Sleeping with your mouth closed at night sounds weird, right? But it’s not that weird for social media users who have a new sleeping secret called taping your mouth. Dr Neetu Jain, Senior Consultant, Critical Care, Sleep Medicine, PSRI Hospital, explains that this trend involves closing the mouth with skin-safe tape to promote nasal breathing while sleeping.
How long should you apply the tape?
“This practice allows one to breathe through the nose, which may improve sleep quality and overall health. Mouth taping should be done for seven to eight hours at night while sleeping,” explains Dr Manav Manchanda, Director and Head of Respiratory, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine at Asian Hospital. “Make sure you use a gentle hypoallergenic tape and consult a healthcare professional before starting this practice, especially if you have any respiratory issues or sleep disorders like sleep apnea.” And since there are no official guidelines on how to safely tape your mouth, it’s a good idea to test it out during the day, according to Dr Jain.
How do you put tape on your mouth?
According to experts, porous, skin-friendly tape is used for this trend. Dr Manchanda explains, “Mouth taping involves covering the upper and lower lips with special adhesive porous tape. This is done so that the person cannot open his mouth freely while sleeping.”
Does it help you sleep better?
Although there are no clinically proven results yet, doctors say that nasal breathing is better than mouth breathing. “Reduction in snoring and fatigue, improved concentration, reduced bad breath, better sleep, better oral hygiene, less thirst, etc. can be some of the benefits,” says Dr Akshay Budhraja, Senior Consultant, Respiratory and Sleep Medicine, Aakash Healthcare. “It can help lower blood pressure and filter out allergens,” says Dr Manchanda.
Who shouldn’t try it?
This trend is not for everyone. Dr Manchanda explains, “People suffering from sinus infections, ear infections, colds, chapped lips or inflamed skin around the mouth should not try it. Neither should people with medical conditions such as nasal polyps or nasal problems, obesity if the body mass index (BMI) is more than 35, or serious lung or heart problems.” He further adds, “It should not be tried if someone has consumed alcohol or taken sedatives.”
What are the risks involved?
Dr. Bandana Mishra, Head of Pulmonology Department, Shelby Sanar International Hospitals, Gurugram, said that mouth taping can cause swelling in the mouth, suffocation, panic, difficulty in breathing and sleep disturbance due to irritation and itching caused by the tape. She said that one should consult a doctor before trying this.
Don’t knock it till you try it
Model Ashley Graham extolled the benefits of the trend on the ‘Gram in 2023. Sharing a photo of herself lying in bed with tape over her mouth, the model wrote, “I started taping my mouth shut while I sleep and I’ve never slept better – and even better when I wake up. Don’t knock it till you’ve tried it!”
Best Wellness Tools
Supporting this fad, actor-entrepreneur Gwyneth Paltrow spoke about it in November, 2022. She wrote in her Insta Stories, “This is probably the best wellness tool I have found recently. Nasal breathing at night creates alkalinity in the body and induces good sleep.
