On this month’s Socially Transmitted, KBIA's Rebecca Smith and Najifa Farhat look at what we do and do not know about the practice of mouth taping.
Smith spoke with Dr. Mohammad Jarbou. He practices pulmonary, internal, critical care and sleep medicine at SSM Health St. Mary's Hospital in Jefferson City.
Socially Transmitted is a series where KBIA looks into the science behind online health advice and trends. Have you seen or heard something online that’s left you puzzled?
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Najifa Farhat: So, at first, what is it? Is it a duct tape that I can put on my mouth?
Rebecca Smith: So, mouth taping is kind of just what it sounds like — using some sort of skin-safe adhesive or device to keep one's mouth shut while sleeping. The idea seems to be that you can reduce snoring and dry mouth, as well as improve respiratory health by keeping the mouth shut.
I spoke with Dr. Mohammad Jarbou about the trend. He practices sleep medicine at St. Mary's Hospital in Jefferson City.
Dr. Mohammad Jarbou: It's just an adhesive or patch over the lips. It can be a chin strap, actually. Just the idea is to force nasal breathing overnight. Now, nasal breathing is generally better.
The nose warm[s], humidif[ies], work as an air filter — filter airs, add[s] resistance to support lung recruitment, deliver[s] nitric oxide to the lower airways.
So, nasal breathing is absolutely good. Again, is mouth tape the safest way to get there, or not?
Najifa Farhat: So, if nasal breathing is naturally good for us, then it seems like there may be some benefits to mouth tape?
Rebecca Smith: Dr. Jarbou says it depends. Nasal breathing is good — if your physiology supports it, and he says it should absolutely be avoided for kids and any person who can't easily remove the tape.
Dr. Mohammad Jarbou: We need to avoid mouth taping for people who had nasal obstruction, like a deviated septum or chronic rhinitis or polyps or allergy season — especially in the Midwest, especially in the Missouri area, everyone gets significant allergies.
Or a patient who had [a] cold — all that can cause nasal obstruction. So, if you're taping the mouth, that can cause more harm than benefit.
I tell my patient[s], please do not tape your mouth if you’re drinking, if you're using sedatives or opiates.
Also, we need to avoid it in patient who had acid reflux disease. Anyone who's prone to vomit overnight — that increases [the] risk for aspiration.
"I tell my patient, please do not tape your mouth if you’re drinking, if you're using sedatives or opiates."Dr. Mohammad Jarbou
Najifa Farhat: So, there seem to be some conditions where it would be unsafe to use mouth tape, but are there others where it might be beneficial?
Rebecca Smith: Dr. Jarbou says, again, it depends. While there's lots of evidence about nose breathing being good, there's less evidence about mouth taping as an intervention.
He says most of the patients he's speaking with about mouth tape are trying to fix problems, like snoring, and that can be an indicator of undiagnosed issues, including sleep apnea.
So, Dr. Jarbou tells people to not expect a miracle fix, as it's portrayed on social media, and he really stresses the importance of trying to figure out the root cause of mouth breathing issues.
Dr. Mohammad Jarbou: Is it worth the hype if you're not sure if it's, if you have nasal congestion? If you have an allergy? I go back to the most important question: the question, “Why is your mouth open at night?”
I understand people have dry mouth, people have snoring. They, when they tape their mouth, they feel better because their mouth is not dry, but why is your mouth open?
So, let's treat the problem. Let's treat the underlying problem, like nasal congestion, like nasal obstruction. Maybe that would cause your mouth to be open at night.
Najifa Farhat: Becky, thanks for gathering all the… tape on this.
