Whats wrong with mouth breathing?

[johnathanb76]

Mouth breather here, wearing a Airtouch F20 of course. Alot of threads and posts I see, recommend mouth tape and I've never heard this until recently until I started doing my research heavily. What effect does mouth breathing have on your treatment? If you're a mouth breather, is it a good idea to start taping your mouth and only using your nose to get better treatment and better sleep? or does it have no affect on you whatsoever? Ive heard varying things so I'm curious as a mouth breather, what I should be doing. In my own personal experience, I have tried to use nasal only masks but if my nostrils get clogged, forget about it honestly, it sucks to try to breathe.

[G. Szabo]

Taping lifts your jaw, putting your tongue in a fixed position so it cannot move backward. As a result, when you inhale through your nose, the inhalation resistance is lower, and you have lower chances of obstructions and hypopneas.
I was also a mouth breather. Once I started to tape my mouth, my AHIs and treatment pressure dropped.

[johnathanb76]

Thank you! Ill more than likely try it since I heard it does lower events. I was just really curious what the census was on it since I've heard people use mouth tape.

[Sleepster]

AFAIK, for your treatment, you don't need to worry about mouth-leaking if you're wearing a full face mask. To avoid mouth-breathing try using the NeilMed Sinus Rinse Kit an hour or so before bedtime, and Biotene mouth wash to treat and prevent dry mouth.

[johnathanb76]

I don't think it's in regards to mouth leaking, I believe nose only breathing helps with lowering apnea. I did buy some mouth tape, so I'm going to use a nose mask and see how it goes and helps.

[BoxcarPete]

Pressurization of the nasopharynx but not the oral cavity can provide more efficacy at a given pressure level, but like everything in this world it depends greatly on your the subtleties of your personal anatomy just how much that is. For some, they lose the benefit entirely even with mouth tape because they get "chipmunk cheeks" and the pressure is held in the oral cavity, though it's not allowed out which is still better than mouth leaks.

There is also some medical research showing that nasal airflow triggers certain hormones to be released, which are considered to be good for optimal health in some way. I'm not sure of the specifics, but you could look into it if you're interested in knowing more about it.

[Sleepster]

For some, they lose the benefit entirely even with mouth tape because they get "chipmunk cheeks" and the pressure is held in the oral cavity, though it's not allowed out which is still better than mouth leaks.

Even with a full face mask?!

[BoxcarPete]

I suppose it's theoretically possible for pressure to be raised only in the nasal passages and not the oral cavity with a FFM, but if the mouth opens at all at any point, the pressure will equalize, whereas with a nasal mask as long as the nasopharynx is separated from the oral cavity, the pressures can be different and the mouth can be open. Hope that answers your question.

[SeePak]

Johnathan and others, check out Patrick McKeown and his work and others on breathing properly, thru the nose.
There are a couple threads going now on the sleep apnea board and tons of information on the internet.
Taping the mouth closed is really the only way to go to get the results and to also get the benefit from nose breathing and that goes for all day as well.

[Deborah K.]

I have read that some people with no apnea sleep with mouth tape because it forces them to breathe properly and it's better for their health.