Is Mouth Breathing Bad For Your Teeth?
Dental hygiene is important for overall wellness, but are your breathing habits affecting your oral health? If you’re breathing through your mouth, this might be the case, according to Dianne Sefo, clinical associate professor and chair of the Dental Hygiene and Dental Assisting department at NYU. “Mouth breathing can impact oral health in a variety of ways,” she said in an email to Fox News Digital. Mouth breathing can also cause dry mouth, Sefo mentioned, and saliva is “important in maintaining oral health.” She noted, “In addition to its role in digestion, it provides lubrication, helps with washing away food debris from teeth and gums, reduces plaque accumulation, has an antibacterial effect, neutralizes acid and provides minerals to keep the teeth strong.”
How to address mouth breathing
To avoid breathing through your mouth, Sefo suggested pinpointing the underlying cause, which might require treatment from a health care provider. As cold and flu season makes it more difficult to breathe through our noses, Sefo recommended that sick people stay hydrated by continuously sipping water and keeping up with at-home dental hygiene routines. Drinking enough water helps thin out mucus, making it easier to breathe through the nose, Wei noted. The dentist also suggested avoiding allergens such as pollen, pet dander, dust and mold, which can cause nasal congestion and mouth breathing. The use of nasal sprays can help reduce congestion as well, while nasal strips can help open the nasal passages and make it easier to breathe, Wei said. Denver dentist Charles Barotz of Barotz Dental also chimed in, warning that even though decongestant nasal sprays can be effective in clearing the nose, they should “not be used every day.”
“You may have an allergy or polyps obstructing your nasal passages that can make it difficult to breathe through your nose and may need to see an otolaryngologist,” the Harvard publication noted, referring to an ear, nose and throat specialist.”Meanwhile, be sure to brush and floss your teeth regularly and drink lots of water to moisten your mouth throughout the day.”