Did you know we should breathe through our mouth as often as we eat through our nose? It’s true! I have asked Debra Hankins, a Speech Pathologist, to shed some light about why breathing through our nose is so important.
Mouth breathing can cause many issues, including crowded and crooked teeth, poor posture, palatal vaulting, messy eating, changes in growth and development and a poor social response. In some cases, braces can even be avoided if mouth breathing is caught and treated early!
Breathing through one’s mouth is a symptom of airway interference. The most common cause is Chronic Nasal Obstruction. We are designed to breathe (inhale & exhale) through our nose, not our mouth. With correct breathing we receive nitric oxide which impacts blood pressure and we also avoid unfiltered air going directly into our lungs.
With constant mouth breathing, changes in how the mouth and face develop, move, and function for eating and speech occur. Mouth breathing requires the jaw to be lowered into the open position. The tongue follows the jaw, so it ‘hangs out’ on the floor of the mouth instead of resting fully in the palate (roof of the mouth). In the jaw open position, the tongue’s low position causes the palate (roof of the mouth) to become high vaulted & V-shaped instead of an optimal U-shape. This V-shape palate can set the stage for a dental cross bite. Smaller/narrower jaws lead to dental crowding and crooked teeth. The chronic open-jaw posture also means the jaw elongates (downward growth) rather than the optimally growing forward.
When our tongue rests low, instead of fully in the roof of mouth as intended, it can’t support the developmental expansion of the roof of the mouth (palate). Think of it this way, our tongue is our built in palate expander and our lips are our face’s braces.
Mouth breathing also affects posture resulting in a forward head position which is becoming more common. Parents, please watch your child’s posture and breathing (awake and sleeping) habits; mouth breathing at night can be a sign of sleep apnea.
Chewing food with a closed mouth can be extremely difficult for people who breathe through their mouths. It can cause children and adults to be unfairly criticized for chewing with their mouth open. Open mouth chewing is rarely due to manners, but instead due to airway issues. When there is interference with nasal breathing, our mouth MUST come open during chewing so we can breathe! Or one might be a ‘fast eater’, quickly each bite a few times, swallow, & then open the mouth to quickly breathe between fast and furious bites, but this can cause digestive issues!
Remember in natural medicine we want to find the root cause and sometimes that means visiting a specialist to determine the problem and then going from there. Since our nasal pathways are partially hidden from our view, an ENT can complete a Nasoendoscopy (painless scope with a tiny camera tip) to identify/rule out structural issue(s) that may be causing the brain stem to send the signal that the mouth must come open to get enough oxygen. Inflammation, enlarged turbinates/adenoids/tonsils, polyps or a deviated septum are a few of the many considerations your ENT can investigate.
Tongue-tie (Ankyloglossia) can also be a cause of mouth breathing. One important step is to have a tongue-tie identified or ruled out by a provider with specialized tongue-tie identification training. Not sure if they have the proper training? Ask. And remember, it’s about the function of the tongue and is not diagnosed based only on the appearance of or how far they can stick out their tongue.
A visit to an allergist may be in order for chronic stuffy nose or congestion which can lead to mouth breathing. Discovering and resolving the root cause often requires a team approach so don’t give up!
After the cause(s) of the airway issues have been identified and are being treated, a Speech Pathologist with specialized training in Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy can evaluate and treat to help re-educate the neuromuscular patterns to normalize oral rest posture, function and movement patterns for optimal breathing, feeding, and speech.
Also, this information can apply to adults. They may experience additional symptoms of bad breath, gum disease, and/or fatigue. Optimal health for all ages is supported with consistent nasal breathing. Once the issue is resolved, children and adults may require the help of a Speech Pathologist with specialized training in Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy.
Debra Hankins, MS., CCC/SLP
Speech Language Pathologist
Serving Tulsa and the Metro Area
Memberships:
ASHA [American Speech Language and Hearing Association]
IAOM [International Association of Orofacial Myology
