Seeing videos of people sleeping with a piece of tape over their lips may look a little alarming, but this trend – called “mouth taping” – has exploded in popularity. Advocates claim that forcing yourself to breathe through your nose at night can cure snoring, improve your jawline, stop bad breath and give you the best sleep of your life.
It sounds like a miracle cure, but putting adhesive over your mouth while you are unconscious naturally raises some major red flags. Mouth taping is generally considered safe for healthy adults when performed correctly with appropriate materials. Still, it is not a cure-all and can be actively dangerous for certain people. If you have a stuffy nose or a serious sleep disorder, taping your mouth shut can actually cause you to stop breathing. Let’s look at the science to see if this trend is right for you.
The science behind nasal breathing
To understand why people tape their mouths, you first have to understand why breathing through your nose is so important.
Your nose is not just a hole on your face; it’s a complex air-filtration system. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), when you breathe through your nose, tiny hairs (cilia) trap dust and bacteria. The nasal passages also warm and humidify the air before it reaches your delicate lungs.
More importantly, your nasal passages produce nitric oxide. When you inhale this gas through your nose, it travels to your lungs and helps dilate your blood vessels, allowing your body to absorb more oxygen than when you breathe through your mouth, explains Healthline. Mouth breathers miss out on this crucial gas, which often leads to dry mouth, worse snoring and waking up feeling exhausted.
Why safety is a concern
The trend of mouth taping might promise better sleep and “jawline gains,” but it introduces a significant gamble by overriding your body’s biological fail-safe. The danger doesn’t lie in the tape’s adhesive; it lies in intentionally disabling your respiratory system’s emergency backup.
According to the Cleveland Clinic, the human body is naturally programmed to switch to oral breathing if the nose becomes congested due to allergies, illness, or environmental triggers. This automatic reflex is what keeps you oxygenated throughout the night. When you tape your mouth shut, you are effectively blocking your secondary airway, leaving your brain with no plan B if your sinuses fail.
While a healthy person might simply wake up in a state of “air hunger” and rip the tape off in a panic, the practice poses severe, high-stakes risks for others.
Risks and side effects
Even if you use the tape correctly, applying adhesive to your face every single night carries a few physical risks.
The most common side effect is contact dermatitis – a red, itchy rash caused by the glue on the tape, the Cleveland Clinic explains. The skin on your lips is incredibly thin and sensitive. Ripping off strong tape every morning can tear the skin, cause painful blisters, or pull out tiny facial hairs.
Psychologically, many people find the sensation of having their mouth taped completely terrifying. The Sleep Foundation notes that the feeling of restriction can trigger severe anxiety or claustrophobia, causing your heart to race and making it completely impossible to fall asleep in the first place.
“While some people report less snoring or better sleep, most of these claims are anecdotal and not well-supported by rigorous research with large and diverse samples,” says sleep expert Wendy Troxel, Ph.D., a RAND Corporation senior behavioral specialist and licensed clinical psychologist in Utah.
Who should avoid mouth taping?
Certain groups of people should never, under any circumstances, try mouth taping.
People with sleep apnea: The Mayo Clinic notes that if you have Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), your throat muscles relax and block your airway multiple times an hour while you sleep. Taping your mouth shut without a CPAP machine is incredibly dangerous and can cause your blood oxygen to drop to fatal levels.
People with nasal blockages: If you have a deviated septum, chronic sinus infections, severe allergies or nasal polyps, you cannot physically draw enough air through your nose. You must breathe through your mouth to survive.
Children and infants: You should absolutely never place tape over a child’s mouth. Their airways are tiny, and they cannot easily remove the tape themselves if they struggle to breathe.
Safer alternatives
If you want the benefits of nasal breathing but are nervous about the tape, or if your healthcare provider has told you it’s unsafe for you, there are much better, medically proven ways to keep your mouth closed at night. The best way to stop mouth breathing is to make sure your nose is completely clear before you go to bed. You can also try:
Saline rinses: Use a sterile saline spray or a Neti pot to flush dust and mucus out of your nasal passages.
Nasal strips: Over-the-counter strips (like Breathe Right) stick to the bridge of your nose and physically pull your nasal passages open wider, making it much easier to pull air in.
