People who have to put up with being disturbed by their partner snoring could finally get a good night's sleep thanks to a new study. Research carried out by the University of Toronto has found that flight socks can help reduce the amount of fluid that gathers in the lower legs during the day. This is relevant to sleep because during the night this build up can travel towards the neck as a result of gravity, as a person lies flat in bed. This can then lead to obstructive sleep apnoea, a snoring–related condition that affects an estimated three million people in Britain.

It is caused by excess fat and fluid around the neck, which leads to the muscles collapsing and shutting off a person’s breathing for ten seconds or more. Snoring then occurs as the trapped air vibrates against the soft tissue that stands in its way.

Once the brain realises breathing has stopped, it sends a signal for the airway muscles to contract again.

The study, published in the journal Sleep Medicine, believes that flight socks, which are basically a reduced version of compression stockings used in hospital to treat varicose veins, help with the problem by squeezing the lower leg to keep blood moving and stop the build-up of fluid.

Fifty men with sleep apnoea were recruited for the experiment. Half wore compression socks every day for two weeks, taking them off for bed, while the rest wore ordinary socks.

At night, each patient was connected to a monitor to track their snoring while electrodes on the leg and neck area assessed the shift in fluid when they were lying down.

The results showed that the men who had worn flight socks had less fluid moving to their neck and a reduction in the number of times their sleep was disrupted, dropping from an average of more than 30 times an hour to around 15. However, the participants who didn’t wear the special socks saw virtually no change in their sleeping patterns or snoring.

Dr Simon Merritt, a consultant in respiratory and sleep medicine at the Conquest Hospital in Hastings, England said: “This isn't going to be a treatment in its own right, but it could become an adjunct to the conventional treatment.”

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