The average human takes around 20,000 breaths daily, often without a second thought. But how you take those breaths matters more than you think. If you’re breathing through your mouth instead of your nose, you could be unknowingly inviting a host of health problems into your life.
It’s easy to dismiss how you breathe as unimportant. After all, you’re still getting air, right? But your body was designed to use your nose for a reason. When you bypass it, you set off a chain reaction of health problems that can quietly make life harder.
In this article, you’ll discover the seven hidden health problems caused by mouth breathing and learn what you can do right now to take back control of your health, one breath at a time.
What is Mouth Breathing?
Mouth breathing happens when you mostly breathe through your mouth instead of your nose. While it might seem harmless, this simple habit can significantly impact your health.
There are many crucial benefits of nasal breathing. Your nose does more than just let air in, it filters out dust and germs, warms and moistens the air, and even helps your body use oxygen better. When you breathe through your mouth, you miss out on these important benefits and may expose yourself to more health issues.
Why do people start mouth breathing?
There are several common reasons you might start breathing through your mouth, often without realizing it:
- Nasal congestion from allergies, colds, or sinus problems
- Deviated septum (crooked cartilage in the nose)
- Enlarged tonsils or adenoids
- Chronic allergies or asthma
- Childhood habits like thumb sucking or frequent pacifier use
- Other airway blockages or breathing difficulties.
How can you tell if you’re a mouth breather?
You might notice some of these signs:
- Waking up with a dry mouth or sore throat
- Snoring or drooling during sleep
- Persistent bad breath
- Hoarse voice in the morning
- Feeling tired, irritable, or foggy after sleep
- Trouble concentrating during the day.
If you recognize these symptoms, you might be mouth breathing sometimes without even knowing it.
7 Hidden Health Dangers Caused by Mouth Breathing
Here are some little-known effects of mouth breathing:
1. Increased anxiety and stress
Most people don’t realize that something as simple as mouth breathing can quietly make anxiety and stress worse. When you breathe through your mouth, you take in air too quickly and from your upper chest, leading to chronic over-breathing. This habit lowers your blood’s carbon dioxide (CO2) levels, and while CO2 is often overlooked, it’s actually vital for getting oxygen to your brain and body.
Low CO2 levels can leave you feeling restless, tense, and unable to relax—even if there isn’t an obvious reason for your anxiety. Over time, this imbalance can make your nervous system more sensitive, triggering muscle tension, spasms, and a heightened perception of pain, light, and sound. You might notice feeling more irritable, jumpy, or easily overwhelmed by things that never used to bother you.
Respiratory alkalosis, which was mentioned earlier, increases the sensitivity of your peripheral nerves, which carry signals between your brain, spinal cord, and the rest of your body. As a result, you may experience more muscle tightness, mood swings, and a general sense of unease or apprehension. A 2004 study highlighted how these breathing patterns can contribute to ongoing anxiety and stress.
This creates a frustrating cycle: the more anxious you feel, the more likely you are to mouth breathe and over-breathe, which only keeps your body in a heightened state of stress.
2. Poor sleep quality and daytime fatigue
Breathing through your mouth at night can seriously disrupt your sleep. It changes the shape of your upper airway, making it more likely to collapse and cause obstructive sleep apnea. Research shows that mouth breathing is a strong predictor of sleep apnea, even in people without nasal blockage.
Those who mouth breathe during sleep often have more severe apnea, lower oxygen levels, and more frequent interruptions in their breathing. This means your body misses out on the deep, restorative rest it needs to function well.
The problems don’t end there. Mouth breathing also leads to snoring and airway dryness, which makes snoring worse and further disturbs your sleep.
As a result, you may wake up feeling tired, foggy, or unrested, no matter how many hours you spend in bed. Over time, this poor sleep quality can leave you struggling with daytime fatigue, lack of focus, and low energy. Studies confirm that the more you breathe through your mouth at night, the worse your sleep and daily energy levels become.
3. Bad breath and dental problems
If you often deal with bad breath or dental issues, mouth breathing could be the reason. Breathing through your mouth dries out your mouth and reduces saliva, which is essential for washing away food and bacteria.
Without enough saliva, bacteria multiply and cause unpleasant odors, leading to chronic bad breath. This is especially common in the morning for people who sleep with their mouths open, but it can last all day.
Mouth breathing also raises your risk for dental problems. Studies have found that mouth breathers have higher levels of dental plaque and are much more likely to develop cavities and gum issues.
A 2018 study showed that mouth breathers had more harmful bacteria like Streptococcus mutans, which causes tooth decay. Even with good brushing habits, mouth breathing can make it harder to keep your teeth and gums healthy.
4. Facial and dental development issues
How a child breathes can shape their face and dental health for life. Mouth breathing changes the position of the tongue, which should rest against the roof of the mouth to help the upper jaw grow wide and strong.
When the tongue sits low in the mouth, the upper jaw becomes narrower and the face grows longer, often leading to crowded teeth. Studies have shown that children who mouth breathe are more likely to develop these narrow facial features and dental crowding.
Jaw development is also affected. If the jaws don’t develop forward enough, the airway becomes smaller, making nasal breathing harder and encouraging a cycle of mouth breathing. This can lead to more orthodontic problems and a higher chance of needing dental treatment.
