Mouth Breathing Treatment: Stop Mouth Breathing with 7 Easy Everyday Tips

Transparency Disclosure: We may receive a referral fee for products purchased through the links on our site

You’ve probably heard the joke about mouth breathers but if you are one of them, you know there is nothing funny about it. In fact, it could be a matter of life and death.

Mouth breathers are those who breathe through their mouths instead of their noses. Breathing through the mouth has negative health implications. There are those who breathe with their mouths only when they are asleep and those who do even when they are awake

How do you know if you breathe through your mouth at night?

You can easily check this by checking for dryness in the mouth immediately you wake up. If your mouth is dry, then you breathe through it in your sleep.

What causes mouth breathing?

Mouth breathing can be is as a result of either one of these:

  1. Nasal obstruction: There is resistance to the smooth flow of air
  2. It can also be habitual where you formed a habit of breathing through the mouth since you were a child
  3. In the third trimester of pregnancy, mouth breathing is common. However if you are not a mouth breather this will stop.

Why is it important that you breathe through your nose?

The normal anatomical function is to breathe through your nose. And there are good reasons why you should maintain this natural provision.

  1. Breathing through the mouth reduces the oxygen absorption capacity of the lungs. As you breathe through the nose, nitric oxide gas is produced by mucus in small levels. This gas increases the lung’s oxygen absorption capacity. Prolonged oxygen inadequacy has detrimental long term effects to your overall health.
  2. Air breathed through the nose is cleansed of harmful microbes and other impurities. As the air travels through the hose, they are filtered in the mucus lining of nose. This mucus lining also moisturizes and warms the air.
  3. Breathing through the mouth is detrimental to your oral health. It dries out gums and promotes acidity increasing the risk of cavities and plague. It also increases the risk of gum disease.
  4. Research has proven that mouth breathing at night worsens snoring.
  5. As absurd as this may sound, breathing through the mouth can lead to facial deformation. This mostly happens in children.

[Tweet “Are you a mouth breather? These 9 tips will help you stop mouth breathing”]

How to Train Yourself to Sleep With Your Mouth Closed

Have you been wondering how to sleep with your mouth closed? Here are some options you can try

#1 Train yourself how to breathe with your mouth closed

how to stop mouth breathing
Learn how to breathe through your nose at all times

The brain is a powerful tool. Utilize its full potential to help to deal with this problem.

During the day, if you subconsciously find yourself breathing through the mouth, try and break this habit. You can even stick notes and set a reminder in your phone.

Try as much as you can to breathe through your nose and maintain a consistent breathing pattern if you can. Try to keep your mouth closed at all times and maintain a good posture.

Most mouth breathers tend to have a head-forward kind of position. Try to stay with your head pressed back a little and breathe though your nose.

Over time, you will condition your brain to breath in that particular pattern and maintain a straight position. This may not happen overnight. It may take some time before you see any significant change.

[Tweet “Breathe through your nose and maintain a consistent breathing pattern if you can. #HealthySleep”]

#2 Practice nose clearing exercise

how to stop mouth breathing
Buteyko for mouth breathers

The reason you have trouble breathing through nose at night is possibly because you have nose congestion. Whenever you feel like your nose is too blocked to take a proper breath, do this simple nose clearing exercise.

The exercise is also called the “Buteyko.”

It is named after its Russian inventor and recommended by an Australian breathing therapist known as Dr. Rosalba Courtney.

This method is used to correct many breathing problems.

It helps you reestablish your breathing volume to normal. It might be your most effective and free mouth breathing treatment.

How is it done?

With your mouth closed preferably in a sitting position, breathe normally through your nose for 2 to 3 minutes. Then breath in and press closed you nose with your fingers.

Hold your breath for as long as you can. When you feel that you can’t hold it any longer, slowly let out the air through your nostrils. Remember to keep your mouth closed during this exercise. Repeat this several times.

You can take it a notch higher and do it as you pace or as you do other things.

#3 Elevating your head while you sleep

how to sleep with your mouth closed
Try sleeping with your head elevated

If you are a mouth breather and you do not elevate your head when you sleep, doing just that might be the solution you are looking for.

A poor sleeping position can worsen your snoring especially if it forces your mouth to open. Always sleep with your head elevated above the rest of your body. Using a pillow or an adjustable mattress might be a good place to start. Your pillow should ensure that your back is tilted a little to the back.

Why is elevating your head important

  1. If you suffer from acid influx, an elevated head helps deal with that problem. It prevents acids and other intestinal fluids from going up your throat.
  2. It creates a clear passage for air allowing for maximum nasal breathing and unrestricted flow of air.
  3. It reduces stress on the heart.

#4 Adopt a proper sleeping position

how to stop sleeping with mouth openSome sleeping positions lead to or worsen mouth breathing. Sleeping on the back is particularly not good for mouth breathers.

