All humans are susceptible to breathing problems—regardless of age, health status, or lifestyle. Why is this so? According to Dr. Steven Park, it's a pretty simple reason: we can talk. In order to talk, the soft tissues in the throat have to be exactly that—soft or "floppy." This softness, while allowing for speech, also makes the tissue susceptible to caving while we sleep, which leads to snoring.

When the tissues cave entirely, a person stops breathing altogether, and may or may not develop sleep apnea. Both snoring and sleep apnea expose people to a greater risk of stroke, high blood pressure, cancer, diabetes, weight gain, acid reflux, sinus infections, fatigue, anxiety, headaches…the list continues.

Over the course of his career as an ear, nose, and throat doctor, Steven Park has seen countless patients whose problems were in one way or another related to their quality of sleep, and he aims to educate people on the causes and effects of snoring.

On today's episode, Dr. Park discusses a number of fascinating topics that likely have some relevance to your life or the lives of your loved ones. Tune in to discover:

• How the temporary cessation of breathing during sleep tells the body that it's under stress, thereby invoking a physiologic stress response
• Why someone who experiences breathing cessation multiple times in a single night might not be found to have sleep apnea, but something called upper airway resistance syndrome (UARS)
• The many ways in which you can address your breathing problems or seek obstructive sleep apnea treatment

Press play to learn more and be sure to check out Dr. Park's book, Sleep Interrupted: A Physician Reveals the #1 Reason Why So Many Of Us Are Sick and Tired.