In a video on TikTok, one person claims it gives her more
energy. Others, a sharper jawline; improved skin, mood, and digestion; reduced
brain fog, cavities, gum disease, and bad breath; and a strengthened immune
system.
اضافة اعلان
The purported benefits of mouth taping, a simple life hack that
involves gently placing a piece of skin-friendly tape over your lips to keep
them shut while sleeping to encourage breathing through your nose, have taken
social media by storm.
But are these perks backed by science? And is it safe to have
your mouth taped shut while you are fast asleep? We asked a few experts to find
out.
What are the benefits of nasal breathing?Ann Kearney, a voice and swallowing specialist at Stanford
University who studies how mouth taping might help people who snore, said that
there are significant benefits to breathing through your nose — whether at
night or during the day.
Nasal breathing is a “more efficient, effective way of
breathing” than inhaling and exhaling through your mouth, she said, because it
humidifies and filters the air, and activates the lower lungs, letting you take
deeper, fuller breaths. It can also help your body relax as you ease into
sleep.
Breathing through your nose can also help filter out allergens,
pathogens, and dust, potentially helping to defend against infections and ward
off allergies, said Dr Marri Horvat, a sleep specialist at the Cleveland Clinic.
When you breathe through your nose, your sinuses naturally
produce a gas called nitric oxide. As nitric oxide flows from the nasal sinuses
to the lungs and into the blood, it can help lower blood pressure, said Dr Raj
Dasgupta, a pulmonary and sleep medicine specialist at the Keck School of
Medicine at the University of Southern California. The gas can widen blood
vessels, he said, potentially also improving blood flow.
Sleeping with your mouth agape may cause you to wake up with a
dry mouth, Kearney said, which can contribute to cavities, bad breath, a hoarse
voice, and dry, cracked lips.
Are there any proven benefits of mouth taping?Despite its recent popularity, mouth-taping has not been
extensively studied. A few small trials have looked into whether mouth taping
can alleviate snoring in people with sleep conditions like obstructive sleep
apnea, which occurs when part or all of your upper airway is blocked while you
sleep, causing breathing to stop and start repeatedly throughout the night.
In one small study of people with mild obstructive sleep apnea,
researchers found that among 20 patients who slept with their lips taped shut,
13 snored less with the tape than they did without it. In another study,
including 30 patients with mild obstructive sleep apnea who tended to breathe
through their mouths while sleeping, researchers found that they snored less
severely, on
average, when they wore a patch over their mouths than they did
when they did not.
Nasal breathing is a “more efficient, effective way of breathing” than inhaling and exhaling through your mouth, … because it humidifies and filters the air, and activates the lower lungs, letting you take deeper, fuller breaths.
But the studies on mouth taping are limited, Kearney said, and
we know little about how the practice could benefit people in general.
Dr Andrew Wellman, a sleep medicine specialist at Brigham and
Women’s Hospital in Boston who has studied mouth taping, said that while the
practice will not cure a condition like sleep apnea, it may improve a person’s
airflow and reduce snoring, which in turn may help a bed partner have a deeper,
more restful sleep.
But some of the other claims are less definitive.
“There is zero evidence that you’ll be more beautiful or will
have clearer skin,” said James Nestor, a journalist and author of “
Breath: The
New Science of a Lost Art.”
Is mouth-taping safe?Not everyone is a good candidate for mouth taping, Kearney said.
If you struggle to breathe through your nose or can hear yourself when you
attempt to nasal breathe throughout the day, you should not try mouth taping.
Instead, she said, get evaluated by an ear, nose, and throat doctor.
An anatomical issue like a deviated septum, allergies,
sinusitis, or chronic congestion, may explain any difficulty breathing through
your nose.
And if you regularly snore or wake up feeling more tired than
refreshed, Horvat said, consider seeing a sleep specialist before reaching for
mouth tape.
A condition like sleep apnea can cause snoring and fatigue
during the day, so it is important to understand the root of your problem
first. Even if you do not have obstructive sleep apnea, you should consult with
a doctor before trying mouth taping, Dasgupta said.
If you do decide that you want to try it, it is important to use
the right tape, Nestor said. Do not reach for duct tape or anything that is not
easily removable, he said.
Not everyone is a good candidate for mouth taping. ... If you struggle to breathe through your nose or can hear yourself when you attempt to nasal breathe throughout the day, you should not try mouth taping.
“The tape should be able to effortlessly come off, without any
tension or resistance,” Nestor added, like surgical tape. The goal of mouth
taping isn’t to seal your lips shut — it’s to remind your muscles to relax.
Nestor recommended easing into the practice by starting during
the day. Place the tape over your mouth for about 10 minutes at a time, he
said, and then work up to 20 minutes or so the next day. After a few weeks,
your body may acclimate to breathing through the nose, and you can try out
mouth tape while you sleep.
If that does not sound appealing, there are other lifestyle
tweaks that can address mouth breathing, Dasgupta said. Smoking tobacco and
drinking alcohol can cause people to sleep with their mouths open by irritating
and congesting the nasal passages, he said, so if you partake in those
activities, cutting back can encourage nasal breathing and alleviate snoring.
He noted that nasal strips, nasal dilators, and throat and
tongue exercises can also address snoring. Sleeping on your back may also cause
you to mouth-breathe, so changing your sleep position may help, Kearney said.
But tweaks — from a piece of tape or otherwise — are unlikely to
radically transform your health or the quality of your rest, experts said. The
disparaging truth is that most “health hacks” won’t solve your problems
overnight.
“There is no one easy way to fix your sleep,” Dasgupta said.
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