ], containing a complex of terpenoids, triterpene glycosides, flavonoids and sterols. They reduce swelling and promote the regeneration of damaged tissues, reducing oxidative stress of tissues. Calendula is usually used in the local treatment of tonsillitis, oral diseases, including stomatitis and periodontosis. Calendula has a calming effect on the central nervous system. [ 11 ]

Similarly, sage is used, which has anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial and astringent properties due to its essential oils, tannins, terpenes, organic acids, flavonoids and polyphenolic compounds (e.g. carnosic acid, rosmarinic acid and caffeic acid) that have strong antioxidant effects. Research shows that sage can be used to treat and relieve symptoms of many serious and life-threatening diseases, such as depression, dementia, obesity, diabetes, lupus, heart disease and cancer. [ 12 ]

In addition, Snorex contains: extracts of holly containing theobromine; rauwolfia serpentina (which reduces blood pressure due to the presence of the alkaloids reserpine and ajmaline); [ 13 ] lophanthus or fennel polystem (stimulating the digestive and immune systems); [ 14 ] the legume lespedeza (with the psychoactive alkaloid bufotenine); [ 15 ] the ascomycete fungus cordyceps (with immunomodulatory properties; can be used to treat conditions such as night sweats, hyposexuality, hyperglycemia, hyperlipidemia, asthenia after severe illness, respiratory diseases, renal dysfunction, renal failure, arrhythmia and other diseases of the heart and liver); [ 16 ] castoreum (containing the fatty aromatic ketone acetophenone, which has a hypnotic effect); wax moth extract (Galleria mellonella) used in homeopathy [ 17 ], etc.

How these and other components help prevent snoring is not explained, but the description states that the product has a complex and multifaceted effect on the condition and functions of the respiratory, cardiovascular and endocrine systems, as well as on the immune system and the central nervous system.

Dosing and administration

In the morning (before meals) Snoreks should be used as drops (three drops are instilled at the root of the tongue).

During the day (half an hour before meals), the product is sprayed into the throat, palate and tonsils (no more than two presses on the cap of the spray nozzle); before use, the solution in the bottle must be shaken.

Before going to bed, spray again, but do not shake the solution.

The recommended duration of use of Snorex is one month.

Application for children

The description of the product notes the possibility of its use for children - with ENT infections. Sage oil contains such convulsive substances as thujone, camphor and cineole, in different proportions, which can cause generalized tonic-clonic seizures [ 22 ], therefore, containing sage extract limits the use of Snorex to the age of three, and the presence of homeopathic components and substances affecting the central nervous system raises doubts about the advisability of its use for children.

Use Snorex for snoring during pregnancy

The description of the product states that it is natural and does not have a teratogenic effect, so its use during pregnancy is possible.

However, the sage leaf extract contained in Snorex is contraindicated for pregnant women, as this plant can cause contraction of the uterine muscles and also reduce progesterone levels.

Clary sage essential oil is believed to stimulate labor by increasing oxytocin levels. Clary sage essential oil contains sclareol, which has a structure similar to estrogen and has an estrogen-like effect. Estrogen increases the release of oxytocin. Studies have shown that inhaling the aroma of clary sage essential oil tended to increase oxytocin levels 15 minutes after inhalation, which was measured by inhalation. [ 18 ]

Contraindications

Snoreks anti-snoring spray is contraindicated in case of hypersensitivity to its components, as well as in case of a history of allergy to products produced by bees. [ 19 ]

Contraindications also include bronchial asthma, COPD and arterial hypotension.

Side effects Snorex for snoring

There is no such section in the instructions for Snoreks (or rather, in the information leaflet for consumers, supplied by the manufacturer – OOO Sashera-Med, Biysk, Altai Krai). But it should be borne in mind that, for example, propolis, when sprayed into the throat, can cause dry mouth, laryngeal spasm, shortness of breath and angioedema. [ 20 ]

Side effects of rauwolfia alkaloids include nausea, vomiting, decreased heart rate, weakness, depression, increased anxiety, extrapyramidal symptoms such as orofacial dyskinesia and tremor.[ 21 ]

Overdose

No information available.

Interactions with other drugs

There is no information on drug interactions in the description.

Storage conditions

The product should be stored at t ˂+ 25°C, in a dark, dry place.

Shelf life

Shelf life: 24 months.

Reviews

Reviews of the effectiveness of this product are different. Do not be surprised if Snoreks does not help with snoring. The etiology of snoring may be associated with anatomical features: thickened soft palate, elongated uvula (palatine uvula), enlarged nasopharyngeal tonsils, curvature of the nasal septum. [ 23 ] In such cases, ronchopathy is not treated with sprays.