How to Recognize and Stop Mouth Breathing

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By kidsleepinfo
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Mouth Breathing Tends to Run in Families

As a physician, I became very impressed with how important it is to use our noses to breathe, not our mouths. I was also surprised at how few mouth breathers were aware of their problem, probably because it is usually long standing before it is recognized (if at all) and people become tolerant to the ill-effects. Here are some tips on how to recognize and treat this significant problem.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Your nose and mouth, or the nose and mouth of someone else in question
Your hand

Step 1

Sinuses Opening Into Nasal Cavity

Breathing is supposed to occur through the nose. This is where our nasal sinuses have small openings into the upper airway, and our sinuses help to regulate oxygen exchange in the lungs by excreting neuropeptides like Nitric Oxide (NO.) Unless the air that reaches the lungs contains these substances, oxygenation suffers. In one study of people on respirators, adding their own nasal air to their oral breathing pieces increased oxygen levels by 25%, showing you the real importance of nose breathing.
Step 2

Mouth Breathing Isn't Pretty

Nose breathing is reduced or prevented by anything that blocks the airway in the nose. Once this happens, we are forced to overcome the block by opening the mouth to breathe. Most commonly, allergies are to blame. They cause swelling of the mucous membranes that line the nose. The more swelling, the greater percentage of mouth breathing, but even mild swelling can affect lung oxygenation by closing off the sinus openings. Mouth breathers also tend to get enlarged adenoids and tonsils that block the airway. Other important causes are usually structural. Some people are born with congenital malformations that block airflow, or they sustain trauma, like a broken nose, that distorts the anatomy. Another last important cause is simply failing to nose breathe. If we don't use our noses to breathe during infancy and childhood, when the face and upper airway are developing, these structures develop abnormally, so even if you clear up the swelling that started the problem, you still have it.
Step 3

The best test to determine if you or a loved one is mouth breathing is to completely cover the mouth with your hand and see what happens. People who can breathe normally through the nose will have no problem, but if they are using both the nose and mouth, or just the mouth, they will quickly feel unable to breathe and not be able to keep the hand in place. In more advanced cases, patients quickly stop the test. In milder cases, they start to compensate by taking deeper breaths and flaring their nostrils. If you can't breathe through your nose indefinitely, there is something wrong, but a good rule of thumb is 30 seconds to a minute of enforced nose breathing, without evidence of breathing changes, indicates your normal.
Step 4

In infants, covering the mouth can cause discomfort of it's own, so I usually watched the child nurse or drink from a bottle. If they latched on but had to break the seal on the breast nipple or bottle and draw air in around it, then they were mouth breathers. Babies should be able to latch on and feed without breaking the seal and needing to draw air in through the mouth at all.
Step 5

Once you have established this is a problem, it's imperative you see your physician and determine why it is occurring and get treatment. In infants, early treatment is especially important because of the abnormal bone development that can occur. Treatment is often as easy as eliminating an allergen or starting a nose spray, so don't hesitate.
Step 6

Mouth breathing is closely linked to the development of sleep disorders, and sleep disorders are linked to cardiovascular problems, mood disorders, attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder, and a host of other problems. It's not something to ignore. If you want to learn more about its effects in childhood sleep disorders, visit my website at http://www.kidsleepdotinfo.sythasite.com. Or check out my book on Payloadz - When Crying it out Doesn't Work, by Mary Kathleen Fay, M.D.