Elevating your head: According to Healthline, sleeping with an extra pillow uses gravity to drain mucus away from your nose, keeping the airway clear.
Best practices for mouth taping
Never use duct tape, masking tape or scotch tape. These adhesives are too strong and will tear your skin. If you are a healthy adult and your medical expert clears you to try mouth taping, you must use porous, hypoallergenic surgical tape (like 3M Micropore). Furthermore, do not seal your lips completely shut horizontally. Place one small, vertical strip of tape across the center of your lips. This serves as a gentle reminder to keep your jaw closed while still allowing you to breathe through the corners of your mouth in an emergency.
Why do athletes sleep with mouth tape?
The primary driver behind this trend is nitric oxide, a molecule produced in the paranasal sinuses. When you breathe through your nose, you carry this molecule into the lungs, where it acts as a vasodilator. This means it widens the blood vessels, significantly increasing the efficiency of oxygen transport to the muscles. Mouth breathing bypasses this process entirely, leading to lower blood oxygen saturation.
As the Washington Post notes, using tape at night amounts to “passive training.” They are forcing their bodies to adapt to a higher tolerance to CO2. Nasal breathing allows for a slower, more rhythmic exchange of gases, which helps maintain the body’s pH balance and prevents the premature “burning” sensation in the muscles caused by lactic acid buildup.
Who should not use mouth tape?
As noted by Anne Kamwila, Healthcare Policy Analyst, “Anyone who has been diagnosed with sleep apnea, severe asthma, a deviated septum or chronic nasal congestion from allergies should absolutely never use mouth tape. Furthermore, a PubMed Central publication warns that anyone who has consumed heavy amounts of alcohol or sleeping pills before bed should also avoid the practice, as they may be unable to wake up or clear an airway obstruction. When in doubt, don’t do it.”
Bottom line
While nasal breathing is scientifically proven to enhance oxygen absorption and improve sleep quality, forcing the issue with a mouth tape carries significant risks. While generally safe for healthy adults using gentle surgical tape, it can cause severe anxiety, skin irritation and is actively dangerous for anyone with sleep apnea or chronic nasal blockages. The safest approach is to consult a doctor and focus on clearing your nasal passages with saline rinses or nasal strips rather than taping your mouth shut.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do dentists recommend mouth tape?
Many biological dentists encourage nasal breathing because mouth breathing dries out saliva and can lead to severe cavities. Still, they usually recommend safer methods, such as myofunctional therapy (tongue exercises), rather than adhesive tape.
Do you need to use mouth tape forever?
No, if you use tape successfully, it is usually only a temporary training tool to retrain your jaw and tongue muscles to rest in the correct position; once the habit is formed, the tape is no longer needed.
Citations
Sobiesk JL, Munakomi S. Anatomy, Head and Neck, Nasal Cavity. PubMed. Published 2023. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK544232/
Nunez K. Nose Breathing: Benefits, How To, Exercises to Try. Healthline. Published February 1, 2021. https://www.healthline.com/health/nose-breathing#bottom-line
Cleveland Clinic. Nasal Congestion (Stuffy Nose): What It Is, Causes & Treatment. Cleveland Clinic. Published July 1, 2022. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/17980-nasal-congestion
Pacheco D. What is Somniphobia? Sleep Foundation. Published January 12, 2022. https://www.sleepfoundation.org/mental-health/somniphobia
Mayo Clinic. Obstructive Sleep Apnea – Symptoms and Causes. Mayo Clinic. Published July 14, 2023. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/obstructive-sleep-apnea/symptoms-causes/syc-20352090
Evans JR. Postural Drainage: Uses, Benefits, and Risks. Healthline. Published September 18, 2018. https://www.healthline.com/health/postural-drainage
Soong K. A pro athlete trained with tape over her mouth. You probably shouldn’t. Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/2023/08/12/nasal-breathing-mouth-tape-exercise/. Published August 14, 2023.
Lee YC, Lu CT, Cheng WN, Li HY. The Impact of Mouth-Taping in Mouth-Breathers with Mild Obstructive Sleep Apnea: A Preliminary Study. Healthcare. 2022;10(9):1755. doi:https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare10091755