Over 40 million people in North America alone are affected by sleep apnea. Frequent, loud snoring may be a sign of a common but potentially serious disorder in which breathing repeatedly stops and starts as you sleep. This is often the result of Obstructive Sleep Apnea, which causes narrowing or total closure of the airway during sleep. Each of these pauses in breathing can last from a few seconds to minutes and may occur up to 30 (or more) times an hour.