Humans are able to breathe through their mouth and their nose, but many of us (including a surprising number of ENT physicians)  don’t think that it makes a difference.   It makes a massive difference in how our faces grow… and how long we are likely to live!    

Everyone knows that air is warmed and filtered as it goes through the nose, but fewer know that Nitric Oxide (NO) is released from the sinus cavities into the nose and helps kill bacteria and viruses.  Nitric Oxide is not released into the mouth which leaves us far more prone to disease.  The nose is the first part of our immune system, and we bypass that barrier when we mouth breathe. 

When we mouth breathe, the tongue, which should be to the roof of the mouth, must be down so that air can pass over it.   This allows the cheeks to push against our upper teeth without having the tongue oppose that force.  It is no surprise that mouth breathers have more crowding of the teeth than nasal breathers.   Proper rest oral posture not only has the tongue up against the palate but the back teeth are in light contact.  This contact keeps the teeth from over-erupting vertically allowing faces to lengthen and be less attractive.  As the face lengthens both jaws will fall backward which is not only unaesthetic but unhealthy.   The airway behind the tongue and soft palate is reduced as a consequence of the jaws falling back which further complicates our ability to breathe.   Snoring and Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) can result.   OSA is not to be taken lightly as it is related to all chronic diseases known to man.  Untreated OSA statistically shortens our lifespan by 20%.

My longer face resulted from a lifetime of mainly night time mouth breathing and having a wet pillow every morning.   I had a narrow upper jaw which caused my teeth to crowd.   At age 11 an orthodontist told my mother I needed two teeth removed for braces.   My jaw got narrower with less room for my tongue as a result.  I had a number of ear infections as a child and at least two colds every year.  I missed 5 weeks of school with pneumonia in my 7th grade year.

Over 30 years ago I expanded my jaws orthodontically and re-opened an extraction space which helped me increase the width of my upper jaw 7 mm.  My tongue can now sit in its proper place against my palate at rest.  

Twelve years ago I heard Patrick McKeown, the author of The Oxygen Advantage, The Breathing Cure, and other books on breathing, speak.   I decided to tape my mouth at night since my mouth was open while sleeping.   I even began taping my mouth on airplane trips if I was going to nap.   By NEVER having my mouth open for any significant time I have eliminated the two colds I would get EVERY year and have gone as long as 3 1/2 years without a cold!    

As an addicted runner I decided to keep my lips together while running.   Initially I could run only a few hundred yards before having to blow my nose.   In a few short weeks I no longer had to stop running to blow my nose.   After having run 19 marathons with my mouth open, I ran my first marathon with my lips together. I felt great and placed second in my age group.  So far I’ve run 15 marathons with my lips together and find my breathing is much calmer running with my lips together.  

More recently I learned that I was still breathing too much which reduced the oxygen getting to my cells.  By holding my breath while exhaling I ultimately went from breathing once ever 5 strides to once every 15 strides!    Age has caused me to slow my pace, but breathing less has actually helped me perform better!