This One’s for the Mouth Tape Curious: What You Need to Know About Taping Your Mouth at Night
If you’ve spent any time on wellness TikTok or listening to podcasts like The Skinny Confidential, you’ve probably heard about mouth tape. It’s everywhere—and for good reason.
Taping your mouth at night might sound a little extreme at first, but it’s actually one of the simplest tools for improving sleep, focus, and even facial structure in adults. Still, it’s not a magic solution - and it’s definitely not one-size-fits-all. So let’s talk about what mouth tape it, how it works, and when it shouldn’t be used.
What Is Mouth Taping—And Why Do People Do It?
Mouth taping is exactly what it sounds like: using a gentle, skin-safe tape to encourage your mouth to stay closed during sleep. The goal isn’t to block your mouth entirely—it’s to train your body to default to nasal breathing at night.
Why does that matter? Because breathing through your nose while you sleep helps: ● Improve oxygen flow to the brain
● Activate your parasympathetic nervous system (aka: the rest-and-digest mode) ● Reduce snoring and nighttime wake-ups
● Support better jaw and tongue posture
● Lower your heart rate and improve recovery
● Minimize dry mouth and bad breath in the morning
Here’s the Catch…
Mouth taping can be powerful, but it’s not the right tool for everyone-and it shouldn’t be your first step.
At OroGlow, we use and recommend MyoTape, a specially designed product that wraps gently around the mouth (not over it) and works well for anyone ages 4 and up and when paired with myofunctional therapy. But using mouth tape alone – without addressing tongue posture, nasal
airflow, or muscle function–can create compensations or mask deeper issues like airway restriction or structural concerns.
In other words, mouth tape without proper guidance is like putting a Band-Aid on a leak in the wall. It might help for a bit, but it doesn’t fit the root.
Is Mouth Tape Safe for Kids?
This is where we really need to pause. Mouth taping is not safe or appropriate for children under age 4. For older kids, it should only be considered with the guidance of a trained provider who has done a full assessment of airway, structure, and muscle function.
In some cases, older kids may benefit from guided mouth taping with supervision and the support of a professional trained in airway health. But in general, it should never be done without a full assessment and a provider who understands the full picture.
If your child is mouth breathing at night, snoring, drooling, there are often safer, more developmentally appropriate tools we can start with first—starting with a free consultation.
Tips for Trying Mouth Tape for the First Time (Adults only)
● Start with a gentle tape made for sensitive skin (like MyoTape).
● Only tape once you're cleared of nasal congestion—never tape if you’re sick or can’t breathe well through your nose.
● Use while completing every day activities at first like cooking, cleaning the house, watching TV, to build up tolerance to the tape.
● Don’t force it. It’s a training tool, not a punishment. Start slowly and see how your body responds.
You Deserve to Wake Up Rested
Whether you’ve struggled with snoring, poor sleep, jaw pain, or even tension headaches, mouth breathing might be part of the puzzle. The good news? It’s not too late to change the pattern—and it doesn’t have to be complicated.
If you're ready to get to the root of your breathing and oral function, OroGlow is here to help. We offer virtual and in-person consultations to walk you through the science, the habits, and the solutions that work for your lifestyle.
OroGlow is a holistic myofunctional and speech therapy practice based in Abilene, Texas and serving clients virtually across the U.S. We help adults and children breathe better, sleep deeper, and feel more connected to their body through root-cause care.