I was having dinner with friends recently when one asked if I tape my mouth while I’m sleeping. Of course I do! Don’t you?
I’ve been hearing for a little while that mouth breathing is the new sitting (formally known as the new smoking), but I confess that what put me over the edge to actually try taping my mouth at night was pictures like the ones below, and TikToks and podcasts that discussed how mouth tape could change your jaw line and posture. Sorry, I’m a vain woman who loves a low budget makeover!
A couple of years ago the podcaster Liz Moody talked about getting a nose job for both aesthetic and functional reasons, and said that while she was healing (and could only breathe through her mouth) her anxiety absolutely skyrocketed. I was intrigued. I also found this podcast with a functional dentist, Dr. Mark Burhenne, compelling. Fair warning, he will scare you off mouthwash which you honestly don’t need!
I wasn’t sure if I would be able to tape my mouth and breathe solely through my nose at night, it sounded a bit suffocating. It’s fine! The first night I dramatically ripped my tape off in the middle of the night, but otherwise it’s been ok. Sometimes it comes off naturally in the night, but most of the time it stays on.
I use this tape, which is fine, and just put a strip over my mouth. It sometimes irritates my skin slightly, but not much, and is a good deal cheaper than tape specifically marketed towards mouth taping. After a few weeks of use, I wouldn’t say that I notice a huge difference. However, my Oura ring tells me that my sleep is deeper, I think that my face might look a bit less puffy in the morning, and I have less sinus congestion (which is a symptom of mouth breathing)— honestly, not nothing! Also, changes are supposed to grow over time. The science is compelling enough that I want to continue and feel a bit superstitious that my sleep won’t be as good without it. It’s also one of the cheapest things you can do to improve your health, besides drinking more water, getting outside, turning off your damn phone, and sleeping more.
Some of the benefits of nose breathing vs mouth breathing are:
You receive more oxygen to active tissues, because nose breathing releases nitric oxide which is necessary to increase CO2 in the blood which releases Oxygen
Breathing through your nose filters the air better from dust and other pollutants and adds humidity
Mouth breathing can cause a variety of dental issues. If you snore or wake up with dry mouth there’s a good chance you’re mouth breathing
Nasal breathing helps us enter a parasympathetic (rest and recovery) place
There is a correlation of mouth breathing at night to ADHD, speech problems, and more1
It is said to increase sports performance
James Nestor’s Breath has gotten attention for science and more New Age-y claims. I confess that I’ve only read parts of it, but believe that our breath is very important. Still not a doctor, but the pictures below are wild.
If you try mouth taping at night please let me know your thoughts!
x,
Alex
NIH! I don’t just quote Tiktok. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10858538/