Why are people taping their mouth shut while sleeping?

The theory is that if you tape your mouth shut, it forces you to breathe through your nose only. Tiktok is host to many worrying health trends and this is just one of them. The side effects of mouth taping have not yet been fully studied, and could inhibit your ability to breathe consistent, full breaths.

 

But, does it have any benefits? People may try mouth taping because they believe that by forcing themselves to breathe through their nose, they can avoid negative effects associated with mouth breathing.

 

The Project recently interviewed our own Dr Nathan Hayward on this very topic.

Dr Nathan said “The nose temperature controls the air going through the lungs and humidifies it. It also has the ability to filter out moulds, viruses, and particles. It (mouth breathing) could just be due to the way their facial structure has developed and the way that their jaw sits naturally. The problem will come for people who rely on their mouth breathing at night time to get adequate air flow so people with nasal obstruction, or people with sleep disorders like sleep apnea”

 

Although breathing through your nose is recommended – we don’t recommend mouth taping for everybody. According to most experts, mouth breathing is not a serious problem on it’s own. It’s best to get a professional opinion from a qualified ENT specialist.

 

If you would like to talk with an ENT Specialist, you can book an appointment at one of our locations across Melbourne and regional Victoria.