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Breathing is something that we do automatically to stay alive so almost all of us do not think twice about it. This is correctly natural to breathe through the mouth area at certain conditions such as when running or lifting heavy objects, however if breathing occurs through the mouth habitually then it can cause many health problems. These problems can be particularly severe for children as mouth respiration can affect the permanent progress the face and jaw.
So just why Breathe Through the Mouth?
Normal deep breathing is when we inhale and exhale through the nose with the mouth closed. The most
myofunctional therapy evident reason for anyone to be a mouth breather is they cannot get enough air through the nose. Prevalent reasons for blocked nose passages include:
Allergies - which can cause polyps or swelling of the nasal lining
Enlarged tonsils or adenoids
Deviated nose septum
Respiratory infections - cold or flu
Symptoms that may indicate sinus difficulty in breathing or airway obstruction are:
Apnea, sleep apnoea
Frequent higher airway infections
Sounding 'stuffy' during the day/night
Dark circles under the sight
Effects on Teeth, Mouth and Posture
As pointed out before, mouth breathing can lead to many health problems, in particular oral health problems. When we breathe through your oral cavity, there is loss of salivand dryness of the mouth which can improve the risk of dental decay and inflammation of the gums.
Also, mouth area breathing can lead to alterations in the mouth and facial growth. The normal resting position of the tongue increased against the roof of your mouth to compensate the forces of the face, however when a person breathes through your mouth area, the tongue drops. This kind of causes the narrowing of the upper jaw and elongation of the lower jaw, leading to the long, narrow face shape, typically known as 'long face syndrome'. As a result of narrowing of the jaws, crowding of the teeth, overbite problems and malocclusion is seen.
Realignment in head posture is another effect that can result. Chronic mouth breathers tend to tilt the head backwards and trim the head forward in front of the neck to maintain your airway available. This permits them to breathe better, however can have lead to permanent problems of the throat and back.
Treatment
Treatment of mouth breathing will depend on after the underlying cause. This requires a comprehensive approach where your dental practitioner, GP, ear-nose-throat specialist (ENT) and sleep physician may be engaged in deciding the treatment needed. Treatment may include prescription of certain medicines, surgery and myofunctional remedy and inhaling exercises.
Airway obstruction is a frequent cause of mouth breathing and frequently a full assessment by an ENT is needed to decide treating the blockage. Often certain medicines can be approved to increase nasal airflow and reduce obstructions like swelling of the nasal lining and polyps. For more complicated blockages such as enflamed tonsils or adenoids, surgery may be necessary to take them off.
At times even after removal of the airway obstruction, mouth area breathing is still present as it may be habitual. In the event this is the circumstance, myofuntional remedy along with specific breathing and muscle exercises can help in establishing nasal breathing. Exercises that aim at fortifying the facial muscles along with specific oral home appliances encourage nasal breathing and thus can aid in the proper growth and cosmetic development. This is certainly imperative in young children because they are still in their growing stages.
