2024-01-27 02:00:00
life
I sleep with my mouth open and drooling every day… Is it okay?
Reporter Shin So-young
Entered 2024/01/27 11:00
If you sleep with your mouth open and breathe through your mouth, pollutants are not filtered out of your nose, which can cause bacterial infections, asthma, rhinitis, etc./Photo = Getty Image Bank Some people sleep with their mouths open every time they sleep. If you wake up in the morning and there is drool around your mouth and your throat and mouth are dry, it is likely that you slept with your mouth open. Why do we open our mouths without realizing it when we sleep? Find out the causes and solutions.
Sleeping with your mouth open may be due to a disease. Representative examples include allergic diseases and sleep apnea. If you have a stuffy nose due to allergies or if you snore and occasionally stop breathing due to sleep apnea, you may find it difficult to breathe through your nose, so you can sleep with your mouth open and mouth breathing. Also, when sleeping on a pillow that is too high, you sleep with your mouth open. When you raise your head, your airway narrows, which is because you naturally open your mouth to breathe better.
Actually, it’s okay to sleep with your mouth open sometimes. However, if it is repeated every day, it can become a problem. This is because sleeping with your mouth open is usually a sign that you are breathing through your mouth. The nose acts as a filter to filter out harmful substances or bacteria, and if you breathe through your mouth, bacteria can infect your tonsils or cause asthma, rhinitis, etc. Also, if you open your mouth for a long time, your mouth becomes dry, which can lead to gum disease such as bad breath and cavities.
Sleeping with your mouth open can make you more tired. This is because, unlike when breathing through the nose, breathing through the mouth does not provide adequate oxygen supply and lowers blood oxygen saturation. Then the overall sleep quality deteriorates. In particular, growing children should be careful because if they do not sleep well, their growth may slow down due to growth hormone imbalance. Concentration and memory may also decline.
To fix sleeping with your mouth open, you must first identify the cause. If it is due to allergies, sleep apnea, gum disease, etc., visit a hospital for treatment. If you sleep with your mouth open even though you do not have a specific disease, lowering the height of your pillow may help. The appropriate pillow height for adult men is 6 to 8 cm, and for adult women is 5 to 7 cm. Another method is to block oral breathing using devices such as mouth opening prevention bands or mouth opening prevention tapes. However, patients who have difficulty breathing through their nose, such as those with allergic diseases or sleep apnea, should be careful because tapes or bands may cause breathing problems.
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