OTTUMWA, IOWA -- For Wednesday's Facebook Story of the Day, you wanted to know more about snoring and what kind of health issues it can cause.

Snoring occurs when there is pressure on the airway, or the airway is blocked. It can also happen when your muscles are deeply relaxed during sleep, and touch each other, causing the snoring sound.

It is hard to tell when snoring is indicative of more serious health issues, but generally, if you or your partner is snoring loud enough to keep the other awake, you should consult your health care provider.

"It could be a sign of heart problems or elevated blood pressure and for children that snore, sometimes it could be a sign or symptom of a possible brain tumor," said Lynelle Diers, Clinical Director of Wapello County Public Health.  "I'm not saying every child that snores has a brain tumor, but it has been indicative in correlation with some brain tumors and would be something that needs to be discussed with your health provider."

As far as treatment goes, many doctors will recommend methods to reduce the pressure on the airway, such as losing weight, quitting smoking or sleeping on your side. Many people have success with breathing strips to open the airway at night.

"Some of the health providers will also recommend sleep studies to be done if someone is snoring and they can determine if they're having what we call apnea spells, which is when they actually stop breathing," Diers said. "If an individual is doing that, sometimes they recommend CPAP for them to wear at night."

CPAP, or continuous positive airway pressure, is a type of breathing and ventilation therapy. If those options don't work, invasive surgery is also an option.