a wellness trend that’s been viral for awhile is mouth taping at night, where, just as it sounds, you put tape over your mouth to keep it shut while you sleep. it forces you to breathe through your nose, which some experts say is healthier and gives you a deeper sleep,
according to abc news. influencer lauryn bosstick, a texas entrepreneur and founder of
the skinny confidential products and podcast,
told good morning america that she wakes up energized and can breathe better throughout the day since she started mouth taping at night.
“the first time i did it, i woke up with more energy. it’s actually not hard once you start doing it,” she said. “i’m surprised, but i actually want to do it each night.”
she got the mouth taping idea from health experts she’d featured on her podcast, including stanford university neurobiology professor andrew huberman. he has talked about the benefits of nasal breathing on social media and his own podcast, suggesting that breathing through your nose instead of your mouth can help prevent spreading infection, improve facial structure, sinus function, teeth hygiene, and promote deep sleep at night.
“this is a reminder that unless you’re eating or speaking, you want to be nasal breathing, not breathing through your mouth. your nose is a much better filter for viruses and bacteria than is your mouth,”
huberman said in his podcast post on twitter. he also points to the book
“jaws: the story of a hidden epidemic,” written by his stanford colleagues, that looks at the effects of mouth breathing on reducing the size of our jaws and causing teeth to become crooked and crowded.
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