According to a 2010 study, children who are mouth breathers are more likely to develop narrow dental arches, jaw misalignment, and facial growth changes compared to nasal breathers, leading to a higher risk of dental crowding and bite problems.
5. Headaches and cognitive issues
Research reveals a powerful connection between how you breathe and your brain health. In one notable study, 83% of people with dysfunctional breathing experienced neck pain, while 53% suffered from headaches. When you breathe through your mouth, you disrupt your body’s natural balance of oxygen and carbon dioxide, creating a condition called respiratory alkalosis that can trigger headaches, dizziness, and mental fog.
Mouth breathing also forces your body to recruit neck and shoulder muscles for breathing, muscles that weren’t designed for this constant work. Over time, this creates a pattern of tension that radiates upward, contributing to both neck pain and those persistent headaches that pain relievers never quite seem to fix. Also, poor blood flow to the brain caused by chronic mouth breathing can result in excruciating headaches.
Beyond headaches, mouth breathing can significantly impact your cognitive abilities. A 2020 study published in the International Journal of Neuroscience found that mouth breathers showed reduced brain wave activity during mental tasks. This explains why many chronic mouth breathers report trouble concentrating, memory problems, and general mental sluggishness.
The root cause is simple: mouth breathing delivers less oxygen to your blood and brain. Since your brain requires about 20% of your body’s oxygen despite making up only 2% of your body weight, even small reductions in oxygen can noticeably impact how well you think and feel. These cognitive effects can be especially concerning for children who mouth breathe, potentially affecting learning and development.
6. Hormonal disruptions
Most people don’t realize that the way they breathe can directly affect their hormones. Mouth breathing, especially when it becomes chronic or leads to issues like sleep apnea, has been linked to lower testosterone levels and hormonal changes in both men and women.
In addition, mouth breathing can disrupt your body’s hormonal balance by keeping you in a stressed state, which raises cortisol levels. Too much cortisol interferes with sex hormones in both men and women, lowering testosterone and sex drive, causing erectile dysfunction, and affecting sperm health in men. For women, high stress from mouth breathing can disrupt menstruation, worsen PMS, lower sexual desire, and negatively affect pregnancy and menopause. In short, chronic mouth breathing can lead to widespread hormonal problems that impact sexual health and overall well-being.
A 2011 study on baby rats found that even short-term forced mouth breathing caused a dramatic spike in stress hormones, over 1,000% higher than normal. While some hormone levels normalized by adulthood, other hormonal changes persisted long-term, and the development of the brain’s olfactory bulb and respiratory muscles was also affected. This research suggests that mouth breathing can trigger lasting hormonal disruptions, which may influence growth, stress response, and overall well-being well into adulthood.
7. Speech disorders
Mouth breathing can have a big impact on how children speak and communicate. A 2011 study found that kids with chronic nasal blockages are much more likely to have speech problems, with over three-quarters experiencing trouble making sounds clearly because of issues with their throat, mouth, or vocal cords. Many also strain their voices to talk, which can lead to even more vocal problems over time.
Beyond speech itself, mouth breathing changes how the lips, cheeks, and tongue work together, making it harder for children to chew, swallow, and pronounce words correctly. Research from 2013 showed that chronic mouth breathing can cause lisps, unclear speech, and difficulty making certain sounds. These challenges can affect their confidence, social life, and even how well they do in school.
Are the Effects of Mouth Breathing Reversible?
The good news is that many of the problems caused by mouth breathing can be improved, and sometimes even reversed, especially if you take action now. For adults, addressing the root causes, like allergies, nasal congestion, or structural blockages, can make a big difference. Practicing conscious nasal breathing and using breath retraining techniques like the Buteyko breathing method can help shift your habits over time.
If you’re a parent, early intervention for your child is especially important. While mouth breathing can affect facial growth, jaw development, and tooth alignment in children, these changes are often much easier to correct if caught early, before the face is fully developed.
Encouraging your child to breathe through their nose, treating any nasal blockages, and seeking professional guidance can help set them up for better health and confidence. Remember, it’s never too late to make positive changes, and small steps toward nasal breathing can improve how you feel every day.
A simple yet effective tool that aids you stop mouth breathing is MyoTape.
MyoTape Effectively Prevents Mouth Breathing
Now that you understand the impact of mouth breathing on your health, you’re probably wondering what you can do about it. MyoTape offers a simple yet effective solution you can start using tonight.
Specially designed to gently support your lips closed during sleep, MyoTape encourages natural nasal breathing without feeling restrictive or uncomfortable.
Unlike conventional mouth tapes, MyoTape is soft, skin-friendly, allowing you to open your mouth if needed, making it safe and comfortable for adults and children. Its thoughtful design helps retrain your breathing patterns while you sleep, when mouth breathing often happens without awareness. MyoTape is a safe, innovative mouth tape designed by world-renowned breathing expert Patrick McKeown.
You can check out our range of effective mouth taping products designed for everyone, including mouth tape for kids, adults, those with sensitive skin, and even those with facial hair. Visit our online shop today to find the best MyoTape solution for you and start your journey to better, healthier breathing.
Using MyoTape regularly gives your body the chance to restore a healthier breathing pattern.
