Health Tip: When Snoring Is Dangerous

(HealthDay News) -- Snoring is not only annoying. It could indicate a serious health problem.

When you sleep, the muscles of your throat relax and your tongue falls backward, the National Sleep Foundation says. Your throat becomes narrow.

Breathing in and out while asleep can cause vibrations in your throat that, if significant enough, cause snoring.

Often the narrower your airway becomes, the louder your snoring. Sometimes the walls of the throat can temporarily block your airway. This is called sleep apnea and should receive prompt medical attention.

Treatments include surgery, oral appliances and an airway pressure device that blows room air into the back of the throat to keep it from narrowing too much, the foundation says.

-- Deborah DiSesa Hirsch

Last Updated: Feb. 20, 2006