Burke, Fairfax and Fairfax Station, VA
The pandemic made all of us more conscious about our health. Eating right, sleeping enough and getting daily exercise are key to improving your wellness. But did you know that how you breathe also influences your health? Today on the blog, Pamela Marzban, DDS, explores how mouth breathing makes a negative impact on your health and wellness.
There’s a right and a wrong way to breathe
The ideal way to breathe is through the nose with the mouth closed and the lips tightly sealed.
Nasal breathing has several benefits for your health such as:
- You absorb a higher quantity of oxygen because you are taking longer, slower breaths
- You produce nitric oxide, the presence of which kills harmful bacteria
- It regulates your heart rate
- Your sleep quality improves
- You are able to maintain the optimum resting oral posture: with lips closed, teeth closed, and the tongue resting gently against the roof of the mouth
What happens when you breathe through the mouth?
Unless you’re dealing with sinus congestion, you should not be breathing regularly through the mouth and here’s why.
First and foremost, mouth breathing is less efficient. You are gulping a surplus of air and this means you absorb less than the optimum amounts of oxygen.
Mouth breathing also leads to snoring which is a precursor to and major warning sign of a sleep breathing disorder. [link id=’108′ text=’Obstructive sleep apnea‘ esc_html=’false’ target=’_blank’ rel=’noopener’], a well-known and serious sleep breathing disorder, affects millions of Americans.
Mouth breathing has a host of health risks, including:
- It encourages increased growth of malignant tumors
- It exacerbates any existing case of sinusitis
- It inflames the gastrointestinal tract
- It can aggravate or worsen skin diseases, such as eczema and psoriasis
What are the warning signs of mouth breathing?
Many people breathe through the mouth at night while asleep and never realize they are engaging in this potentially harmful habit. Snoring, as mentioned earlier, is a major indicator that you are breathing through the mouth.
Other signs of mouth breathing include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Frequent flare-ups of any existing allergies
- Difficulty maintaining focus and comprehending during the day
- Tossing and turning during the night
- Chronic sinus issues
How does your dentist help with mouth breathing?
If you’re noticing any of the above behaviors in you or a member of your family, then you should make an appointment with your dentist at your earliest opportunity. The office of Pamela Marzban, DDS, can treat your mouth breathing in Burke through a course of [link id=’52982′ text=’myofunctional therapy.‘ esc_html=’false’ target=’_blank’ rel=’noopener’] This type of therapy consists of simple exercises that work to re-educate the muscles of the mouth and face, as well as the tongue. Performed regularly over time, myofunctional therapy helps a patient to achieve and maintain that ideal oral resting posture, which facilitates breathing through the nose rather than the mouth.
Dr. Pamela Marzban works with a licensed orofacial myofunctional therapist (or OMT) at her office. If you’re located in Burke or any of the surrounding areas of Virginia, schedule your appointment today by calling (703) 323-8200 or [link id=’50003′ text=’contact us online.‘ esc_html=’false’ target=’_blank’ rel=’noopener’]
