The natural rhythmic breathing pattern in human body is to breathe through the nose.
However, either obligatory (due to nasal congestion or asthma) or habitually, some individuals develop the pattern of mouth breathing. Mouth breathing does have proven impact on the facial development, teeth alignment and airway development. Mouth breathers tend to develop long, narrow faces as jaws are set back from their ideal position. This in turn causes encroachment on airways, hence constricting them further.
Position of tongue in the upper palate counter balances the forces exerted by lips and cheeks. When we breathe through our mouth, tongue attains a low lying position in the mouth, hence the upper jaws start to constrict as the counter-active force from palatal position of the tongue is now missing.
The upper jaw thus adapts V shape instead of wide U shape which is unable to accommodate teeth in alignment. The way the jaws develop has a direct influence on the width of the upper airways which are comprised of the nose, nasal cavity, sinuses, and the throat. When we breathe through our nose, forward growth of the jaws is encouraged, that allows normal development of the face.
Characteristics of the normal face in nose breather:
-Forward position of the jaws,
-High cheekbones,
-Normal airway size and width of the face.
-Chin is nearly as far forward as the tip of the nose.
Characteristics of mouth breather face:
-the jaws are set back,
-the airways are smaller,
-diminished athletic performance.
.-The eyes look tired
-poor definition of the cheekbones
-Face sinks downwards
-postural changes
-decreased muscle strength,
-reduced chest expansion and
-impaired breathing.
Since the jaw growth can essentially continue till the age of eighteen years, early intervention with nasal breathing and tongue posture is essential. Deep breathing methods introduced by Buteyko do play a significant role in correction of mouth breathing. As an adjunct to the correction of mouth breathing, orthotropic appliances can be used in order to correct the jaw and tongue positions, followed by the fixed braces to correct the alignment of teeth.