When you sleep on your back, you are forced to take heavier breaths. It becomes impossible to channel out the air through the nose. This forces you to breathe through the mouth.

The base of your tongue and soft plates are forced to collapse at the back of your mouth. This makes them produce vibrating sounds when you breathe. Try to either sleep on your side or stomach. Sleeping on your side is also good for your back.

#5 Exercise

why do i sleep with my mouth openExercising is one of the ways of stopping mouth breathing.

Believe it or not, exercises like yoga and cardio exercises improve your breathing. They involve breathing work and will help you improve breathing through the nostrils.

Research has also found overweight people to have problem mouth breathing. Exercising to lose the extra weight might help you stop breathing through your mouth as you sleep. Exercising is also important for your general well being.

#6 Remove all known allergens

sleeping with mouth openIf you are allergic to anything, remove it from your bedroom. If you sleep with your pet, you might want to stop it.

It is also advisable to remove any plants that might be in your sleeping area.

During the night plants use up oxygen and emit carbon dioxide. It leads to competition for oxygen between you and the plant.

Remove carpets and rugs from the bedroom. They worsen the quality of air in your room by harboring dust and bacterial. You should also change your bed sheets regularly and wash them in clean warm water often.

Consider the blankets that you use. If they are too warm, they make breathing through the nose uncomfortable. Old and dusty pillows do not make nasal breathing any easier. Lose them all.

#7 Mouth taping

how to stop mouth breathingThis sounds ridiculous right?

However mouth taping has proven to be one of the most effective techniques on how to sleep with your mouth closed.

How does it work?

As the name suggests this method involves taping your mouth to keep it closed during sleep.

All you need is surgical tape and some cream. The cream makes removing the tape painless. First apply the cream then put a small tape at the center. You can either vertically (across) or horizontally (along). The tape keeps the lips closed at all times forcing you to breathe through your nose. It is as easy as that.

However, this method might be a bit uncomfortable at first. It’s just a small price to pay compared to its benefit.

#8 Using nasal saline spray

Nasal saline sprays are very helpful in adding moisture to your nose. When you feel like your nose is too congested to take adequate breaths, it’s easy to find yourself breathing through the mouth.

Saline nasal sprays are very effective at decongesting your nose making nasal breathing easier.

#9 Using mouth guards

If you have been wondering how to keep your mouth closed while sleeping, using mouth guards is one of the best options to explore.

Sleeping mouthguards are designed to keep your mouth shut as you sleep when installed.

There are numerous brands of mouth guards in the market today. When you purchase one, make sure it is comfortable enough for you to want to wear it. You should also consider the material it is made from to avoid harming your gum.

You might also want to try using chin strips. These are horse shoe shaped and support the chin while you sleep. They help stop mouth breathing and promote nasal breathing. By doing this they also offer relief for snoring caused by mouth breathing. They are effective when used alone or in combination with other methods.

Now to you

There you have it, if you have been wondering how to stop mouth breathing, try one or two of these options might be the solution you are looking for. Feel free to drop us a comment on what you think or what works best for you.

[su_row][su_column size=”1/2″]

Also on Snorezing.com

[su_list icon=”icon: external-link-square” icon_color=”#53eb21″]

[/su_list]

[/su_column] [su_column size=”1/2″]

[su_list icon=”icon: external-link-square” icon_color=”#53eb21″]

Sleeping aid Reviews

[/su_list]

[/su_column] [/su_row]

 

24 thoughts on “Mouth Breathing Treatment: Stop Mouth Breathing with 7 Easy Everyday Tips”

  1. Hi guys, I was a mouth breather for all of my life and tried all of these techniques and none of them worked. I’ve found a way to treat mouth breathing with a mouth breathing device and eBook on how to fix bad mouth breathing habits. For more information visit MouthbreatherDotOrg and safe breathing!

    Reply
    • Number 6 is a bit funny too.

      “During the night plants use up oxygen and emit carbon dioxide. It leads to competition for oxygen between you and the plant.”

      Well sorry to break it to you but…
      “A common myth states that, at night, plants compete with people for oxygen!” -Indiana Public Media

      Reply
  2. #7 mouth tapping is such a good idea, I am going to apply this to my sleep routine and during the days when I can (when no ones around).
    I really think this will work to train my brain to breath through my nose Instead of my mouth which has caused me a lot of embaressing problems.
    So thank you x

    Reply
  3. I’m a mouth breather only because my nose is blocked all the time I use sea water saline doesn’t always work for me tried breathing exercise works for a short time .I know I need a operation for my septum but my doctor keeps giving me nose sprays steroid find it does not work. Now I’m having panick attacks more anxiety more vomiting more shaking like I have a chill got meds for that to. I’m so sad I can’t spend time with my 3 year old because I get stressed because I can’t breath .

