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Plain old snoring can get a little annoying, for someone listening to it. But more than for the listener it can impose serious life threats when a snorer repeatedly stops breathing for brief moments, it can lead to systemic diseases and cardiovascular problems It’s a condition known as sleep apnea , in which the person may experience pauses in breathing more than 30 times per hour or more during sleep. These episodes wake the sleeper as he or she gasps for air. It prevents restful sleep and is associated with high blood pressure, arrhythmia, stroke, and heart failure. Obstructive sleep apnea is caused by blockage of the upper respiratory airways in which either the throat muscles collapse, the tongue falls back into the airway, or enlarged tonsils and/or adenoids impede air flow. When your airway is choked, the brain has to wake itself to signal the respiratory system to kick back into gear. This often leads to regained jerky breathings with loud gasps, snorts, or body jerks that may wake you from your slumber and disrupt your sleep. When you're waked multiple times through the night, your body and mind don't get the rest they need to function, leaving you tired and drained during the daytime. Obstructive sleep apnea can be considered one of three levels depending on the amount of nightly sleep interruptions in breathing: Mild OSA - The sufferer experiences 5-14 episodes of interruptions in breathing in an hour. Moderate OSA - The sufferer experiences 15-30 episodes of interruptions in breathing in an hour. Severe OSA - The sufferer experiences 30 or more interruptions in breathing in an hour. “The evidence is very strong for the relationship between sleep apnea and hypertension and cardiovascular disease generally, so it becomes a necessity to identify these individuals and understand the association between the diseases.