San Francisco, Marin, and Oakland, CA
The majority of American adults are considered to be overweight or obese. Eating a healthy diet and exercising remains key to any regimen of weight loss, but did you know that your weight also could be impacted by the way you breathe? Specifically, breathing through the mouth on a regular basis can increase your likelihood of being overweight or obese. If your mouth breathing is due to a chronic stuff nose or allergies, you should consider getting help by a myofunctional therapist in San Francisco.
How does breathing affect weight?
Medical science agrees that the ideal method of breathing is shallow breaths through the nose with the mouth closed. Breathing in this manner is much more efficient. The body absorbs a higher quantity of oxygen into the bloodstream. Nasal breathing also encourages lower blood pressure, better-smelling breath, and a more balanced heart rate.
By contrast, breathing through the mouth can have a variety of different negative consequences. When you breathe through the mouth, you literally are gulping air. The body endures more stress when breathing in this manner. Mouth breathing also increases the likelihood of bouts of inflammation, especially in the GI tract, which can hinder digestion. Breathing through the mouth also can affect your quality of sleep. Many mouth breathers develop a habit of snoring, and loud snoring remains the major warning sign of a sleep breathing disorder such as obstructive sleep apnea, which can lead to chronic fatigue and increase the risk factor for several different systemic, life-threatening ailments.
Research has shown that breathing through the mouth also can cause people to have greater cravings for sugary, fatty, and starchy foods—all of which can lead to unwanted weight gain.
How your San Francisco dentist can help treat mouth breathing
There are several different ways to treat mouth breathing but many of the standard methods, such as mouth taping, are intended merely as a temporary measure. For lasting results, you must re-train yourself to breathe through the nose. Glen Park Dental can help you achieve this goal by prescribing a course of myofunctional therapy in Oakland.
Consisting of a series of simple, relatively pain-free exercises that work the tongue in addition to the muscles of the mouth and face, myofunctional therapy can correct negative habits and re-train the orofacial muscles. One of the main objectives of myofunctional therapy is to restore or achieve the ideal oral resting posture—with lips closed, teeth together, and the tongue resting gently against the upper palate. This posture also encourages a person to breathe through the nose, which will help make it easier to avoid unwanted weight gain in combination with regular exercise and a balanced, nutritious diet. Although the needs of each patient vary, a typical course of myofunctional therapy lasts about six months.
Myofunctional Therapy in San Francisco
If you or a member of your family is breathing through the mouth, then a course of myofunctional therapy could prove quite beneficial. To learn more about how myofunctional therapy can help you, please contact our San Francisco office by calling (415) 585-1500 to schedule a consultation.
Glen Park Dental is proud to serve the oral health needs of patients in the areas of Marin, Oakland, and San Francisco in California.