    Reply
    • If you get this message, look at getting braces on your mouth, getting your pallet extended can bring the septum down, removal of the tonsils and Adniids. And then definitely get a septum surgery from a well-known surgeon. Also pray to God and Jesus for help.

      Reply
  4. DON’T FIT YOUR FACE TO THE WRONG MASK
    One thing I learned the hard way was to find a mask that fit my face – and not try to make my face fit the wrong mask. Let’s face it – the majority of CPAP mask designers never even tried to sleep with their CPAP mask (maybe they should eh?). If they did we would already have comfortable and efficient masks that really worked!
    It is definitely a chore finding a mask that actually fits your unique face and also doesn’t leak air. When I started CPAP six years ago I tired five different masks over a two month period to find a mask that fit my face. It was a nasal pillow mask that finally worked.

    START WITH A NASAL MASK FIRST
    My recommendation is start with a nasal pillow mask first. I don’t care if you think you are a mouth breather, ear breather, or a combination nose/mouth/ear breather. Your breathing will naturally adjust to breathing only through your nose with a nasal mask. Good news – It doesn’t take long to adjust to nose breathing while you sleep. How do you do it? You will naturally block off the air entering your mouth with the back of your tongue.

    BREATHING ONLY THROUGH YOUR NOSE
    Say “gaa, gaa …”. Notice that you naturally block off the sound with the back of your tongue while making the sounds. This is how harmonica players – with practice – play those rapid fire repetitive notes: ga-ga-ga-ga-ga-ga-gah. Now stop the sound with the back of your tongue before making another “gaa” sound. Raise the back of your tongue and block off the air entering your throat. Don’t worry, you can still breath through your nose! Do it right now. Try this exercise off and on during the day. Just breath through you nose while blocking your mouth breathing with the back of your tongue.
    SLEEPING WITH A NASAL MASK
    You will automatically breath through your nose while your sleep using a nasal pillow mask. If you do start breathing through your mouth (and you will at first) – and stop blocking air with the back of your tongue – you will get a BIG blast of incoming air into your mouth. Don’t worry – it doesn’t hurt – but you will wake up. Just block off your mouth breathing with the back of your tongue again – and go back to sleep. This may happen off and on throughout the night while your adjusting to the nasal pillow mask. But believe me – it’s worth giving it a try. It beats wearing a jet pilot’s face mask.
    GOOD LUCK
    Good luck in finding the correct mask for your unique face.

    Reply
  5. You might want to correct a sentence in #6. Plants take in carbon dioxide and produce oxygen. You will never be fighting for oxygen at the expense of a plant. If you want more oxygen put a plant next to your bed.

    Reply
  6. Sleeping on your side is not good for you actually and the stomach is even worse! The healthiest way is to sleep on you back. You also want deeper breaths. Short breaths come with many side effects long and short term

    Reply
    • No, you don’t want deeper breaths. Too much oxygen depletes carbon dioxide which is essential for proper oxygenation. This may seem counterintuitive but I urge you to research it. I recommend The Oxygen Advantage book written by Patrick McKeown, he explains this thoroughly.

      Reply
  7. See “#9 Using mouth guards” above, where you’ll find a link to “chin strips”. But when you go to that page and do a page search, you’ll find that “chin strips” is nowhere to be found on that page. Maybe you meant “chin straps”?

    Anyway, both links in section #9 take us to a web page about anti-snoring devices. But as far as I know, I have no problem with snoring. I only have a problem with mouth breathing while I am asleep, leading to dry mouth.

    Also, it says in #9 above that sleeping mouthguards are designed to keep your mouth shut. But I don’t see any claim to that effect on that linked page about anti-snoring devices. And how do you get them out of your mouth again, if they are designed to keep you from opening your mouth?

    Reply
  8. I use Bixtonim, but if I use it for more than 5-6 days in a row, it causes nose bleeding. I think it stimulates the blood flow in the nose and eventually makes the little veins “explode”. On a short term, together with mouth taping I think It is a good idea until I adapt. I’ll write again to tell you how this worked.

    Reply
  9. Plants produce oxygen humans produce carbon dixiode, smh. They clean and purify the air. That one wrong comment can make your whole article subjective. Ugh!

    Reply
  10. You should read more biology. When plants photosynthesize sugars, they release oxygen as a side product, yes. But when they break down those sugars to release energy, they take in oxygen and release CO2. Without light plants can’t photosynthesize, so they only release CO2 at night. It’s not significant enough to actually cause breathing problems like this article states, though.

    Reply
  11. At night, when photosynthesis can’t take place, plants continue to consume oxygen but they don’t release any back into the room. Would that mean that plants really do compete with humans for oxygen?

    Well, not really. The amount of oxygen the plants in your bedroom use at night is trivial. Think about the earth as a giant bedroom and you’ll see that animals would be in pretty big trouble if plants used up a significant amount of oxygen every night.

    Reply

Leave a Comment