Mewing While Exercising And Sleeping | Is It Necessary? | ENT Doctor’s Opinion

My conversation with my ear nose and throat (ENT) specialist continued where we subsequently talked about the potential ramifications mouth-breathing can have on the craniofacial development, and its potential implications relating to my sleep apnea.

About a year ago, I started to dive down the rabbit hole of mouth breathing vs nasal breathing with “proper” tongue posture.

The evidence supporting why you should breathe through your nose was convincing enough for me to take a serious look at my own airway issues, mainly my nasal congestion and how it forces me to use a full face mask with my CPAP machine every night.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-U5O7HCt0A

Even with a significantly impaired nasal passage, Mewing throughout my waking hours is possible, it is just difficult.

However, maintaining proper tongue posture and nasal breathing during exercise is impossible for me, and while I'm sleeping its also incredibly difficult as my body has subconsciously trained itself to let gravity drop my tongue into my throat while I sleep.

Chronic mouth breathing and bodybuilding is what led to my sleep apnea in the first place, and my tongue posture just compounds the issue and further encourages mouth breathing.

My question for my ENT specialist was whether or not Mewing while exercising and sleeping is necessary.

He was pretty confident in saying that even for those without inhibited airways, nasal breathing comfortably during very strenuous exercise is impossible.

Nasal breathing throughout less demanding exercise is encouraged, but it is not necessary if your exercise demands create oxygen needs that simply can't be met with nasal breathing.

Mewing sleeping however is necessary and is encouraged.

Takeaway

Although some of us find breathing through the nose a difficult thing to do, breathing through the mouth poses a risk that is not only detrimental to our health, but also to our craniofacial development.

Mouth tape while sleeping is encouraged, as is sleeping on your side to prevent gravity from dropping your tongue into your airway and causing sleep apnea.

While he did advise me to not use mouth tape, this is because the increased stress and workload created by forcing your body to get enough air in through your nose with an inhibited airway could be dangerous.

If I was able to resolve my turbinate inflammation, he said that mouth tape would then become a useful tool to train my body to breathe through my nose while I sleep, and to maintain proper tongue posture at the same time.