Your Health: A workout for your throat may help sleep apnea

Exercise your throat A study in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine found that people with obstructive sleep apnea, who stop breathing periodically while they sleep, can benefit from throat exercises.Those who did three minutes of throat exercises daily, including swallowing and chewing motions, sliding the tongue from the teeth to the back of the mouth, and pronouncing certain vowels repeatedly, reduced the severity of their condition by 39 percent.Those who instead did daily breathing exercises showed almost no improvement.Crash timeResearchers suspect early school start times may lead to more car accidents among students.A study of two high schools in Virginia Beach, Va., where classes start at 7:20 a.m., and Chesapeake, Va., where classes begin at 8:40 a.m., found teen crash rates were 41 percent higher in 2008 at Virginia Beach, though the cities have similar demographics.Study authors at Eastern Virginia Medical School acknowledged the study does not prove cause and effect, but suggested school officials might consider easing up on early start times.Foods to avoidPrevention magazine lists foods that are more likely to expose you to potentially harmful chemicals:bull; Canned tomatoes. Their acidity leaches bisphenol A from the can lining. Try bottled or fresh tomatoes instead.bull; Microwave popcorn. The bag lining contains chemicals, including perflourooctanoic (PFOA), that may be linked to infertility and cancer. Pop your own the old-fashioned way: in oil in a skillet. Flavor with butter, or try dried seasonings or powdered cheese.bull; Nonorganic potatoes: Root vegetables absorb the herbicides, pesticides and fungicides they're sprayed with. Washing won't remove them. If you can spend extra for organic, this is one good place to do it.bull; Milk with artificial hormones. Milk farmers often treat cattle with bovine growth hormone (BGH), which increases hormones in the milk, and is banned in most other modern countries. Look for hormone-free milk, like Wal-Mart's Great Value.Free HIV testingIn honor of National HIV Testing Day, DuPage County groups will offer free HIV tests June 25.An estimated one million Americans carry the virus and don't know it.Free tests for the virus that causes AIDS will be given from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Serenity House, 891 S. Rohlwing Road, Addison, with lunch, a panel discussion, and information on local resources.For information, call Serenity House at (630) 620-6616, ext. 100.Individuals can also get tested through county health departments, doctors' offices and take-home kits. Call the DuPage County Health Department at (630) 682-7400.Run Don't WalkRunners in the recent 13.1 Marathon in Chicago voted on the top tunes to run to:"Born to Run" by Bruce Springsteen led the list, followed by, among others, U2's "It's a Beautiful Day," "Lose Yourself" by Eminem, "Stronger" by Kanye West, "I Got a Feelin'," by Black Eyed Peas, "Sex on Fire," by Kings of Leon, and "Runnin' Down a Dream" by Tom Petty.False523669Researchers suspect early school start times may lead to more car accidents among students. False