Aug 10

Aug 10 Nose Breathing vs. Mouth Breathing

Hi, I'm Liz Moser, a Mayo Clinic and National Board Certified Health and Wellness Coach.

Over the last several weeks, I've devoured the book: Breath - The New Science of a Lost Art by James Nestor. It’s the most recent book my book group is reading, and because of what I learned from this book, I took a 3-day course in Sardashana Kriya, a breathwork and meditation course taught by the non-profit organization Art of Living. I’ll talk more in length about that in next week’s vlog.

And, I’ve started taping my mouth shut at night while I sleep. What? Taping your mouth shut? Yes, you heard me right! Ha! I'm taping my mouth shut while I sleep to ensure that I breathe entirely through my nose.

Let me tell you why:

The author, James Nestor, enrolled in a 10-day experiment. For ten days, he plugged his nose and breathed solely through his mouth. You might be as horrified as I was by this prospect. The few days a year I’m stuffed up and forced to breathe through my mouth during sleep are restless nights! Or you might be a chronic mouth breather due to allergies, asthma, or other ailments, and you're thinking, 'So what? Mouth breathing, nose breathing, it's all breathing; what's the difference, and who cares?'

It turns out it’s kind of a big deal, and it makes a huge difference to your health:

During Nestor’s ten-day experiment, his blood pressure spiked by 13 points pushing him into an unhealthy range, his heart rate variability, a measure of nervous system balance plummeted, suggesting increased stress, his pulse increased, body temperature decreased, and his athletic ability decreased.

Mouth breathing during sleep causes the body to lose 40% more water, and you'd think you would need to use the restroom less, yet the opposite is true. The pituitary gland secretes hormones that communicate with cells to store more water during the deepest part of sleep. This is how animals sleep through the night without needing to relieve themselves.

But, if the body has inadequate time in deep sleep as it does in chronic states of sleep apnea or mouth breathing, the necessary hormones aren’t secreted, the kidneys release water which triggers the need to urinate, and we get thirsty.

Furthermore, research shows that the soft nasal passages shrink or cave in without use. So, if you favor mouth breathing due to obstructed nasal cavities, it will only get worse over time. But never fear; they also expand with use. So, start breathing through your nose as much as you can!

After the 10-day experiment, Nestor removed his nose plugs. Then after another 10 days of breathing again through his nose, all Nestor’s negative markers reversed: blood pressure dropped to pre-test levels, his heartrate variability returned to normal, his pulse rate decreased, body temperature increased, his athletic ability returned, and his fatigue, stress and brain fog reversed.

Now he sleeps with mouth tape. He uses a small 2" strip in the middle of his lips, leaving the sides of his mouth free. My book group friend has purchased an X-shaped piece of tape from Amazon. If you search mouth tape on Amazon, you will find multiple options. That somehow reassures me that I’m not that crazy taping my mouth, or maybe I am, and I have a lot of company in my craziness! Ha!

I’m currently using Johnson and Johnson 1 ½" wide bandage tape putting a 2-3" piece horizontally across my mouth. I prefer to cover my mouth entirely. I suggest experimenting and then decide what works best for you.

I’m still getting up once a night to use the restroom, but I’m optimistic that will change soon, and I will be sleeping through the night. I’ll keep you posted ;-) I also have excellent blood pressure, so I haven’t noticed a difference there. I used to wake up with a dry mouth during the night and sip water. Now I drink my entire 20 oz bottle of water first thing in the morning.

For anyone with high blood pressure, frequent nighttime restroom users, or those who wake with morning dehydration headaches like my book group buddy used to do before mouth taping, I would suggest experimenting with taping your mouth shut while you sleep.

I’m Liz Moser, a Mayo Clinic and National Board Certified Health and Wellness Coach, and thank you for reading this blog about the benefits of breathing through your nose and mouth taping at night. If you have any questions about this blog, health, wellness, or wellness coaching with me, please reach out via my website at lizmosercoaching.com.